This Week’s Games

GRIFFINS vs. Chicago Wolves // Wed., Jan. 15 // 7 p.m. // Van Andel Arena

Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM & 1300 AM at 6:45 p.m.

Watch: AHLTV on FloHockey 

Season Series: 2-3-0-0 Overall, 1-1-0-0 Home. Sixth of eight meetings overall, third of four at Van Andel Arena

All-Time Series: 103-89-2-8-5 Overall, 43-20-1-1-7 Home 

NHL Affiliation: Carolina Hurricanes  

Noteworthy: The Wolves went 10-2-1-0 from Dec. 1-Jan. 4 and are now in fourth place in the Central Division with a 17-13-2-0 record (.563). Since that run, Chicago has gone on to lose three straight contests entering this week, having allowed five goals in each game.  

GRIFFINS vs. Cleveland Monsters // Fri., Jan. 17 // 7 p.m. // Van Andel Arena
GRIFFINS vs. Cleveland Monsters // Sat., Jan. 18 // 7 p.m. // Van Andel Arena

Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM & 1300 AM at 6:45 p.m. on Friday and 7 p.m. on Saturday

Watch: AHLTV on FloHockey on Friday, WXSP-TV and AHLTV on FloHockey on Saturday

Season Series: 4-1-0-0 Overall, 2-0-0-0 Home. Sixth and seventh of eight meetings overall, third and fourth of four at Van Andel Arena

All-Time Series: 77-40-9-13 Overall, 44-18-4-3 Home 

NHL Affiliation: Columbus Blue Jackets 

Noteworthy: Grand Rapids has points in 24 out of the last 30 games overall (17-6-4-3, .683) against Cleveland, and it is also 23-9-4-3 (.679) against the Monsters in the last five seasons.  

Ups and Downs: The Griffins returned from the holiday break with a 3-0-0-0 record in their first three games but have since gone on to drop their last three outings, which is tied for the longest losing streak this season. The defense has been solid once again, allowing just 1.33 goals since the break. However, the offense has averaged just 2.33 goals per game since the break and just one goal per game in its last four outings. Grand Rapids is now tied for first place in the Central Division, tied for second in the Western Conference, and tied for sixth in the AHL with a 20-12-3-0 record and 43 points through 35 games. The Griffins are 12-10-2-0 against their division rivals and have had at least a share of the top spot in the division since Nov. 8.

Home Sweet Home: On Jan. 4, the Griffins finished a stretch of games that saw them play nine of 12 contests on the road from Dec. 7-Jan. 4 and showed a 6-4-2-0 record. Grand Rapids is now in a season-high five-game homestand that began last Friday and in a stretch that will see it play eight of its next 10 games inside Van Andel Arena from Jan. 10-Feb. 1. The Griffins are 9-6-1-0 at home this season but have won just one of their last six home outings (1-4-1-0). Under head coach Dan Watson, Grand Rapids is 32-13-5-2 (.683) inside Van Andel Arena.

Elm Tree: Elmer Soderblom, the tallest player in franchise history at 6-foot-8, registered two points (1-1—2) last Friday against Manitoba and now has five points in his last seven outings (2-3—5). During his two-point night last weekend, the 23-year-old bagged his 50th point as a Griffin (21-29—50) in his 115th outing with the team. Last year, Soderblom produced 29 points (13-16—29) in 61 contests before adding two points (1-1—2) in seven playoff games, making his Calder Cup Playoff debut on May 3, 2024 against Rockford. The Gothenburg, Sweden, native also appeared in 21 games with the Detroit Red Wings during his rookie season in 2022-23 and totaled eight points (5-3—8) in 21 games. 

Written In The Stars: Goaltender Sebastian Cossa, forward Austin Watson, and head coach Dan Watson will represent the Griffins at this year’s AHL All-Star Classic to be held Feb. 2-3 at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, California. Cossa, who is in his second full season with the Griffins, will make his first appearance in the AHL All-Star Classic and the first for a Griffins goalie since Petr Mrazek in 2013. The 15th overall pick by the Detroit Red Wings in 2021 ranks among the AHL’s leaders in minutes played (1,178:10, 8th), games played (20, T8th), GAA (2.34, 8th), wins (10, T12th), and save percentage (.917, 10th). Austin Watson, a 13-year veteran, will also make his first AHL All-Star Classic appearance. The Ann Arbor, Michigan, native is tied for first on the roster with 25 points (9-16—25) in 33 games, while also tying for the team lead in assists (16) and power-play goals (4). Dan Watson is the first Griffins coach to achieve an all-star honor since Todd Nelson in 2017 and the fourth head coach in franchise history to coach in an all-star game, joining Nelson, Jeff Blashill (2014), and Bruce Cassidy (2002 AHL, 2001 IHL). This will mark Watson’s third career all-star appearance, as he was chosen to coach in the ECHL All-Star Game in both 2017 and 2022 while with the Toledo Walleye. 

Shine Bright: Veteran Dominik Shine is tied for first on the roster in points (10-15—25) and third in assists (15) and goals (10) in 35 games. Shine collected his sixth multi-point game of the season on Dec. 7 at Chicago (0-2—2), which tied for his career-high mark set in 2021-22, and now has six points (4-2—6) in his last 10 contests. Last year, Shine posted career-high numbers in assists (23), points (33) and plus-minus rating (+8) and is on pace to reach 52 points (21-31—52) this season. The Detroit native has spent his entire career with Grand Rapids since 2016-17 and has accumulated 163 points (71-92—163) and 511 penalty minutes in 457 appearances. In the Griffins’ all-time rankings, Shine places third in games played, sixth in penalty minutes, tied for 10th in overtime goals (2), and tied for first in unassisted goals (10).

Rollercoaster Ride: The Griffins ranked 29th in the AHL through the first 10 games with 2.20 goals per contest before showing 4.10 goals per game from Nov. 7-Dec. 1 and going 8-2-0-0 during the run. The Griffins then averaged just 2.33 goals per game from Dec. 6-22 and went 3-4-2-0 in those contests. Grand Rapids has now potted 14 goals across six games (2.33) since Dec. 28 with a 3-3-0-0 record and just one goal per game on average in its last four contests. The Griffins are tied for 23rd on the circuit with 2.80 goals per outing, while ranking first in goals against per game (2.43). When scoring at least three goals this season, Grand Rapids is 16-0-0-0 compared to 4-12-3-0 when scoring fewer than three goals.

Lock it Down: The Griffins have allowed just 1.33 goals per game since returning from the holiday break and rank first overall with 2.43 goals allowed per game this season. Sebastian Cossa has shown a 2.34 goals-against average and .917 save percentage through 20 games, while Jack Campbell has logged a 1.82 goals-against average and a .932 save percentage in five appearances. Dating back to last season, Grand Rapids has allowed just 41 goals in its last 19 regular-season games at Van Andel Arena (2.16 GA per game). Also dating back to last season, the Griffins have allowed 54 goals in their last 21 regular-season road games (2.57 GA per game).

Power Outage: The Griffins have been held without a power-play goal in four straight games (0-for-14) and have converted just three of their last 21 power-play opportunities (14.3%) during their last seven games. Grand Rapids had its best run when it scored a power-play goal in five straight games from Nov. 24-Dec. 6 (5-for-15, 33.3%). The power play is tied for 22nd on the circuit at 16.4% (20-for-122). If you break it down further, Grand Rapids’ home power play is 8-for-49 (16.3%, 21st) and its road power play is 12-for-73 (16.4%, 18th). The Griffins have also given up five short-handed goals, which is tied for the seventh-most. The Griffins’ penalty kill has also struggled as of late, allowing a power-play goal in three straight games (9-for-13 on PK, 69.2%). Grand Rapids has also surrendered a power-play goal in 10 of its last 15 outings (44-for-56 on PK, 78.6%). However, the penalty-kill unit remains one of the best in the league, as it ranks eighth at 85.1%. Grand Rapids has scored five short-handed tallies this season, which is tied for fifth in the AHL. When scoring on the power play, the Griffins are 11-4-2-0 and 5-9-1-0 when they allow a power-play goal.

Holy Goalies: Sebastian Cossa, the 15th overall pick by the Detroit Red Wings in 2021, has been the go-to netminder for the Griffins this season, as he has a 10-7-3 mark with a 2.34 GAA and a .917 save percentage in 20 games. Cossa ranks among the AHL leaders in minutes played (1,178:10, 8th), games played (20, T8th), GAA (8th), wins (T12th), and save percentage (10th). The 22-year-old collected his first NHL victory during his debut on Dec. 9 at the Buffalo Sabres with a 6-5 shootout victory behind 12 saves and two stops in the shootout. Cossa became the first netminder in NHL history to win his debut via a shootout in a relief effort. Veteran Jack Campbell made his Griffins debut on Dec. 6 against the Chicago Wolves and later bagged his first win as a Griffin on Dec. 17 at Texas behind 20 saves in a 4-2 decision. Through five games with Grand Rapids, Campbell is 2-3-0 with a stellar 1.82 goals-against average and a .932 save percentage. Campbell has 443 pro games under his belt with a 2.66 GAA and 231 wins since 2011-12, splitting time between the NHL (176 GP), AHL (240 GP) and ECHL (27 GP). In the AHL, Campbell has shown a 119-85-26 record with a 2.70 goals-against average and a .911 save percentage.

Pucks On Net: The Griffins outshot their opponent just three times in the first 21 contests (14.3%) but have since outshot their opponent five times in the last 14 games (35.7%). Grand Rapids held a shot advantage in two straight games from Jan. 2-4, a feat its only done two other times this season (Dec. 7-8; Nov. 24-29). The Griffins average 25.4 shots per game, which ranks last in the AHL. Grand Rapids has been held to under 20 shots six times and has exceeded 30 shots eight times. On the flip side, the Griffins’ opponents average 28.7 shots per game (16th in AHL) and have been held to under 30 shots 17 times. The third period has given the Griffins the most problems, as they are being outshot 311-254 compared to being outshot 334-309 in the second and 339-308 in the first. However, Grand Rapids has a 12-7-2-0 ledger when recording 20-29 shots and an 11-5-2-0 mark when allowing 30-39 shots. 

AHL Leaderboard Tracker:
Shai Buium—Tied for seventh among rookie defensemen in assists (11), tied for 13th among rookie defensemen in points (11), sixth among rookie defensemen in plus-minus rating (+7)
Sebastian Cossa—Eighth in minutes played (1,178:10), tied for eighth in games played (20), eighth in GAA (2.34), tied for 12th in wins (10), and 10th in save percentage (.917)
Nate Danielson—Tied for third in short-handed assists (2), tied for first among rookies in short-handed assists (2), tied for fifth among rookies in assists (16), tied for 10th among rookies in power-play assists (6)
Alex Doucet—Tied for fourth in short-handed goals (2), tied for first among rookies in short-handed goals (2)
x William Lagesson—Tied for 11th in plus-minus rating (+13), tied for ninth among defensemen in plus-minus rating (+13)
Amadeus Lombardi—Tied for sixth in game-winners (4)
Austin Watson—First in major penalties (8) 

Milestones:
Last Friday against Manitoba, Elmer Soderblom collected his 50th point as a Griffin during a two-point outing (1-1—2) and Antti Tuomisto skated in his 150th pro game.
Sheldon Dries—Three assists from 100 in the AHL, two points from 250 as a pro 
Dominik Shine—One unassisted goal from claiming the franchise record of 11 in a career
Joe Snively—Four points from 200 in the AHL
Elmer Soderblom—One assist from 50 as a pro

Photo by Mark Newman/Griffins