Feb. 26, 2022

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Ryan Murphy’s shootout goal lifted the Grand Rapids Griffins over the Bakersfield Condors 4-3 on Saturday at Van Andel Arena. The victory marked the first shootout win for the Griffins since Jan. 22, 2020, when they defeated the Iowa Wild 4-3.

Patrick Curry notched his first goal of the season in the second period. Calvin Pickard continued to dominate, as he notched 34 saves and his third win in his last four appearances. Jonatan Berggren’s game-tying goal crowned him the new team leader in tallies with 14. The Griffins notched their first home victory over the Condors and improved to 2-4-0-0 all-time against Bakersfield.

Grand Rapids scored the game’s first goal at 9:59 in the first. Dan Renouf found Brian Lashoff just above the blue line. The captain then sent a one-timer through traffic and into the right corner.

The Griffins took a 2-0 lead with 11:41 remaining in the middle frame. Curry at the right circle gathered a rebound after Brett McKenzie’s initial shot was deflected by netminder Stuart Skinner. Curry then smashed the disc past the outstretched glove of Skinner.

Bakersfield got on the board at 10:59 of the second during a power play. Seth Griffith sent a centering pass to Cooper Marody in the slot. The Condor skater then sent a wrister past the pads of Pickard to cut the deficit to one.

In the third, Bakersfield tied the contest with 13:46 remaining when Dylan Holloway stole the puck in the Griffins’ zone and skated toward net. Holloway then backhanded the rubber past the glove of Pickard to even the game at two apiece.

At 14:54 during a Condors’ power play, Griffith in the slot fired the puck through traffic and past Pickard’s stick to give Bakersfield a 3-2 lead.

Grand Rapids looked to tie the contest and send the game to overtime during a power play. Taro Hirose from behind the net found Berggren by himself at the blue line. From the right circle, the rookie sent a laser past Skinner to tie the contest with 2:05 remaining.

After a scoreless overtime period, the game went into a shootout. After three rounds, the teams were knotted at one goal each. Pickard closed the door on former Griffin Luke Esposito during the fourth round. Murphy then delivered the final dagger for the Condors, going left-to-right and placing the puck top shelf into the right corner.

Notes

• Luke Witkowski skated in his 300^th game in the AHL.
• In the last four games, Pickard has a 0.950 save percentage, stopping 131 of 138 shots.
• Jon Martin tied a career-high two points (0-2--2).
  

Box Score
Bakersfield 0 1 2 0 - 3
Grand Rapids 1 1 1 0 - 4

1st Period-1, Grand Rapids, Lashoff 4 (Renouf, Hirose), 9:59. Penalties-Malone Bak (roughing), 11:23; Witkowski Gr (roughing), 11:23.

2nd Period-2, Grand Rapids, Curry 1 (McKenzie, Martin), 8:19. 3, Bakersfield, Marody 16 (Griffith, Holloway), 10:59 (PP). Penalties-Desharnais Bak (interference), 5:01; McIsaac Gr (holding), 9:18; Griffith Bak (interference), 13:41.

3rd Period-4, Bakersfield, Holloway 4 6:14. 5, Bakersfield, Griffith 20 (Kaldis, Marody), 14:54 (PP). 6, Grand Rapids, Berggren 14 (Hirose, Martin), 17:55 (PP). Penalties-Renouf Gr (high-sticking), 2:57; served by McKenzie Gr (bench minor - too many men), 13:52; Marody Bak (holding), 16:29.

OT Period- No Scoring.Penalties-No Penalties

Shootout - Bakersfield 1 (Lavoie G, Griffith NG, Holloway NG, Esposito NG), Grand Rapids 2 (Berggren NG, Hirose G, Spezia NG, Murphy G).
Shots on Goal-Bakersfield 11-10-13-3-0-37. Grand Rapids 10-11-6-1-1-29.
Power Play Opportunities-Bakersfield 2 / 3; Grand Rapids 1 / 3.
Goalies-Bakersfield, Skinner 10-1-4 (28 shots-25 saves). Grand Rapids, Pickard 18-12-5 (37 shots-34 saves).
A-9,340

Three Stars
1. GR Murphy (shootout goal); 2. BAK Griffith (goal, assist); 3. GR Hirose (two assists)

Record / Next Game
Grand Rapids: 22-20-5-2 (51 pts.) / Fri., March 4 vs. Iowa 7 p.m.
Bakersfield: 22-12-4-5 (53 pts.) / Wed., March 2 at San Jose 6 p.m. PST

Photo by Mark Newman/Griffins