GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- Tim Gettinger's shootout goal put an end to a 10-round shootout while extending the Grand Rapids Griffins' win streak to seven games in a 4-3 shootout victory over the Manitoba Moose at Van Andel Arena on Friday. 

The last time the Griffins won seven consecutive contests was during a 13-game run between Feb. 20 and March 19, 2016, while the last time the team won 12 of its last 15 contests was between Jan. 19 and Feb. 28, 2018 (12-1-0-2). With its win tonight, Grand Rapids has collected back-to-back shootout victories for the first time since 2019 (March 16-19). Both Austin Czarnik and Jonatan Berggren got on the score sheet tonight, as Czarnik potted a goal for his 14th point in 13 games (4-10--14) and Berggren bagged an assist for his 17th point in 13 games (6-11--17). 

Over midway through the opening frame, Gettinger skated in on Thomas Milic and lasered the puck into the net from the right circle at 12:28 to put Grand Rapids ahead 1-0.

The Griffins then added to their lead roughly 11 minutes into the second period when Czarnik fired a rebound behind Milic from the left circle with 8:58 remaining in the middle frame.

Within the first minute of the puck being dropped, Marco Kasper found twine with a between-the-legs goal from the doorstep for a 3-0 contest in favor of the Griffins 40 seconds into the final period. The Moose got on the board shortly after Grand Rapids’ tally, as Kristian Reichel rushed into the zone and slid the puck through Michael Hutchinson’s five-hole while in the crease with 16:34 remaining. Just 10 seconds after Manitoba’s first tally, Hutchinson’s pass from behind the net was intercepted and sent directly into an empty net by Nikita Chibrikov from the doorstep at 3:36. Roughly two minutes after their second goal, the Moose erased the Griffins’ lead and tied the game at 3-3 with a blast from the point, courtesy of Dawson Barteaux with 14:26 remaining.

A 3-3 tie after 60 minutes sent the contest into overtime. Albert Johansson had an opportunity to end the contest, however his shot bounced off the crossbar. 

Berggren opened scoring in the shootout, which put the Griffins at a 1-0 advantage. With the game on the line, Chibrikov answered and tied the shootout at 1-1. After an unsuccessful round for both teams, Amadeus Lombardi backhanded the puck into the net for a 2-1 advantage. However, Ville Heinola answered the call for the Moose, as he went five-hole to tie the shootout at 2-2. After four straight rounds of no goals, Gettinger put Grand Rapids up at 3-2 in the shootout. Hutchinson then denied Axel Jonsson-Fjallby, which gave the Griffins a 4-3 shootout victory over Manitoba.

Notes
- Grand Rapids' penalty kill stood tall tonight, as it denied the Moose a power-play goal on all three of their chances. 
- The win tonight improved the Griffins to 11-2-1-0 since Christmas. 
- Grand Rapids' shootout victory handed Manitoba its first shootout loss of the season.
- Tonight marked the first time in nearly 16 years that two DP Fox Sports & Entertainment franchises played on the same night, as the Grand Rapids Rise of the Pro Volleyball Federation played in Atlanta. It's also the first time since two DP Fox Sports & Entertainment franchises won on the same night since March 4, 2007.

Box Score
Manitoba 0 0 3 0 - 3
Grand Rapids 1 1 1 0 - 4

1st Period-1, Grand Rapids, Gettinger 10 (Wallinder, Shine), 12:28. Penalties-Heinola Mb (holding), 6:30; Lambert Mb (tripping), 17:09.

2nd Period-2, Grand Rapids, Czarnik 7 (Soderblom, Spezia), 11:02. Penalties-Hutchinson Gr (tripping), 12:14; Berggren Gr (high-sticking), 15:38.

3rd Period-3, Grand Rapids, Kasper 7 (Berggren, Mazur), 0:40. 4, Manitoba, Reichel 10 (Ford, Malott), 3:26. 5, Manitoba, Chibrikov 14 3:36. 6, Manitoba, Barteaux 3 (Capobianco), 5:34. Penalties-Johansson Gr (roughing), 11:37.

OT Period- No Scoring.Penalties-No Penalties

Shootout - Manitoba 2 (Lambert NG, Reichel NG, Chibrikov G, Malott NG, Heinola G, Capobianco NG, Ford NG, Viel NG, Zhilkin NG, Jonsson-Fjallby NG), Grand Rapids 3 (Soderblom NG, Berggren G, Czarnik NG, Kasper NG, Lombardi G, Hirose NG, Mazur NG, Shine NG, Rafferty NG, Gettinger G).
Shots on Goal-Manitoba 6-8-13-0-0-27. Grand Rapids 8-6-7-1-1-23.
Power Play Opportunities-Manitoba 0 / 3; Grand Rapids 0 / 2.
Goalies-Manitoba, Milic 4-2-1 (22 shots-19 saves). Grand Rapids, Hutchinson 10-8-2 (27 shots-24 saves).
A-9,580

Three Stars
1. GR Gettinger (goal, shootout-winner); 2. GR Kasper (goal); 3. MB Barteaux (goal)

Record / Next Game
Grand Rapids: 21-15-4-1 (47 pts.) / Sat., Feb. 10 vs. Manitoba 7 p.m.
Manitoba: 16-24-1-1 (34 pts.) / Sat., Feb. 10 at Grand Rapids 6 p.m. CST

Photo by Nicolas Carrillo