Griffins Game #50 * Road Game #23 * AHL Game #786

Season Series: 5-0-2-0 Home Series: 3-0-1-0 Road Series: 2-0-1-0
All-Time Series: 122-87-7-11-8 All-Time Home Series: 67-40-2-4-3 All-Time Road Series: 55-47-5-7-5

Griffins at Admirals
Eighth of 12 meetings overall, fourth of six at Panther Arena…Grand Rapids is 20-19-4-0 (.512) against Milwaukee since the 2021-22 campaign with a minus-five margin (116-111)...Also dating back to the 2021-22 season, the Griffins are 7-12-2-0 (.381) against the Admirals in Milwaukee with a minus-14 margin (62-48)...Grand Rapids has faced Milwaukee more than any other opponent – 236th meeting tonight – and the Griffins’ 122 victories against the Admirals are the most against any foe…The Admirals are 3-5-0-2 in their last 10 games while the Griffins are 7-3-0-0 in their last 10...Grand Rapids is on a five-game win streak and Milwaukee is on a two-game winless skid (0-1-0-1)...The Admirals are 13-8-1-1 at home compared to 7-14-1-2 on the road...The Griffins are 18-2-1-1 on the road and 21-5-1-0 at home...Milwaukee’s power play ranks first at 25.3%, and its penalty kill is seventh at 82.9%...Grand Rapids is 15th on the power play at 19.0% and first on the penalty kill at 87.1%...Milwaukee ranks 22nd with 2.83 goals scored per game and 15th in goals allowed per game (3.04)...Grand Rapids ranks first in goals scored per game (3.47) and first in goals against per game (1.90)...Milwaukee head coach Karl Taylor is in his seventh season as head boss and is the Admirals’ winningest AHL coach. Taylor has a 264-155-33-15 record (.617) with the Admirals that includes three regular-season division titles and four 40-plus win seasons, in addition to never finishing worse than third place in the Central Division...Austin Watson spent nine seasons within Nashville’s organization and logged 132 points (73-59—132) in 234 games with the Admirals...John Leonard posted 44 points (17-27—44) in 67 games with Milwaukee in 2022-23, adding one goal in six games with Nashville...Admirals’ Andrew Gibson was a second-round pick of the Detroit Red Wings in 2023 (#42nd overall)...Milwaukee’s Ryan Ufko ranks 10th in the AHL in assists (30). Among defensemen, Ufko is tied for third in goals (10), second in assists and second in points. Kyle Marino ranks seventh in penalty minutes (117) and Daniel Carr is tied for fifth in power-play goals (10). Finally, Carr and Zach L’Heureux are tied for fifth in game-winners (5). 

Last Time Out
Amadeus Lombardi (1-1—2) potted the game-winner in overtime to propel the Griffins to a 2-1 victory over the Chicago Wolves on Friday at Van Andel Arena. The Griffins’ magic number to clinch a playoff berth is now six points, and they improved to 29-0 when scoring the game’s first goal. Grand Rapids tallied its seventh win in its last eight outings, and improved its league-best record to 39-7-2-1 with 81 points through 49 contests. Michal Postava tallied 31 saves for his 10th win of the campaign (10-3-0), and Michael Brandsegg-Nygard notched his 10th goal of the season. Ian Mitchell and Alex Kannok Leipert each bagged an assist.

This Date in Griffins History
2015: Petr Mrazek authors his first AHL shutout of the season before a sold-out Van Andel Arena, making 26 stops in a 2-0 leashing of the Hamilton Bulldogs to complete his triumphant weekend return from Detroit and pull the Griffins into a tie for first place in the Midwest Division. 

Are We Talking About Playoffs? 
The Griffins enter tonight’s game with a magic number of six to clinch a playoff berth and can clinch this Sunday with a win over Milwaukee coupled with a pair of Rockford regulation losses to San Diego. The earliest clinching date in team history for Grand Rapids was March 6 (2003-04 season). The Griffins have led the Central Division for the entire season, and are 20 points above second-place Chicago and 41 points up on a playoff spot. Grand Rapids is 30-5-2-1 against its division rivals and has outscored them 135-74, suffering its first regulation defeat against the division on Jan. 9 against Texas. The Griffins’ 30 wins are the most divisional victories since 2023-24 (30). Eighteen of the remaining 23 games for Grand Rapids will be against the Central Division (78.3%). The Griffins will see the most games against the Milwaukee Admirals (5) and Rockford IceHogs (5). 

Back in the Groove 
The Griffins dropped six of 10 games from Jan. 7-30 but have since returned to form, showing a 7-1-0-0 record with a plus-15 margin (29-14) from Jan. 31-Feb. 18. Grand Rapids has scored five goals in four of its last eight contests and has allowed more than two goals just once. The Griffins have continued their league-record start with a 39-7-2-1 ledger and 81 points through 49 games. Grand Rapids tied the 2005-06 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (34-6-3-2, 73 pts.) for the second-best start in AHL history through 45 games. The team saw its franchise-record tying 15-game win streak from Nov. 22-Dec. 27 come to an end in overtime on Dec. 31, which also tied for the sixth-longest run in AHL history. In addition, the Griffins’ 19-game point streak from Nov. 22-Jan. 7 (18-0-1-0) ended on Jan. 9, which tied for the longest run in franchise history. The Griffins are 18-2-1-1 on the road and 21-5-1-0 at home. The 17-game points streak on the road from Oct. 10-Jan. 23 (15-0-1-1) set a new AHL record, eclipsing the 2010-11 Milwaukee Admirals’ 16-game run (10-0-4-2). Grand Rapids ranks first in the AHL in points (81), has a 20-point cushion over Chicago for first place in the Central Division, and is 41 points up on a playoff spot. 

Shine On, Captain 
Captain Dominik Shine has seven points (6-1—7) in his last four games. He was named the Howies Hockey Tape/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Feb. 15, 2026, when he logged five goals, 13 shots and a plus-six rating in two games. He also began the week competing in his first-career AHL All-Star Classic in Rockford, Illinois. In last Sunday’s 5-0 win against Texas, Shine collected his second hat trick of the season and surpassed Mitch Callahan for the third-most goals in franchise history (95), securing his first-ever 20-goal campaign. This marked Shine’s first-career AHL Player of the Week award, as he continues his 10th season as a Griffin. The 32-year-old has 36 points (21-15—36) in 36 games with 34 penalty minutes and a career-high plus-24 rating, ranking second on the team in points, goals and plus-minus rating. In the AHL rankings, the Detroit native is tied for ninth in goals and tied for seventh in plus-minus rating. On the all-time regular-season franchise leaderboard, Shine ranks third in games played (519), third in goals (96), seventh in assists (124), fourth in points (220), fifth in penalty minutes (587), tied for fifth in shorthanded goals (6), tied for third in game-winners (15), tied for first in unassisted goals (10), and third in shots (893).   

The Brick Wall
Sebastian Cossa, the 15th overall pick in 2021, collected his fifth shutout of the season last Sunday against Texas with 26 saves. His career-high five shutouts are the most by a Griffin since 2015-16 (Jared Coreau). Cossa has a 22-4-2 record with a 1.92 goals-against average and a .930 save percentage. He enjoyed a career-high 10-game win streak from Nov. 25-Dec. 27, showing a 1.51 GAA and a .939 save percentage, and a 14-game point streak from Nov. 25-Jan. 13 (12-0-2). In the AHL rankings, Cossa places second in GAA, second in save percentage, tied for first in shutouts, tied for first in wins and eighth in minutes played (1655:01). Cossa won two straight AHL Goaltender of the Month awards (November and December), becoming the first netminder in franchise history to receive the honor twice in the same season. The 23-year-old also became just the third goaltender in team history to win the award twice in any fashion, joining Jared Coreau (Feb. 2018, Dec. 2015) and Jimmy Howard (Dec. 2007, March 2006). In parts of four seasons with Grand Rapids since 2022-23, Cossa has notched a 66-29-16 mark with eight shutouts to go along with a 2.37 GAA and a .914 save percentage in 112 outings, becoming just the sixth netminder to reach the century mark with the team. 

Record Setters 
Below is a list of team and league records that the Griffins have either set or tied this season. 
- Best record in AHL history through 25 games (23-1-0-1, 47 pts.), 30 games (27-1-1-1, 56 pts.) and 40 games (32-5-2-1, 67 pts.), while tying for the best start through 35 games (29-3-2-1, 61 pts.)
- Tied second-best record in AHL history through 45 games (35-7-2-1, 73 pts.)
- Reached the 60-point mark in just 32 games, three games faster than any team in AHL history
- AHL record 17-game road points streak from Oct. 10-Jan. 23 (15-0-1-1)
- Tied franchise-record 15-game winning streak from Nov. 22-Dec. 27, which also tied for sixth-longest in AHL history
- Tied franchise-record 19-game points streak from Nov. 22-Jan. 7 (18-0-1-0)
- Franchise-record start with an 8-0 record and was the league’s last undefeated team for first time since 2000-01 IHL season
- Started 6-0 at home for first time since 2009-10 (8-0)
- Franchise record for largest margin of victory (9) on Nov. 25 at Texas (10-1 W) 
- Franchise record for fewest shots in a game (10) on Jan. 17 versus Milwaukee 

What’s The Password?
The Griffins’ defense remains the best in the AHL, as it ranks first with 1.90 goals allowed per contest. Grand Rapids posted its eighth shutout of the season on Feb. 15 against Texas, which are the most since 2016-17 (8). The Griffins shut out their opponent in two straight games from Jan. 17-21 in addition to posting consecutive shutouts from Dec. 21-27. Prior to this season, the last time Grand Rapids logged two straight shutouts was Feb. 15-17, 2018. The Griffins have allowed more than two goals just 12 times all season (24.5%) and have averaged 1.40 goals allowed in their last five outings. In addition, the team’s penalty kill is first in the AHL at 87.1%. In net, Sebastian Cossa sports a 1.92 GAA with a .930 save percentage and five shutouts, while rookie netminder Michal Postava possesses a 1.70 GAA, a .939 save percentage and two shutouts. The Griffins have four defensemen who have played at least 100 games in the NHL in Erik Gustafsson (517) (currently with Detroit), Justin Holl (396), Ian Mitchell (110), and William Lagesson (107), totaling 1,130 appearances. 

Back to Normal
Grand Rapids was held to under three goals in seven of nine games from Jan. 9-30 but has since scored five goals in four of its last eight contests since Jan. 31, averaging 3.63 goals per game. The Griffins have returned to first in the AHL with 3.47 goals per game after a slow January. The team has outscored its opponents 170-93 and is 29-0 when scoring the game’s first goal. The Griffins have outscored their opponents 81-46 at home, while possessing an 89-47 advantage on the road. Grand Rapids has its largest scoring margin against its opponents in the third period (67-31). John Leonard leads the team and ranks second in the AHL with 26 goals, while Dominik Shine ranks second on the roster with 21 and Sheldon Dries and Eduards Tralmaks are tied for third with 18. 

Sha-BOO-ya 
Second-year defenseman Shai Buium collected two assists in consecutive games from Feb. 7-13 and followed that with his first goal of the season last Sunday. The 22-year-old has five points (1-4—5) in his last five outings and six points (1-5—6) in the past seven contests since Feb. 3. Buium, the 36th overall pick by Detroit in 2021, made his season debut on Jan. 9 against Texas after rehabbing an upper-body injury suffered during the NHL preseason. As a rookie last season, Buium registered 25 points (2-23—25), 22 penalty minutes and a plus-two rating in 67 regular-season games, adding three appearances in the Calder Cup Playoffs. Buium spent his collegiate career at the University of Denver from 2021-24, becoming a two-time NCAA champion in 2021-22 and 2023-24. 

The Well is not Dry
Sheldon Dries showed a four-game point streak (2-2—4) from Feb. 7-18 and had goals in three of four games from Jan. 31-Feb. 7. Throughout 41 games with this season, Dries has 34 points (18-16—34) and a career-high plus-19 rating. The Macomb, Michigan, native ranks third on the roster in points, tied for fourth in assists, and tied for third in goals. He had two points in four straight games from Dec. 17-27 (3-5—8) and was selected as the Howies Hockey Tape/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Dec. 21 when he logged six points (2-4—6) and a plus-eight rating in three games. Throughout his nine-year AHL career, Dries has 278 points (156-122—278), 270 penalty minutes and a plus-46 rating in 380 games. 

The Lombardi Trophy
Amadeus Lombardi enjoyed a three-game point streak (1-2—3) from Feb. 7-15 and now has nine points (4-5—9) in his last nine outings. He tied his career high with three points (1-2—3) on Jan. 31 at Chicago. This marked the second time he’s posted three points this season and was his fourth multi-point outing of the campaign. The third-year pro was sidelined for 20 straight games from Nov. 22-Jan. 9 due to rehabbing an injury. Since his return on Jan. 13, Lombardi has 11 points (4-7—11) in 16 games. Last season, the Aurora, Ontario, native, logged a career-high 40 points (19-21—40) in 44 games with the Griffins. With Grand Rapids since the spring of 2023, Lombardi has 92 points (31-61—92) in 145 outings. He was the 113th overall pick by the Detroit Red Wings in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. 

Olympic Update 
Eduards Tralmaks concluded his Olympics with Team Latvia with four points (3-1—4) in four games, pacing the team in points and goals. As the men’s tournament entered the quarterfinal stage with Latvia eliminated, Tralmaks was tied for fourth in goals and tied for 17th in points among all players. At least one active Griffin has been loaned to his country’s national team in six of the last seven Olympics. Of those seven players, Tralmaks was by far the most productive on the world stage, equaling the goal total of the other six combined (see table). Tralmaks, a native of Riga, Latvia, has 24 points (18-6—24), six penalty minutes and a plus-19 rating in 44 games with the Griffins this season. When he joined Team Latvia, he ranked among the Griffins leaders in goals (2nd), points (5th), and plus-minus rating (T2nd), while tying for 14th in the AHL in goals and plus-minus rating. Tralmaks has competed for Team Latvia at the two previous World Championships in 2024 and 2025, showing a combined nine points (4-5—9) in 14 games. At last year's World Championship, Tralmaks led Latvia in points (3-4—7) and assists, while ranking second in goals in seven games. Also in 2024-25, he potted one goal in three Olympic qualifying games with Latvia.

Just Getting Started 
Rookie netminder Michal Postava tied a franchise record by becoming the 10th netminder in team history to post back-to-back shutouts from Jan. 17-21. He collected his first AHL shutout on Jan. 17 with 10 saves in a 2-0 victory over Milwaukee and followed that performance with a 19-save blanking of Milwaukee on Jan. 21. His 10 saves on Jan. 17 set a new franchise record for fewest in a shutout. Postava logged a shutout streak of 156:20 from Jan. 9-25, which was 3:47 short of breaking the franchise record by Jared Coreau in 2014-15 (160:06). After beginning the campaign 5-0, the 23-year-old suffered his first AHL defeat on Jan. 9 against Texas. Postava is now 10-3-0 with a 1.70 goals-against average and a .939 save percentage in 15 games. Last season, Postava became a Czech Extraliga champion with Kometa Brno, showing a league-best .940 save percentage with a 1.97 GAA and a 10-7 record in 17 playoff games. During the regular season with Kometa Brno, Postava ranked among the Czech Extraliga leaders in save percentage (.921, 5th), GAA (2.39, 11th), wins (23, 4th), games played (42, T2nd) and shutouts (3, T7th). As an undrafted free agent, Postava signed a two-year, entry-level contract with the Detroit Red Wings last summer.    

AHL Leaderboard Tracker 
Michael Brandsegg-Nygard—Tied for second in game-winners (6), tied for eighth among rookies in assists (18), tied for 11th among rookies in points (28), tied for fourth among rookies in plus-minus (+18), ninth among rookies in shots (96), first among rookies in game-winners (6)
Sebastian Cossa—Second in GAA (1.92), second in save percentage (.930), tied for first in shutouts (5), tied for first in wins (22), tied for ninth in games played (27), eighth in minutes played (1655:01)
Sheldon Dries—Tied for 10th in power-play goals (7)
x Erik Gustafsson—Tied for 13th among defensemen in plus-minus (+18), tied for ninth among defensemen in power-play goals (2)
Justin Holl—Tied for seventh among defensemen in plus-minus (+20)
Alex Kannok Leipert—Tied for fourth in shorthanded assists (2), tied for third among defensemen in shorthanded assists (2)
William Lagesson—Tied for third in plus-minus (+27), second among defensemen in plus-minus (+27)
John Leonard—Second in goals (26), tied for second in shorthanded goals (3), first in game-winners (8)
Ian Mitchell—Tied for 13th in plus-minus (+21), tied for fifth among defensemen in plus-minus (+21)
Dominik Shine—Tied for ninth in goals (21), tied for seventh in plus-minus (+24)
Antti Tuomisto—Tied for 13th among defensemen in goals (7), tied for 11th among defensemen in plus-minus (+19)
Austin Watson—Sixth in penalty minutes (123) 

Milestones 
In a 3-2 win over Cleveland on Wednesday, Austin Watson competed in his 100th game as a Griffin. 
Dominik Shine—Four goals from 100 as a Griffin, one unassisted goal from claiming sole possession of the franchise record of 11

Photo by Milwaukee Admirals