GRIFFINS (35-19-6-4) at Texas Stars (32-28-4-3)

Griffins Game #65 * Road Game #31 * AHL Game #1006

Season Series: 4-3-0-0 Home Series: 3-1-0-0 Road Series: 1-2-0-0
All-Time Series: 29-15-2-3 All-Time Home Series: 16-6-0-3 All-Time Road Series: 13-9-2-0

Griffins at Stars
Eighth of eight meetings overall, fourth of four at the H-E-B Center at Cedar Park…Texas’ victory on Wednesday snapped Grand Rapids’ four-game winning streak in the series...The Griffins have points in nine of the last 13 games (8-4-1-0) at the H-E-B Center…Since the 2013-14 campaign, Grand Rapids is 19-8-1-1 in 29 games overall vs. Texas...Chris Terry produced a career-high five points (2-3—5) in March 6’s victory over Texas, the first five-point game by a Griffin since Eric Tangradi (2-3—5) on March 11, 2016 vs. Manitoba…In 7 GP in the season series, Terry has six goals among 12 points, both of which are the most for either team…Terry’s 12 points vs. Texas are his most against any opponent this season...In two games, Patrik Rybar shows a 2-0-0 record to go along with a 2.40 GAA and a 0.925 save percentage…Harri Sateri is 2-3-0 in five games against Texas with a 3.63 GAA and a 0.876 save percentage…Derek Hulak, in his first season as a Griffin, made his AHL debut with the Stars during the 2013-14 campaign and helped Texas win the 2014 Calder Cup…Appearing in 142 regular season games with the Stars from 2013-16, he compiled 86 points (39-47—86), a plus-18 rating and 42 PIM…Hulak added one goal in 10 Calder Cup Playoff contests.

Last Time Out (Wednesday): Griffins 3 at Stars 6 - Read the full recap here
Texas ended Grand Rapids’ four-game winning streak in the series...Colton Hargrove was the second player this season to record a hat trick against the Griffins (Brooks Macek, Oct. 13 at CHI)...Turner Elson (16), Joe Hicketts (3) and Carter Camper (14) tallied goals...Harri Sateri stopped 30 shots but had his six-game point streak snapped.

Status Update
The Griffins are tied with the Iowa Wild for second place in the Central Division standings with 80 points and a 35-19-6-4 overall record. They trail first-place Chicago by four points. Grand Rapids has earned points in 12 of its last 16 outings (9-4-3-0) and in 17 of its last 23 (14-6-3-0). The Griffins are 2-1 in their season-high six-game, 11-day road trip, which continues tonight at Texas and tomorrow at San Antonio before wrapping up at Iowa on Tuesday. Grand Rapids is in a stretch of facing 20 consecutive division foes (7-4-3-0 record so far).

Road Trippin’
Grand Rapids will play eight of its final 12 games in enemy territory, including its current six-game road swing that lasts until Tuesday. The Griffins have won three of their last four and have points in 11 of their last 16 contests on foreign ice (8-5-2-1). Chris Terry (13-10—23) and Matt Puempel (12-11—23) pace the team in scoring in away games. Grand Rapids is a +22 in goal differential at home while averaging 3.21 goals and operating at 18.62% on the power play, compared to –10, 2.73 and 9.09% on the road.

Page Turner
Sixth-year pro Turner Elson has set new career highs this season in both points (34) and assists (18), and needs one more goal to match his career high of 17 set in 2014-15 with Adirondack.

(Don’t) Put It In Reverse Terr
With 27 goals (T7th in AHL) and 56 points (T13th) – both team highs – Chris Terry has surpassed the 50-point mark in his seventh consecutive full AHL season. Owning 496 career AHL points, he needs four more to become the 96th player in league history to amass 500 or more.

Wade For It
In 23 GP in 2019, Wade Megan ranks among Grand Rapids’ leaders with 23 points (2nd), 12 goals (1st), a plus-nine rating (T1st) and 11 assists (5th). He has tallied six points (2-4—6) in the last five games.

You’re A Wizard, Harri
Harri Sateri has points in six of his last seven appearances (3-1-3) and in his last 15 games he is 9-3-3 with a 2.34 GAA and a 0.917 save percentage. The Finnish netminder has reached the 20-win mark for the first time in his AHL career.

Rybar Supports
Patrik Rybar is 6-3-0 in his last nine starts, showing a 2.00 GAA and a 0.931 save percentage with a pair of shutouts in that time. In his first season in North America, Rybar ranks third in the AHL with a 2.29 overall GAA.

Frkin’ Right
Since being assigned to Grand Rapids on Feb. 14, right wing Martin Frk is averaging better than a point per game with the Griffins (4-6—10 in 9 GP) and posts a team-best plus-nine rating in that time. He has picked up six points during his five-game point streak (3-3—6).

Suite Life
Tonight marks the sixth of nine road games the Griffins will play in the month of March. This season is the eighth consecutive in which Grand Rapids hits the road for seven or more contests in March (7 in 2017-18, 10 in 2016-17, 8 in 2015-16, 7 in 2014-15, 9 in 2013-14, 11 in 2012-13 and 9 in 2011-12). Despite the lack of home games, the Griffins have posted an overall winning record in March in 10 straight years, combining for an 82-44-7-8 (0.635) mark since 2008-09.

Griffins in General
The Griffins were the second team in the Western Conference to reach 80 points following a 2-1 shootout win at San Antonio on March 19...Grand Rapids became the first in the West to hit the 70-point plateau after a 4-3 shootout win against Texas on Feb. 22...The Griffins became the fifth team in the league this season to reach 30 victories after a 3-2 overtime win vs. San Antonio on Feb. 16...Grand Rapids achieved 30 Ws or more in its first 53 games for the sixth time in the last seven seasons...The Griffins’ 3-0 win against Milwaukee on Jan. 19 marked the franchise’s 950th all-time regular season victory…Grand Rapids is 962-648-27-57-112 (0.587) in the regular season since 1996-97…Grand Rapids’ 302 regular season wins and 654 points since the 2012-13 campaign are both the second-most in the AHL in that time, trailing only Toronto (313 / 676) and just ahead of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (298 / 645).

Free Hockey
Tuesday’s shootout win at San Antonio marked Grand Rapids’ 21st game this season that was tied after regulation, setting a new single-season franchise record. The 2008-09 and 2006-07 teams both played 20 games tied after 60 minutes. The Griffins are 5-6 in overtime this season and 6-4 in a shootout.

This Date in Griffins History
The Griffins are 8-4-0-0-1 all time when playing on March 23, including a 5-3-0-0-1 mark on road ice.
1997: The Griffins defeat host Quebec, 3-1, to sweep a two-game series in Quebec City. Center/right wing Danton Cole notches the game-winning goal in both contests. The wins enable the Griffins to claim their first-ever Turner Cup playoff berth.
2003: A 3-1 win over Houston gives the Griffins 100 points for the third time in the last four seasons. Grand Rapids, which had been held to a franchise-low 14 shots in a 2-1 win at Houston on March 13, manages just 10 on this night. The Aeros enjoy a 17-0 advantage in shots over the final 20 minutes, marking the Griffins’ first-ever period without a shot on goal.
2006: Donald MacLean nets his league-high 53rd goal to capture the title of all-time leading single-season goal scorer in Grand Rapids. The Griffins post a 4-1 victory at Cleveland behind Jimmy Howard’s 27 stops, as the rookie sets a team record with his ninth straight win. Grand Rapids also extends a team mark by recording a power play goal for the 13th consecutive game.
2007: Fresh off a 12-game stint with the Detroit Red Wings, Matt Ellis tallies his fifth shorthanded goal of the campaign, setting a single-season franchise record while extending his career franchise record to 12. The lamp lighter also ties a team-record 21 shorthanded goals set during the 1998-99 season.
2013: Adam Almquist’s goal with 10 seconds left in overtime makes him the third defensemen in franchise history to record a hat trick and lifts the Griffins to a 5-4 win at Cleveland. Almquist added an assist for a four-point night, powering Grand Rapids’ comeback from a 3-0 deficit through 20 minutes.
2018: Four goals in a span of 2:24 late in the second period propel Grand Rapids to a 5-3 win at Iowa.

Photo by Texas Stars