Griffins Game #35 * Home Game #19 * AHL Game #565

Season Series: 4-0-0-0 Home Series: 2-0-0-0 Road Series: 2-0-0-0
All-Time Series: 78-52-11-11 All-Time Home Series: 45-20-6-5 All-Time Road Series: 33-32-5-6

IceHogs at Griffins
Fifth of 10 meetings overall, third of five at Van Andel Arena…Grand Rapids has wins in 11 of the last 14 games against Rockford...The Griffins are 26-16-2-0 (.614) since the 2021-22 season against Rockford and have a plus-16 scoring margin (129-113). At home since 2021-22, Grand Rapids is 12-8-2-0 (.591) against the IceHogs with a plus-15 scoring margin (66-51)...Rockford is Grand Rapids’ third-most frequent opponent, as tonight’s game marks the 153rd meeting between the two franchises...The IceHogs are 5-10-1-2 at home this season compared to 9-9-1-0 on the road...Rockford is 3-6-0-1 in its last 10 games and Grand Rapids is 7-1-2-0 in its last 10 outings...Rockford’s power play is tied for 25th at 15.5% and its penalty kill ranks 13th at 81.8%...Grand Rapids’ penalty kill ranks first at 86.7% and its power play is 13th at 19.6%...The IceHogs place 22nd with 2.84 goals per game while the Griffins rank first with 3.76 goals per outing...Defensively, Rockford ranks 23rd with 3.27 goals allowed per game and Grand Rapids is first with 1.85 goals allowed...Rockford’s Brett Seney is tied for 13th in the AHL with 33 points and tied for 10th with 23 assists. Connor Mylymok ranks sixth in penalty minutes (86). 

Last Time Out
The Griffins tied the longest road points streak in the AHL’s 90-year history (14-0-1-1), but were downed by the Milwaukee Admirals 5-4 in overtime at Panther Arena on Tuesday. The Griffins’ 29-2-2-1 record (61 pts.) remained the best in the league through 34 games, and the team recorded just their second overtime loss of the season, both at the hands of the Admirals. Amadeus Lombardi made his return to the lineup for the first time since Nov. 21 after recovering from injury and potted an assist, while Michael Brandsegg-Nygard bagged two helpers in his sixth multi-point contest this season.

This Date in Griffins History
2008: Red Wings defenseman and former Griffin Derek Meech completes a two-week conditioning assignment with Grand Rapids. During his stint, Meech climbed into 10th place on the Griffins’ all-time games played list with 230, while he earned two points (1-1—2) to bump his career total up to 65 and rank fifth all-time among defenseman. 

Sparkling Stars
The AHL on Thursday announced that Griffins goaltender Sebastian Cossa and forwards John Leonard and Dominik Shine will serve as the team’s representatives at the 2026 AHL All-Star Classic presented by BMO, to be held Feb. 10-11 at the BMO Center in Rockford, Illinois. They will join their head coach, Dan Watson, who was previously announced as the coach for the Central Division. The three all-star player selections are the most for the Griffins since 2013 (Chad Billins, Petr Mrazek, Gustav Nyquist). Including Watson, the four all-star representatives are the most in team history since four players were chosen for the 2004 event in Grand Rapids (Jiri Hudler, Niklas Kronwall, Travis Richards, Nathan Robinson). Cossa becomes the first Griffins goalie to earn consecutive all-star selections, and the first Griffins player since Chris Terry (2019 and 2020). This is also Leonard’s second straight all-star selection, as he was chosen for last year’s event as a member of the Charlotte Checkers, while captain Shine will compete in his first-ever all-star game. 

Leaders of the Pack
The Griffins currently lead the Central Division and are 21 points above second-place Chicago and 29 points up on a playoff spot. Grand Rapids is 22-1-2-1 against its division rivals and has outscored them 101-51, suffering its first regulation defeat against the division last Friday against Texas. Last season, it took the Griffins 46 games to reach 22 wins against the division (22-20-3-1) compared to 24 games this season. Thirty of the remaining 38 games for Grand Rapids will be against the Central Division (79.0%), which includes the next five contests. The Griffins will see the most games against the Milwaukee Admirals (8) followed by the Chicago Wolves (6) and Rockford IceHogs (6).   

A Happy New Year
Despite being on a season-high two-game winless skid, the Griffins have continued their league-record start with a 29-2-2-1 ledger and 61 points through 34 games. The Griffins have one more win and two more points than any AHL team has ever had through its first 34 games (2005-06, W-B/Scranton, 28-3-2-1, 59 pts.) Grand Rapids also reached 60 points three games faster than any team in the AHL’s 90-year history (2005-06, W-B/Scranton, 29-3-2-1, 61 pts. in 35 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 last Friday, which tied for the longest run in franchise history (see table). The Griffins are 14-0-1-1 on the road and 15-2-1-0 at home, which both are franchise records to begin a season. The 16-game points streak on the road is tied with the 2010-11 Milwaukee Admirals (10-0-4-2) for the longest in AHL history. Grand Rapids ranks first in the AHL in points (61), has a 21-point cushion over Chicago for first place in the Central Division, and is 29 points up on a playoff spot. 

Slowed Down a Smidge
Grand Rapids was shut out for the first time this season last Friday against Texas but followed that performance with four goals on Wednesday in Milwaukee. The Griffins now have 14 goals in their last five contests (2.80 per game) compared to 21 goals in the previous five outings (4.20 per game from Dec. 17-31). However, the Griffins still rank first in the AHL with 3.76 goals per game. The team has outscored its opponents 128-63 and is 21-0 when scoring the game’s first goal. Last season, it took Grand Rapids 36 games to eclipse 100 goals compared to just 26 outings this campaign. The Griffins have outscored their opponents 58-29 at home, while possessing a 70-34 advantage on the road. Grand Rapids has its largest scoring margin against its opponents in the third period (51-21). In addition to ranking first in goals, the Griffins place 11th in shots per game (29.5). John Leonard leads the team and ranks third in the AHL with 21 goals, while Eduards Tralmaks ranks second on the roster with 15 and Dominik Shine places third with 14.  

Going for Gold
Last Tuesday, Team Latvia announced that forward Eduards Tralmaks will represent the country at the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games from Feb. 6-22. Tralmaks becomes the seventh player to participate in an Olympics while playing for the Griffins (see table). Tralmaks is the fifth current or former Griffin to be named to an Olympic roster for 2026, joining USA’s Dylan Larkin, Germany’s Moritz Seider, Czechia’s Filip Hronek and Slovakia’s Tomas Tatar. Tralmaks, a native of Riga, Latvia, has 20 points (15-5—19), six penalty minutes and a plus-17 rating in 34 games with the Griffins this season. He ranks among the team leaders in goals (2nd), points (T5th), and plus-minus rating (T5th), while tying for 10th in the AHL in goals and tying for 11th in 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.

Power Struggle
On Dec. 30, the Griffins ranked eighth in the AHL with a power-play percentage of 22.7%. However, Grand Rapids has been held without a power-play goal in six straight games from Dec. 31-Jan. 13 (0-for-14) and has just three man-advantage goals in its last 12 outings (3-for-37, 8.1%). The Griffins now rank 13th in the power-play rankings at 19.6%. The road power play places sixth at 25.4% but the home power play ranks 31st out of 32 teams at 11.6%, which includes a 0-for-13 mark in its last six home games. Dominik Shine and Eduards Tralmaks are both tied for the team lead with four power-play tallies.  

Johnny Bravo
John Leonard has 33 points and 21 goals in 25 games with the Griffins this season to go along with two penalty minutes, seven game-winners and a plus-12 rating. In the AHL rankings, the sixth-year veteran is tied for 13th in points, third in goals and first in game-winners. Leonard has jumped back and forth between Detroit and Grand Rapids since Dec. 16, showing four points (2-2—4) in nine games with the Red Wings. He was named the Fortune Tires “Expect More” AHL Player of the Month for November with 16 points (9-7—16) in 10 games and became just the third player in franchise history to win the award, joining Riley Barber (April 2022) and Chris Minard (Feb. 2012). Leonard’s career-best 10-game point streak from Oct. 10-Nov. 19 set a franchise record to begin both a season and a Griffins career, and his career-high six-game goal streak from Oct. 11-Nov. 2 tied for the third-longest run in franchise history. Throughout parts of six AHL seasons since 2020-21, Leonard has 204 points (104-100—204) in 274 games. 

The Brick Wall
Sebastian Cossa, the 15th overall pick in 2021, collected his fourth shutout of the season on Dec. 27 at Milwaukee in just his 16th game. His four shutouts are the most by a Griffin since 2016-17 (Eddie Pasquale). He then showed a career-high 47 saves on Jan. 2 against Chicago, which tied Jared Coreau’s franchise record for saves in a home game. Cossa has won the last two 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). Cossa has a 17-1-2 record with a 1.85 goals-against average and a .931 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 13-game point streak from Nov. 25-Jan. 7 (12-0-1). In the AHL rankings, Cossa ranks second in GAA, second in save percentage, first in shutouts and first in wins. In parts of four seasons with Grand Rapids since 2022-23, Cossa has notched a 61-26-16 mark with seven shutouts to go along with a 2.39 GAA and a .913 save percentage in 104 outings, becoming just the sixth netminder to reach the century mark with the team.    

A Warm Welcome Back 
After rehabbing a lower-body injury that kept him sidelined from Nov. 12-Dec. 14, goaltender Michal Postava returned to the crease on Jan. 3 and collected a 4-1 victory with 21 saves at Chicago. The rookie suffered his first AHL defeat last Friday against Texas after beginning his campaign 5-0. Postava is now 5-1-0 with a 1.96 goals-against average and a .936 save percentage in seven 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, the 23-year-old 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. 

What’s The Password? 
Despite allowing a season-high five goals on Wednesday in Milwaukee, the Griffins’ defense remains the best in the AHL, as it ranks first with 1.85 goals allowed per contest. Providence is the closest to Grand Rapids with 2.15 goals allowed per game. Grand Rapids shut out its opponent in two straight games from Dec. 21-27 for the first time since Feb. 15-17, 2018. The Griffins have allowed more than two goals just five times in their last 28 games and have averaged just 1.67 goals allowed in their last 12 outings, which includes three shutouts. In fact, the team has allowed more than two goals just seven times all season (20.6%). In addition, the team’s penalty kill is first in the AHL at 86.7%. In net, Sebastian Cossa sports a 1.85 GAA with a .931 save percentage, while first-year netminder Michal Postava possesses a 1.96 GAA and a .936 save percentage. Grand Rapids also has four of the top six plus-minus ratings among defensemen. The Griffins have four defensemen who have played at least 100 games in the NHL in Erik Gustafsson (516), Justin Holl (396), Ian Mitchell (110), and William Lagesson (107), totaling 1,129 appearances. 

AHL Leaderboard Tracker
Michael Brandsegg-Nygard—Tied for seventh in plus-minus (+18), tied for third in game-winners (5), tied for fifth among rookies in assists (15), tied for 10th among rookies in points (23), second among rookies in plus-minus (+18), eighth among rookies in shots (75), first among rookies in game-winners (5)
Sebastian Cossa—Second in GAA (1.85), second in save percentage (.931), first in shutouts (4), first in wins (17)
x Erik Gustafsson—Tied for seventh in plus-minus (+18), tied for 10th among defensemen in points (20), tied for fifth among defensemen in assists (18), tied for third among defensemen in plus-minus (+18), tied for seventh among defensemen in power-play goals (2)
Justin Holl—Tied for seventh in plus-minus (+18), tied for third among defensemen in plus-minus (+18)
William Lagesson—Tied for first in plus-minus (+22), tied for first among defensemen in plus-minus (+22)
John Leonard—Third in goals (21), tied for 13th in points (33), tied for first in shorthanded goals (3), first in game-winners (7)
Ian Mitchell—Tied for seventh among defensemen in plus-minus (+16)
Dominik Shine—Tied for 11th in plus-minus (+17)
Eduards Tralmaks—Tied for 10th in goals (15), tied for 11th in plus-minus (+17)
Antti Tuomisto—Tied for 11th in plus-minus (+17), tied for fifth among defensemen in goals (6), tied for fifth among defensemen in plus-minus (+17) 
William Wallinder—Tied or 11th among defensemen in plus-minus (+13)

Milestones 
On Wednesday in Milwaukee, Alex Doucet skated in his 100th game as a Griffin.  
Sheldon Dries—Five points from 300 as a pro
William Lagesson—Three assists from 100 as a pro
Dominik Shine—One unassisted goal from claiming sole possession of the franchise record of 11 

Photo by Nicolas Carrillo/Griffins