Griffins Game #9 * Home Game #5 * AHL Game #108

Season Series: 1-0-1-0 Home Series: 0-0-0-0 Road Series: 1-0-1-0
All-Time Series: 84-44-10-14 All-Time Home Series: 48-19-4-4 All-Time Road Series: 36-25-6-10

Griffins vs. Monsters
Third of eight meetings overall, first of four at Van Andel Arena...In the last five seasons, Grand Rapids has a 16-10-4-4 overall record (.588) against the Monsters, including a 10-2-2-2 mark (.750) at Van Andel Arena...Cleveland has a plus-one scoring margin this season (24-23) compared to the Griffins’ plus-11 margin (30-19)...The Monsters are 2-0-0-0 on the road and 2-2-0-0 at home…The Griffins are 4-0 at home and 2-1-1-0 on the road…Cleveland’s power play ranks 12th at 20.6% and its penalty kill places 29th at 70.0%...Grand Rapids’ power play ranks fifth at 26.2% and its penalty kill places first at 97.1%...Cleveland’s Steven Lorentz leads the team with seven points (6-1—7) in six games and his six goals rank sixth in the AHL…The Monsters are led by new head coach Nick Bootland. Bootland is a two-time Calder Cup winner with the Hershey Bears when he served as an assistant from 2022-26. Bootland began his coaching career in the ECHL with the Kalamazoo Wings and was their head coach/director of hockey operations for 14 seasons from 2008-22…Griffins head coach Dan Watson suited up for the Cleveland Barons from 2002-04 and calls Cleveland home during the offseason…Cameron Butler competed in parts of three seasons with the Monsters from 2022-25, making his pro/AHL debut on April 14, 2023, at Utica. Butler also made his NHL debut with Columbus on March 30, 2024, against Pittsburgh…Cleveland’s new head coach Nick Bootland is the older brother of former Griffin Darryl Bootland, a fan favorite who racked up 140 points (72-68—140) and a team-record 1,164 penalty minutes in 293 games from 2002-07. 

Last Time Out
Back-to-back goals scored in the third period by Shai Buium and Cameron Butler boosted the Griffins to a 4-3 win over the Manitoba Moose on Wednesday at Van Andel Arena. With 13 points (6-1-1-0) through their first eight games, the Griffins have tied the second-best start in the franchise’s 31 seasons, trailing only last year’s team (16 points, 8-0). Behind Buium’s and Butler’s goals, Grand Rapids benefited from a two-point game by Ondrej Becher, who added an assist to his first-period tally to extend his point streak to three games (1-4–5). William Lagesson picked up his fourth goal of the season to round out the Griffins’ scoring, and Trey Augustine made 26 saves to secure his second win of the campaign.

This Date in Griffins History
2024: The AHL announces that former Griffins star Michel Picard will be inducted into the AHL Hall of Fame during the 2025 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Spotlight 29 Casino. Picard competed in nine AHL seasons, logging 638 points (283-355—638) in 582 career games.

Sounds Like A Broken Record
With 13 points (6-1-1-0) through their first eight games, the Griffins have tied the second-best start in the franchise’s 31 seasons, behind only last year’s team (16 pts., 8-0). Over the first eight games of the last three seasons under coach Dan Watson, the Griffins are a combined 20-2-2-0 (.875).

Johnny Bravo
Last weekend against the Rockford IceHogs, John Leonard posted six points (5-1—6) in two games. He scored two power-play goals last Friday before compiling his second hat trick as a Griffin last Saturday to go along with a four-point effort (3-1—4). Through four games this season, Leonard has six points (5-1—6), four power-play goals, two game-winners and a 33.3 shooting percentage. Last season, the 28-year-old ranked second in the AHL with 33 goals in 47 outings. Throughout parts of seven AHL campaigns since 2020-21, Leonard has a combined 231 points (121-110—231) in 300 appearances.

Mr. Postman
Netminder Michal Postava, currently with Detroit, is off to a 4-0 start with a 1.25 goals-against average and a .954 save percentage. In the AHL rankings, Postava places third in GAA, fourth in save percentage and tied for first in wins. He was named the Howies Hockey Tape/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Oct. 11, 2026, when he went 2-0 with a 1.00 goals-against average and a .967 save percentage. The fifth-year pro has yet to allow more than three goals in 29 regular-season outings in the AHL. Postava is 21-6-0 in his AHL regular-season career with a 1.65 GAA, a .939 save percentage and four shutouts.

Home Sweet Home
The Griffins are 4-0 at home this season and have outscored their opponents 16-6. By comparison, Grand Rapids is 2-1-1 on the road with a 14-13 scoring margin. The Griffins have posted two hat tricks in the last three home games, as Jesse Kiiskinen (3-1—4) did so on Oct. 11 against Chicago and John Leonard (3-1—4) on Oct. 18 against Rockford.

Caution: Bear Attacks
Rookie Carter Bear is on a team-best five-game point streak from Oct. 10-21 (2-3—5). He made his pro debut on Oct. 9 against the Manitoba Moose and scored his first pro goal the following night at the Milwaukee Admirals. Bear was the 13th overall pick by the Detroit Red Wings in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft. During his four-year junior career in the Western Hockey League with the Everett Silvertips, the 19-year-old totaled 218 points (102-116—218) and a plus-98 rating in 195 regular-season games, adding 26 points (7-19—26) in 32 playoff outings. Last season, Bear led Everett to a WHL title and was named to the WHL Second All-Star Team with 77 points (36-41—77) in 53 regular-season games. Bear also won a bronze medal with Team Canada U20 at the 2026 World Junior Championship.

Very Special
The Griffins’ special-team units are off to a solid start, as the power play ranks fifth at 26.2% and the penalty kill places first at 97.1%. Grand Rapids has scored a power-play goal in each of its last four games, showing a 30.4% conversion rate (7-for-23). John Leonard ranks third in the AHL with four power-play tallies. The Griffins have killed 28 straight penalties and have allowed just one power-play goal this season (33-for-34).

Shine On, Captain
Dominik Shine is in his 11th season with the Griffins and his second as captain, becoming just the second player in team history to reach 11 seasons (Brian Lashoff 14). On Oct. 11 against the Chicago Wolves, Shine collected his 100th professional goal and is three goals away from 100 as a Griffin. Only two players, Michel Picard (158) and Francis Pare (102), have reached the 100-goal mark in franchise history. Shine is currently on a four-game point streak from Oct. 11-21 (1-4—5) and has six points (1-5—6) in eight outings this season. On the all-time regular-season franchise leaderboard, Shine ranks third in games played (531), third in goals (97), sixth in assists (132), fourth in points (229), fifth in penalty minutes (596), 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 (921).

Veteran Presence
Defenseman Jacob Bryson showed two assists in back-to-back games last weekend and now has seven points (1-6—7) in eight outings. Bryson, one of five veterans on the team, last competed in a full AHL season in 2019-20 with the Rochester Americans. Throughout parts of four AHL seasons, the London, Ontario, native has 40 points (5-35—40), 42 penalty minutes and a plus-nine rating in 84 contests. The 28-year-old has played almost exclusively in the NHL since the 2020-21 campaign and has 51 points (6-45—51) and 60 penalty minutes in 304-career NHL games. Bryson, the 99th overall pick by Buffalo in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, suited up for six straight seasons with the Sabres from 2020-26 before being traded to the Winnipeg Jets in March of last season. He signed a one-year contract with Detroit this past offseason.

Where It All Began
This Saturday will mark the 30-year anniversary of the Griffins’ first win at Van Andel Arena. The Griffins posted their first-ever victory and shutout at Van Andel Arena, blanking the rival Michigan K-Wings by a 2-0 count behind 20 saves by Pokey Reddick. 

AHL Leaderboard Tracker
Jacob Bryson—Tied for 11th in assists (6), fourth among defensemen in assists (6), tied for fourth among defensemen in points (7)
Carter Bear—Tied for 10th among rookies in points (5)
Shai Buium—Tied for ninth among defensemen in assists (4), tied for eighth among defensemen in points (5)
Cameron Butler—Tied for 12th in penalty minutes (22)
Dylan James—Tied for 10th among rookies in points (5)
Jesse Kiiskinen—Tied for seventh in goals (5), first among rookies in goals (5), second among rookies in points (8), tied for sixth among rookies in plus-minus (+4)
William Lagesson—Tied for second among defensemen in goals (4), seventh among defensemen in points (6)
John Leonard—Tied for seventh in goals (5), third in power-play goals (4), tied for third in game-winners (2) 
x Michal Postava—Tied for first in wins (4), tied for ninth in games played (4), third in GAA (1.25), fourth in save percentage (.954) 

Milestones
On Wednesday, John Leonard skated in his 300th AHL game and Jacob Bernard-Docker made his Griffins debut. 
Ronnie Attard—One point from 100 as a pro
x Sheldon Dries—Two games from 400 in the AHL
Dominik Shine—Three goals from 100 as a Griffin

Photo by Brianna Bee/Toledo Walleye