San Antonio Rampage (24-21-4-0) vs. GRIFFINS (28-16-3-4)

Griffins Game #52 * Home Game #28 * AHL Game #772

Season Series: 2-2-0-0 Home Series: 2-0-0-0 Road Series: 0-2-0-0
All-Time Series: 46-28-1-5-2 All-Time Home Series: 24-12-1-3-1 All-Time Road Series: 22-16-0-2-1

Griffins vs. Rampage
Fifth of eight meetings overall, third of four at Van Andel Arena…Grand Rapids has won 10 of the last 12 meetings overall, including an eight-game winning streak from Feb. 17, 2017-April 12, 2018…The Griffins are outscoring the Rampage 49-26 in the last 12…The Griffins have claimed six consecutive matchups at Van Andel Arena and are a +17 in goal differential in that time (30-13)…San Antonio’s last victory at the Van came Oct. 17, 2015 (4-0 W)…In the last 10 meetings in West Michigan, Grand Rapids is 7-2-1-0…San Antonio has shut out the Griffins in both games in Texas this season, claiming a 4-0 victory on Oct. 6 and 2-0 on Feb. 1…Former Griffin Jared Coreau, making his first career start against his prior club, was responsible for the blanking in the most recent matchup on Feb. 1…This weekend is the fourth and fifth games of a 10-game rodeo road trip for San Antonio…With four points apiece, Filip Hronek (2-2—4 in 3 GP) and Turner Elson (1-3—4 in 4 GP) lead both teams in scoring in the series…Patrik Rybar is 2-0-0 against the Rampage with a 2.50 GAA and a 0.911 save percentage while Harri Sateri is 0-2-0 with a 3.09 GAA and a 0.893 save mark…Grand Rapids’ power play is 4-for-15 (26.7%) against the Rampage this season…San Antonio leads the AHL with 19 home victories and ranks last with just five road wins.

Last meeting (Feb. 1): In their second game of the season at the AT&T Center, the Griffins were blanked 2-0 by San Antonio with a 29-save effort from former Grand Rapids goaltender Jared Coreau...Coreau tallied his second shutout in 11 games with the Rampage and put his record with the club at 6-4-1...The Griffins' loss at San Antonio marked the Rampage's league-leading 19th home win of the season...Harri Sateri notched 25 saves...The matchup was Grand Rapids' last road game before beginning its seven-game homestand.

Last meeting at Van Andel Arena (Dec. 5): The Griffins collected a 4-2 win over San Antonio to extend their winning streak to six games and point streak to eight...Patrik Rybar stopped 25 shots, while Filip Hronek (1-1—2) and Turner Elson (0-2—2) each recorded two points apiece...Grand Rapids' penalty killers finished 1-for-1 on the night, putting them at a perfect 25-for-25 in their previous eight games...Chris Terry scored his 15th of the season to tie for the AHL's goal-scoring lead...Axel Holmstrom tallied his sixth goal of the season...Colin Campbell closed out the scoring on the power play with his third goal in the last two games...The Rampage were missing three of their top five scorers as they were on recall to the St. Louis Blues.

San Antonio Connections
Second-year Griffin Turner Elson spent the 2016-17 season with San Antonio and scored three points (1-2—3) while being limited to 13 games due to injury…First-year Griffin Wade Megan appeared in 115 games with the Rampage from 2012-15 and totaled 31 points (20-11—31)…While making his AHL debut with the Rampage on March 28, 2013, against Grand Rapids, Megan scored his first pro goal against Petr Mrazek.

They Went to Jared
Acquired by the St. Louis Blues from the Anaheim Ducks on Jan. 3, former Griffin Jared Coreau is 7-4-3 with a 2.86 GAA, a 0.899 save percentage and two shutouts in 14 GP with the Rampage this season. Suiting up for Grand Rapids from 2013-18, Coreau ranks among the franchise’s all-time goalie leaders in nearly every major statistical category with 148 GP (4th), 8614:11 minutes (4th), a 2.44 GAA (T8th), 85 wins (4th), 13 shutouts (3rd), 3930 saves (4th), a 0.918 save percentage (T7th) and seven shootout wins (T5th). Backstopping the team to its second Calder Cup in 2017, Coreau started all 19 games during the championship run and posted a 2.84 GAA and a 0.909 save mark to go along with a 15-4 record.

Last Game (Sunday): Wolves 4 at Griffins 1 - Read the full recap here
The Griffins are 3-3 in the eight-game season series…Grand Rapids had its three-game home winning streak snapped…Filip Zadina has goals in back-to-back games…The Griffins lost in regulation at home for only the fifth time of the season…Grand Rapids finished 0-for-5 on the power play and 4-for-6 on the penalty kill.

Status Update
The Griffins earned four out of a possible six points last week and continue to lead the Central Division by two points with 63 to go along with a 28-16-3-4 overall mark. Grand Rapids has totaled points in 16 of its last 21 outings (13-5-1-2), including wins in seven of its last 10. The Griffins continue their season-high seven-game homestand this week when they host the San Antonio Rampage tonight and tomorrow. Last Sunday’s game against Chicago kicked off a stretch of 20 consecutive contests Grand Rapids will play against Central Division foes.

Friendly Confines
The Griffins have points in nine of their last 11 contests at Van Andel Arena (8-2-0-1), including wins in three of four. With an 18-5-1-3 overall mark inside friendly confines, the Griffins rank among the AHL’s home leaders with 40 points (1st), 18 wins (T2nd) and a 0.741 points percentage (5th). Grand Rapids is a +16 in goal differential at home while averaging 3.15 goals and operating at 19.47% on the power play, compared to -11, 2.67 and 8.65% on enemy ice. Chris Terry (12-14—26) and Carter Camper (8-17—25) lead the team in scoring at home.

Staycation
Grand Rapids is 2-1 in its season-high seven-game homestand, which continues this weekend with a pair of tilts against San Antonio. Seven games is the team’s longest since a seven-game stretch from Nov. 29-Dec. 14, 2013. Grand Rapids will play seven home games in a 17-day period this month, and then close out the campaign with seven home contests spread across the regular season’s final 50 days. Take a look at the longest homestands in Grand Rapids history and how the club has fared:

You’re a Wizard, Harri
Harri Sateri has won six of his last eight starts, showing a 1.87 GAA and a 0.936 save percentage (220 of 235) in that span. His 2.34 GAA in the new year ranks 11th among goalies with 400 or more minutes in that time frame. The Finnish netminder has points in 15 of his last 19 outings (13-4-2) and in 10 of his last 13 (9-3-1). Sateri’s 17 wins on the season, which is one shy of matching his AHL career best (2013-14 with Worcester), tie for sixth in the league.

Puemped Up
Matt Puempel leads the team with 14 multi-point efforts in 47 games played. In comparison, he had 15 in 62 GP last season. The sixth-year pro also paces the club with five power play tallies. He ranks second on the Griffins in both goals (18) and points (39) and his team-leading 165 shots are third in the league.

Rybar Supports
Patrik Rybar has points in seven of his last nine games (5-2-2) and shows a 2.07 GAA and a 0.926 save percentage with one shutout in that span. Making his first start since Jan. 25 last Saturday, Rybar turned aside 33 of 34 shots in a 4-1 win against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. He places third in the AHL with a 2.32 overall GAA.

(Don’t) Put It In Reverse Terr
The AHL’s leading scorer from a season ago, Chris Terry ties for third on the league’s goal leaderboard with 24. The 10th-year pro has reached the 20-goal plateau for the sixth time in his AHL career. With 45 points overall, he ties for 13th on the circuit in scoring. Competing for the Central Division at the 2019 AHL All-Star Classic, Terry earned his third consecutive AHL All-Star bid and fourth overall (2012).

Filip Hero-nek
Filip Hronek notched back-to-back two-point games last week. On Wednesday, he netted two power play goals at 18:39 and 19:35 of the third period to turn a 0-1 deficit into a 2-1 victory, and on Saturday he registered a pair of power play assists. Among league defensemen, the second-year pro ties for ninth with four power play goals and third with three game-winners. Despite playing only 27 games with the Griffins due to spending 23 with the Red Wings, Hronek leads all team blueliners in points (23), goals (7) and assists (16). His four points (2-2—4) in four February games are a club high.

Page Turner
Turner Elson places fourth on the team with 28 points (12-16—28) and is just two shy of leveling his career high of 30, which he has attained twice previously (2014-15 with Adirondack and 2015-16 with Stockton). Sixteen assists has already equaled his career best total from 2015-16. Elson has all three of the Griffins’ shorthanded goals this season, which ties for second in the AHL.

Z-Score
Rookie Filip Zadina has picked up goals in back-to-back games (Saturday vs. WBS, Sunday vs. CHI) for the first time this season. He also has points in three straight to match a season high (Nov. 3-8, Nov. 28-Dec. 1). Among first-year AHL players, Zadina ties for 14th in goals (13) and 11th in power play markers (4).

Griffins in General
The Griffins’ 3-0 win against Milwaukee on Jan. 19 marked the franchise’s 950th all-time regular season victory…Grand Rapids is 955-645-27-54-112 (0.586) in the regular season since 1996-97…Grand Rapids’ 295 regular season wins and 637 points since the 2012-13 campaign are both the second-most in the AHL in that time, trailing only Toronto (303 / 654) and just ahead of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (292 / 629).

This Date in Griffins History
1999: Robert Petrovicky signs with the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning after recording 58 points (26-32—58) in just 49 games with the Griffins.
2000: After signing with the Griffins one day earlier, player/assistant coach Kelly Miller plays his first minor league contest after 1,057 games in the NHL. His two assists combine with brother Kevin’s three points to lead a 4-3 comeback win at Milwaukee.
2002: After missing more than two months with a knee injury, All-Star Martin Prusek returns to back-stop the Griffins to a 2-0 win over Hamilton, marking just the second time they ever held an opponent scoreless in consecutive meetings. It also gives the Griffins consecutive home shutouts for just the third time in franchise history. The Griffins wear red Valentine's jerseys during the game, raising $13,450 through a post-game auction for the Williams Syndrome Association.
2008: Darren McCarty provides fans with one of the most memorable nights in Griffins history during his home debut by scoring a hat trick and earning the first four-point night of his 16-year career. After scoring 5:53 into the first period, 2:17 into the second and 2:45 into the third to ignite the throng of 10,062 into an ovation lasting nearly five minutes, he caps off his four-point evening with a helper on Grand Rapids’ final goal during a 6-3 win over the Lake Erie Monsters.
2013: With injuries in Detroit or Grand Rapids robbing their lineup of 39 percent of its point production, 43 percent of its goals and 59 percent of its wins – including their top four scorers and their all-star goalie – the Griffins rally from a 3-2 deficit to take a 5-3 win over Lake Erie before a sellout crowd at Van Andel Arena.
2015: AHL leading scorer Teemu Pulkkinen notches a goal in the Griffins’ 5-1 win at Chicago, becoming the first player in franchise history to score 30 goals in back-to-back seasons, following his 31-goal campaign in 2013-14.

PROMOTIONS

Post-Game Jersey Auction: After the game, fans can bid on the USA-themed jerseys worn to honor the 1980 U.S.
Men’s Olympic Hockey Team that the Griffins will sport during the game. The jersey auction will take place in the Intermission Restaurant inside Van Andel Arena and proceeds will benefit the Grand Valley State Roller Hockey Team. Click here to see the jersey.

Meijer State Game of Michigan Athlete Night: To help celebrate the Meijer State Games of Michigan Winter Games, an Olympic-style event that runs from Feb. 15-17 across West Michigan, state game athletes will participate in an on-ice athlete parade during the first intermission.

Post-Game College Hockey: The men’s ACHA D2 teams from Aquinas and Grand Valley State will face off at Van Andel Arena, with a start time of approximately 10:30 p.m.

$2 Beers and $2 Hot Dogs: Fans can enjoy $2 domestic drafts and $2 hot dogs from 6-8 p.m., while supplies last.

Get in the D-ZONE presented by Coppercraft Distillery: Every Friday night is a Griffins D-Zone night. Avoid the concession lines and get your $2 beers and $2 hot dogs served to you in your seats. Call (616) 774-4585 ext. 2 or visit griffinshockey.com/dzone today to purchase a package of four or more D-Zone tickets for any Friday night game.

Free Ride Friday on the Rapid: Ride the Rapid to and from any Friday game and enjoy complimentary fare by showing your ticket to the game. Visit ridetherapid.org for schedule information, routes and maps.

College Night presented by Michigan First Credit Union: College students can show their ID at every Friday game to purchase an Upper Level Faceoff ticket for $13 (or $12 in advance at The Zone) or an Upper Level Center Ice ticket for $16 (or $15 in advance at The Zone). Limit one ticket per ID.

Photo by Sam Iannamico/Griffins