Griffins Game #14 * Home Game #6 * AHL Game #192

Season Series: 0-0-0-0 Home Series: 0-0-0-0 Road Series: 0-0-0-0
All-Time Series: 101-86-2-8-5 All-Time Home Series: 49-38-2-6-4 All-Time Road Series: 52-48-0-2-1

Wolves at Griffins
First of eight meetings overall, first of four at Van Andel Arena…Grand Rapids has faced Chicago 202 times in the regular season dating back to their IHL days, the second-most of any Griffins opponent (Milwaukee, 220)…The Griffins have strung together back-to-back winning seasons against Chicago (10-5-1-2, .639) for the first time since 2015-17 (14-3-1-0, .806)...Grand Rapids is on a seven-game home point streak against Chicago (5-0-0-2)...The Wolves 3-1-1-0 on the road compared to 0-4-0-0 at home this year...The Griffins are 4-1-0-0 at home this season and are on a three-game win streak...Since the 2020-21 season, Grand Rapids is just 14-22-2-2 (.400) against the Wolves and has been outscored 154-145. Also since the 2020-21 season, the Griffins are 7-9-2-2 (.450) against the Wolves at Van Andel Arena and have been outscored 68-54...The Wolves rank last in the AHL with a power-play percentage of 5.1%, while their penalty kill ranks 30th at 73.5%...Grand Rapids places 27th with a power-play rate of 12.5% and ranks fourth with a penalty kill at 89.1%.

Last Time Out
The Griffins scored five goals in a game for the second time in the last three contests, as they skated away with a 5-2 win over the Rockford IceHogs on Wednesday at Van Andel Arena. Nine different Griffins registered a point in the 23rd annual School Day Game, including two-point outings from Joe Snively (1-1—2), Alex Doucet (1-1—2), Amadeus Lombardi (0-2—2), Cross Hanas (1-1—2) and Nate Danielson (0-2—2). Austin Watson scored the Griffins' third short-handed goal of the year, beating out their previous total of two last season. Sheldon Dries found the back of the net for his third goal in the last three games. Sebastian Cossa had 28 saves on 30 shots in the win and improved to 6-3-1 on the season. The 27 goals allowed through 13 games by Grand Rapids were the fewest in franchise history. With 19 points through 13 games, the Griffins have tied the third-fastest start in franchise history. 

This Date in Griffins History
2002: Thanks to a brilliant 34-save effort, Marc Lamothe blanks Houston by a 3-0 count, joining NHLers Jani Hurme and Martin Prusek as the only Griffins goalies to record back-to-back shutouts. Grand Rapids notches consecutive shutout wins for the first time ever. 

Hot Start
With 19 points through 13 games (9-3-1-0), the Griffins have tied the third-fastest start in franchise history (2008-09; 2005-06). Grand Rapids set a franchise record with 12 points (6-1-0-0) through the first seven games, beating its previous high of 11 in 2008-09 (4-0-2-1) and in 2000-01 (5-1-1). Grand Rapids went undefeated while playing three games in three days from Oct. 25-27, a feat it has accomplished only once before (April 5-7, 2002). The Griffins hadn’t swept a 3-in-3 in any venues since Dec. 29-31, 2017. Grand Rapids also began the year 3-0-0-0 at home for the first time since 2009-10, when it won its first eight games at Van Andel Arena. The Griffins have won with defense, as they have allowed two goals or less in eight of the 13 contests but have scored an average of just 2.77 goals per game (T22nd). 

Road Warriors
The Griffins have played eight of their first 13 games this season in foreign territory. Grand Rapids has gone 5-2-1-0 in those games with a plus-four scoring margin (24-20). Grand Rapids went undefeated while playing three games in three days on the road from Oct. 25-27, a feat it has accomplished only once before (April 5-7, 2002). Last season, Grand Rapids went 1-6-0-1 in its first eight road games with a minus-14 scoring margin (17-31). 

Shoot Your Shot
The Griffins have yet to outshoot their opponents in a game this season and have averaged 23.5 shots per game, which ranks last in the AHL. Grand Rapids has been held to under 20 shots three times and has exceeded 30 shots just once. On the flip side, the Griffins’ opponents have averaged 31.1 shots per game (T21st in AHL) and have been held to under 30 shots four times. The third period has given the Griffins the most problems, as they are being outshot 137-80 compared to being outshot 133-121 in the second and 130-100 in the first. However, Grand Rapids has a 7-1-1-0 ledger when recording 20-29 shots and a 7-1-1-0 mark when allowing 30-39 shots. 

If You Ain’t First, You’re Last
Starting the game off on the right foot has been imperative for the Griffins early this season. Grand Rapids is 7-0-1-0 when scoring the game’s first goal and 8-0-1-0 when either tied or leading after the first period. When the roles are reversed, the Griffins are just 2-3-0-0, and they are 0-3-0-0 when trailing after two periods. One-goal games have been kind to Grand Rapids, as it is 4-0-1-0 compared to 5-3-0-0 when a game is decided by two goals or more.   

Power Outage
The Griffins’ power play has struggled out of the gate, as it ranks 27th on the circuit at 12.5% (6-for-48). If you break it down further, Grand Rapids’ home power play is 2-for-17 (11.8%, T23rd) and its road power play is 4-for-31 (12.9%, T25th). However, the Griffins’ penalty kill ranks fourth in the AHL at 89.1% and their three short-handed goals are tied for fourth. Grand Rapids recorded two short-handed goals in 3:24 of game time on Thursday at Iowa, which equaled the number of short-handed tallies it had in 72 games last season. The last time the Griffins had scored two short-handed goals in a game was in a 5-3 win over Ontario on Feb. 5, 2022. With three short-handed goals through 13 games, Grand Rapids has already exceeded its short-handed goal count from last season of two. 

Let’s Show Some Love to the Defense
The Griffins rank second in the AHL with just 2.08 goals allowed per game, as the 27 goals surrendered are the fewest in franchise history over the first 13 games of a season. For comparison, Grand Rapids ceded 47 goals in the opening 13 games last year. Grand Rapids allowed just one goal inside Van Andel Arena in the first three games, which was the fewest over a three-game home stretch since it posted three straight shutouts from Dec. 30, 2006 to Jan. 10, 2007. Dating back to last season, Grand Rapids has allowed just 10 goals in its last eight regular-season games at Van Andel Arena (1.25 GA per game). 

Seabass Fishing
Sebastian Cossa, the 15th overall pick by the Detroit Red Wings in 2021, is off to a strong start through the opening nine games of his season, showing a 6-3-1 mark with one shutout, a 1.99 goals-against average, and a .935 save percentage. The 21-year-old ranks among the league leaders in minutes played (573:54, 3rd), shutouts (T5th), GAA (T7th), wins (T3rd), and save percentage (T6th). Last season, Cossa set a franchise record with a 19-game point streak (13-0-6), and tied both the franchise record home and road point streaks of 13 home games (9-0-4) and 10 road contests (8-0-2). With a 35-save shutout in the season opener against Milwaukee, he became the first Griffins goalie to post an opening-night shutout in 26 years, since Ian Gordon made 33 saves in a 2-0 win over Kansas City on Oct. 9, 1998. 

More to Come
Ondrej Becher made his AHL debut on Nov. 3 against the Cleveland Monsters, becoming just the 25th player to make his Griffins debut the season after he was drafted. Selected with the 80th pick by Detroit in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, the 20-year-old also became the eighth player to make his debut during the first month of the following season and just the fifth Red Wings pick to do so, joining Donovan Sebrango, Moritz Seider, Tomas Tatar, and Filip Zadina. In two seasons in the WHL from 2022-24, Becher recorded 134 points (48-86—134) and a plus-69 rating in 121 appearances. He also suited up for his home country of Czechia at the 2024 World Junior Championship, showing 10 points (3-7—10) in seven outings en route to claiming a bronze medal. Prior to coming to North America in 2022, Becher spent parts of two seasons in the Czechia2 league, Czechia’s second tier of pro hockey, and contributed three points (2-1—3) in 19 outings. 

Shine Bright
Veteran Dominik Shine had four multi-point games this season through the first 12 games, tying his mark from last year in 65 contests (career-high 6 in 2021-22). He most recently posted two assists on Friday at Rockford and now has nine points (3-6—9) in his last eight outings. Shine paces the squad with 12 points (4-8—12) in 13 games, while his four goals are tied for third and his eight assists rank first. The Detroit native has spent his entire career with Grand Rapids since 2016-17 and has accumulated 150 points (65-85—150) and 488 penalty minutes in 435 appearances. In the Griffins’ all-time rankings, Shine places third in games played, eighth in penalty minutes, tied for 10th in overtime goals (2), and tied for fourth in unassisted goals (8). Last year, Shine posted career-high numbers in assists (23), points (33) and plus-minus rating (+8). 

Loaded Ammo
Second-year pro Amadeus Lombardi has found a rhythm offensively, as he has eight points (3-5—8) in his last eight games. The 21-year-old logged his first two-goal game as a pro on Oct. 19 against Manitoba and later registered a career-high three points (2-1—3) on Oct. 26 at Lehigh Valley. Lombardi ranks second on the team with 10 points (5-5—10) and his five goals are tied for first on the roster. Through the opening 10 games, Lombardi matched his career high with five goals, as he lit the lamp five times in 70 contests last year. The Aurora, Ontario, native has 37 points (10-27—37), 16 penalty minutes and a plus-three rating through 85 career appearances.   

AHL Leaderboard Tracker
Shai Buium—Tied for ninth among rookie defensemen in assists (3)
Sebastian Cossa—Third in minutes played (573:54), tied for fifth in shutouts (1), tied for seventh in GAA (1.99), tied for third in wins (6), and tied for sixth in save percentage (.935)
Sheldon Dries—Tied for seventh in game-winners (2)

Milestones
On Wednesday, Dominik Shine collected his 150th point as a Griffin, in the AHL, and as a pro with an assist against Rockford. 
Sebastian Cossa—One game from 100 as a pro
Tory Dello—One point from 50 in the AHL and as a pro
Josiah Didier—One game from 450 in the AHL
Antti Tuomisto—Two points from 50 as a pro 

Photo by Chicago Wolves