Griffins Game #17 * Home Game #5 * AHL Game #265

Season Series: 1-1-0-0 Home Series: 0-0-0-0 Road Series: 1-1-0-0
All-Time Series: 34-15-3-2 All-Time Home Series: 16-6-2-2 All-Time Road Series: 18-9-1-0

Griffins vs. Wild

Third of four meetings overall, first of two at Van Andel Arena…Iowa’s 5-4 home win over the Griffins on March 27 sparked its current eight-game point streak (6-0-2-0) as well as Grand Rapids’ three-game losing streak, its longest this season...The Griffins have had four straight games and five straight home contests postponed due to league COVID-19 protocols affecting either them or their opponent, so tonight marks their first game in 13 days and their first home game in a month...Grand Rapids began the season series by taking a 5-2 win in Iowa on March 26, the team’s most recent victory...The suspension and eventual cancelation of the 2019-20 season prevented a potential first-round playoff meeting between the Wild and Griffins, as they finished second and third, respectively, in the Central Division standings…Iowa proved to be Grand Rapids’ final opponent in 2019-20, with the Griffins defeating the Wild 4-1 at home on March 11…2019-20 will remain the only season that the Griffins posted a losing record at Wells Fargo Arena, as they went 0-2-1-0...The Griffins went 2-0-1-0 against the Wild at home last season.

Get Busy

After playing just 16 games overall and only four times at home during the first 70 days of this 2020-21 season – owing to both a light early schedule and six postponements over the last month – the Griffins are scheduled to play their final 16 games and 12 home contests over a span of only 30 days. With tonight’s clash against Iowa, they begin a seven-game homestand along with a stretch of four home games in just six nights.

A Long Time Coming

The Griffins have not played since a 4-2 setback at Cleveland on Saturday, April 3, and they haven’t played at home since a 2-1 overtime loss to Rockford on March 16. While Grand Rapids enters the weekend on its first three-game losing streak of the season, the team has earned points in all four home games thus far (2-0-2-0).

Last Time Out

On April 3 at Cleveland, the Griffins started strong by building a 2-0 lead through 20 minutes on a power play goal by Riley Barber plus Mathias Brome’s first AHL tally, but the Monsters rallied with four answered goals for a 4-2 victory, their first series win in four tries this season. Four straight minor penalties committed by the Griffins in the second period – including a pair of too-many-men calls – opened the door for the Monsters, who scored the first two of their three second-period goals on the power play. Cleveland then shut that door on Grand Rapids thanks largely to Daniil Tarasov, who made his North American debut after beginning this season in the KHL. The 2017 third-round pick of the Columbus Blue Jackets finished with 27 saves and stopped the last 21 shots he faced.

This Date in Griffins History

2015: Tyler Bertuzzi scores a goal in his pro debut and the Griffins earn a 6-4 win at Lake Erie, reclaiming the Midwest Division lead over Rockford with two games remaining in the regular season.

Try This Again

Last night marked the third attempt by the Griffins and Wolves to play AHL Game #157. Postponed from its original March 19 date due to league COVID-19 protocols affecting Chicago, it was subsequently bumped from its April 13 rescheduled date due to protocols affecting Grand Rapids, before being postponed yesterday due to protocols affecting Chicago. The game has been rescheduled for Thursday, April 29, making it the final contest of this homestand. The Griffins’ games scheduled for last Friday in Cleveland and Saturday at home against Rockford also fell victim but have been re-slated for May 11 and May 3, respectively.

That’s a First

The Griffins tonight begin a seven-game April homestand that surpasses their most regular season home games ever during the month. Prior to this season, their high-water mark for regular season games at Van Andel Arena during April had been five, established in 2015.

Life of Riley

Riley Barber has goals in two straight games and four of the last five outings, along with points in 13 of 16 games this season. His 12 goals on the season tie him third in the league, amazing considering that his 16 games played are either nine or 10 fewer than every other player in the top five of the AHL’s goal-scoring race. Barber’s 19 points (12-7—19) tie for 20th in the league while his nine power play points tie for sixth. He posted a nine-game point streak from Feb. 5-March 11 that was the longest ever to start a player's Griffins career as well as the longest from the start of a Griffins season.

High-Flying Hirose

Reassigned to the Griffins from Detroit’s taxi squad on Tuesday, Taro Hirose stands second on the team in scoring with 14 points (3-11—14) in 13 games. He has an assist in two straight games and points in three of the last four outings (2-3—5).

Rarified Air

Brian Lashoff’s 513 games played for the Griffins rank first among active AHL players who have spent their entire AHL career with the same club and tie for eighth in league history among one-team players. Of the players ahead of him on that list, the most recent – and, coincidentally, the record-holder – last played during the 1970-71 season (Bill Needham of the Cleveland Barons, 981 games played). Lashoff, who has been unfit to play the last three games, tied No. 8-ranked Stan Smrke (Rochester 1957-67) on March 26 and is now four games behind No. 7 Pete Kapusta (Providence Reds 1946-55).

Speaking of the Captain

They say all’s well that ends well. An eventful Saturday before the NHL Trade Deadline saw Brian Lashoff moved from Detroit to Columbus and then finally to Tampa Bay as part of a three-team deal, before he was ultimately reassigned to Grand Rapids by the Lightning. The swap began with Columbus trading defenseman David Savard to Detroit for Lashoff, before the Red Wings sent Savard to Tampa Bay for the Lightning’s fourth-round pick in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft. Columbus then rounded out the bizarre bazaar by trading Lashoff to the Lightning for Tampa Bay’s first-round pick in 2021 and third-round pick in 2022.

Ready for Action

The Griffins welcomed a pair of fresh faces to their roster this week in center Hayden Verbeek and defenseman Jared McIsaac…On Sunday, Detroit assigned Verbeek after acquiring him and Ottawa's fifth-round pick in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for defenseman Jon Merrill. The 23-year-old has appeared in seven games this season for the AHL's Laval Rocket, contributing three points (1-2--3) and a plus-four rating. He began this season with HC Banska Bystrica in the top Slovakian professional league, scoring two goals in four games before returning to North America. The 5-foot-10, 183-pound forward has skated in 61 AHL games with Laval over his three professional seasons, registering 10 points (5-5--10) and 19 penalty minutes. Verbeek has also skated in 25 career ECHL games between the Maine Mariners and Adirondack Thunder, logging 22 points (5-17--22), a plus-seven rating and six penalty minutes. Originally signed by Montreal as an undrafted free agent on March 25, 2018, Verbeek spent parts of five seasons with the Ontario Hockey League's Soo Greyhounds from 2013-18, logging 136 points (59-77--136), a plus-50 rating and 114 penalty minutes in 250 games. He also logged 20 points (7-13--20), a plus-13 rating and 37 penalty minutes in 45 career OHL postseason games. A native of Kingston, Ontario, Verbeek is the nephew of former Detroit forward (1999-01) and current Red Wings assistant general manager Pat Verbeek…The 21-year-old McIsaac, the Red Wings’ fourth pick (second round, 36th overall) in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, was assigned by Detroit on Monday after being activated from injured reserve. He underwent surgery for a shoulder injury in late October and will be available to make his Griffins and AHL debuts this week. McIsaac began his professional hockey career last fall after being loaned to HPK in Finland's SM-Liiga. He wrapped up his major-junior career in 2019-20, splitting time with the Halifax Mooseheads and Moncton Wildcats in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and totaling 19 points (4-15--19) in 28 games. The Truro, Nova Scotia, native also captured a gold medal with Canada at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship, contributing four points (1-3--4) in seven games.

Givani’s Back

Detroit on Wednesday reassigned Givani Smith to the Griffins from their taxi squad. This season, he has eight points (4-4—8) in 11 games with Grand Rapids and four points (1-3—4) in 15 games for the Red Wings.

Powerful Play

Following a 2019-20 campaign in which they finished sixth in the AHL’s power play rankings at 20.9%, the Griffins are off to an even better start this season, currently sitting fourth in the league at 25.0% overall and 31.1% on the road.

Offense Taken

The Griffins lead the AHL in shots per game (35.31) and are 13th in goals per game (3.19). They’ve racked up at least 40 shots in five of their last nine outings.

Stingy D

After holding their opposition to two goals or less in five straight contests (March 11-26) and nine times over a stretch of 11 games, the Griffins have surrendered at least four goals in each game of their current three-game skid. Still, Grand Rapids is tied for seventh in the league by allowing just 2.88 goals per game…The Griffins have been outshot in only three of their first 16 games, and only once have they allowed 30 or more shots, a total that they have reached on 12 occasions — including 10 of the last 12 outings. Grand Rapids ranks second in the AHL in shots allowed per game (24.50).

Upcoming Milestones

Brian Lashoff – Three assists for 100 as a pro
Dominik Shine – Three points from 50 for his Griffins/AHL/pro career

It’s a Start

The roar of a Griffins crowd was partially restored on March 13 when the team began welcoming 750 fans per home game, pursuant to the most recent order from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. Griffins 2021-22 season ticket members are being given the first opportunity to purchase tickets to home games during the remainder of the 2020-21 season. Other fans can sign up for Griffins Nation, the team’s official email newsletter, to receive priority access to 2020-21 tickets whenever limited seats are made available for sale throughout the season. On occasion, single-game tickets may also be purchased online at griffinshockey.com.

We Miss You, Bob!

On Feb. 8, the beloved 21-year Voice of the Griffins, Bob Kaser, underwent successful heart surgery at the Meijer Heart Center in Grand Rapids to repair several blocked arteries. Released from the hospital on Feb. 14, his recovery at home continues to go well. Everyone in Griffins Nation, the Griffins organization, the AHL, and the Michigan hockey community wishes Bob all the best in his recovery and a quick return to health. We can’t wait until he is back in the booth.

Photo by Mark Newman/Griffins