Griffins Game #6 * Home Game #2 * AHL Game #75

Season Series: 0-2-0-0 Home Series: 0-0-0-0 Road Series: 0-2-0-0
All-Time Series: 87-66-2-6-3 All-Time Home Series: 42-29-2-4-2 All-Time Road Series: 45-37-0-2-1

Griffins vs. Wolves

Third of 10 meetings overall, first of five at Van Andel Arena...At 7-0, the Wolves stand as the AHL’s only perfect team and have eclipsed their franchise record for wins to start a season, set by their 2007-08 Calder Cup championship team (6-0)…Chicago now has its sights set on the AHL-record start of 11-0 set by the 1984-85 Rochester Americans, who finished that season in third place in their division before bowing out of the playoffs in the first round…The Wolves have not trailed since the 5:11 mark of the second period in their second game (Feb. 6 at Rockford), and the only time they’ve been tied in the third period this season (Feb. 11 vs. Grand Rapids), they regained the lead for good just 86 seconds later…The Wolves have used both a prolific offense and a shut-down defense to amass their 7-0 start. Their 4.86 scoring average is by far the highest in the AHL – 0.86 more than the next-best team, Rochester – while Chicago and Grand Rapids are deadlocked for second in the league by allowing only 2.00 goals per game…After allowing seven goals (including an empty-netter) over their two season-opening losses at Chicago, the Griffins have held each opponent to just a single goal during their three-game winning streak…The Wolves are averaging 3.5 goals per game against the Griffins and 5.4 against the rest of the league, a figure inflated by their 10-2 win over Iowa on Saturday…Chicago hasn’t had to travel far to collect its seven wins, as five came at the Triphahn Center Ice Arena while two were earned just 59 miles up the road at Rockford’s BMO Harris Bank Center…Taro Hirose, Givani Smith and Dylan McIlrath were all up with the Red Wings when the Griffins dropped the pair of games at Chicago.

But Wait, There’s More

Last year, the Griffins went 0-2 against the Wolves at Van Andel Arena and 3-1 at Allstate Arena to earn a series split...Grand Rapids has faced Chicago 164 times in the regular season dating back to their IHL days, the second-most of any Griffins opponent (Milwaukee, 192)…As part of his 11-year pro career, Griffins coach Ben Simon registered 87 points (37-50—87) in 196 games with the Wolves from 2001-03 and 2004-05 and was a part of their first Calder Cup title in 2002.

Late Bloomers

Seven of Grand Rapids’ 11 goals this season have been scored after the second period, including six during the third period and Dennis Cholowski’s overtime tally on Saturday…Each of the Griffins’ three straight wins has come after the game was tied through 40 minutes of play.

No Soup For You

The 13 shots surrendered by the Griffins in last Thursday’s 3-1 win at Rockford were one more than the franchise record for fewest allowed. Two decades ago they held visiting Hershey (Oct. 13, 2001) and host Houston (March 31, 2000) to just a dozen shots each in shutout victories...Kevin Boyle was the beneficiary of that stingy defense, earning the victory to improve to 1-1 with a 2.04 GAA and a 0.902 this season…The Griffins have yet to allow 30 shots in a game, but they’ve matched or eclipsed that number themselves on three occasions…Grand Rapids allows 24.2 shots per game, third-fewest on the circuit.

Taking Advantage

Both of the Griffins’ goals in Saturday’s 2-1 home-opening win against Cleveland came on the power play, giving them at least one such goal in each of the season’s first five games and putting them 6-for-23 (26.1%) on the season, good for sixth in the league.

It’s Good to Nag

After allowing just one goal in each of his consecutive wins over Cleveland, Pat Nagle owns a 2-1 record and ranks among the AHL’s leaders with a 1.68 GAA (8th) and a 0.937 save percentage (10th). If you exclude goalies who haven’t yet played two games, Nagle’s rankings rise to third and fifth, respectively.

High-Flying Griffins

With an assist on Dennis Cholowski’s game-winner last Saturday, Riley Barber pushed his team-high scoring streak to five games and point total to six (2-4—6)…Cholowski has consecutive two-point outings (1-3—4) and has registered points in three of the last four games (2-3—5)…Kyle Criscuolo (2-2—4) and Michael Rasmussen (2-2—4) each have points in four of five games thus far, with Rasmussen owning a three-game point streak (2-1—3)…After feeding Cholowski for that overtime goal, Taro Hirose has three assists in two games since being reassigned from Detroit’s taxi squad.

This Date in Griffins History

2006: Niklas Kronwall scores a goal in the second period of the gold medal game of the Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, helping Sweden to a 3-2 victory over Finland and becoming the first Griffins alumnus to win an Olympic medal.

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 and now recuperating at home, he is expected to miss the better part of this 30-game shortened season. 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.

Fruitful Februarys
February has historically been very kind to the Griffins, as they’ve posted a winning record for the month 10 years running, going a combined 68-32-5-6 (0.662) from 2011 to 2020. They are 3-2-0-0 so far this February, with two games remaining.

Milestones Achieved and Within Reach
Riley Barber logged his 300th pro game on Saturday. Other milestones on the horizon include:

Griffins – Three wins for 1,000 regular season victories in franchise history
Kyle Criscuolo – Two goals from 50 for his AHL/pro career
Turner Elson — Five games played for 200 as a Griffin
Brian Lashoff – Four assists for 100 as a pro
Gustav Lindstrom - Four points for 50 as a pro
Dylan McIlrath – One game played for 400 in the AHL, five games played for 200 as a Griffin
Dominik Shine – Six points from 50 for his Griffins/AHL/pro career, seven games played for 200 as a Griffin
Dominic Turgeon – Six points from 100 for his Griffins/AHL/pro career

Changing of the Guard

Prior to the season, the Griffins named Brian Lashoff as the 17th captain in franchise history, while Kyle Criscuolo, Turner Elson, Dylan McIlrath and Dominic Turgeon were selected as alternate captains. Lashoff, 30, begins his 12th season in a Griffins uniform, having made his debut as 18-year-old on March 29, 2009 at Philadelphia. One of three players to be a part of Grand Rapids’ 2017 and 2013 Calder Cup championship teams, he played his 500th regular season game with the Griffins on March 11, 2020 against Iowa, joining Travis Richards (655) as the only players to hit that milestone out of the 526 who suited up for Grand Rapids over its first 24 seasons. Lashoff’s 505 games rank first among active AHL players who have spent their entire AHL career with the same club and rank ninth in league history among one-team players. Of the eight 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). Next for Lashoff to eclipse are the 513 games that Stan Smrke played for the Rochester Americans from 1957-67. Over those 502 games, Lashoff has contributed 107 points (25-82—107) and 263 penalty minutes, to go with 20 points (5-15—20) and 34 PIM in 75 Calder Cup Playoff games, the second-most in Griffins history behind former captain Nathan Paetsch’s 78. Lashoff’s resume also includes 136 games and 15 points scored (2-13—15) over parts of seven seasons (2012-15; 2016-20) with the Detroit Red Wings, along with a gold medal at the 2010 World Junior Championship earned by helping the United States defeat host Canada for just its second tournament championship ever. The Albany, N.Y., native had previously served the Griffins as an alternate captain for six seasons (2012-13; 2015-20), and now he wears the “C” for the first time since his final junior season with Kingston in the Ontario Hockey League.

Are You Experienced?

Nineteen members of the Griffins’ current 26-man roster saw action in at least one game with the club last season — from Notre Dame product Tory Dello, who made his pro debut in the final game before the shutdown, to Dominic Turgeon, who appeared in each of the team’s 63 contests — while Kyle Criscuolo has returned to Grand Rapids after having helped the Griffins win the Calder Cup as a rookie in 2016-17. Brand new to the team are goaltenders Kevin Boyle (AHL San Diego) and Kaden Fulcher (ECHL Toledo), defenseman Donovan Sebrango (OHL Kitchener), and forwards Riley Barber (AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton), Max Humitz (WCHA Lake Superior State) and Patrick Curry (H-East Boston U.).

It Is So, Joe!

Defenseman Joe Hicketts and left wing Taro Hirose are the Griffins’ top returning scorers from a season ago, when their 27 points tied for third on the squad with current free agent Matthew Ford (10-17—27). Only Chris Terry (21-30—51), now with the KHL’s Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod (KHL), and Matt Puempel (17-22—39), who has reunited with 2019-20 Griffin Joe Veleno in Sweden with Malmo, tallied more points.

Pick Up Where You Left Off

Pat Nagle finished 2019-20 by going 6-3 with a 2.33 GAA and a 0.925 save percentage in his last 10 appearances, and he allowed two goals or less in five of his last nine starts. The former Ferris State Bulldog appeared in 20 games for Grand Rapids last season after totaling only eight games in the AHL – including three with the Griffins – during his first eight pro seasons. If Nagle had enough minutes to qualify (about 64 shy), his 2.32 overall season GAA would have ranked eighth in the AHL.

At the Helm

Ben Simon begins his sixth season with Grand Rapids and his third as head coach. He served the first three seasons as an assistant under Todd Nelson, now an assistant coach with the NHL’s Dallas Stars. The 42-year-old Simon guided the Griffins to a 29-27-3-4 record in 2019-20, putting the team in position for what would have been an eighth straight postseason berth before the final 13 games and playoffs were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. His club achieved that franchise-record seventh consecutive playoff appearance during the 2018-19 season by posting a 38-27-7-4 mark (0.572), and he played an integral role in helping the club win its second Calder Cup in 2017. During Simon’s first six seasons as a coach in Grand Rapids, the Griffins have compiled cumulative records of 203-134-14-21 (0.593) in the regular season and 24-14 (0.632) in the Calder Cup Playoffs.

Griffins in General

Grand Rapids is in the franchise’s 25th overall season of play, 20th as a member of the American Hockey League and 19th as the primary affiliate of the 11-time Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings…Grand Rapids is 997-685-27-61-116 (0.583) in the regular season since 1996-97 to go along with 17 playoff appearances, seven division titles and two Calder Cups (2017, 2013)…Grand Rapids has qualified for the Calder Cup Playoffs a franchise-record seven consecutive times — and was in position to do so for an eighth straight season when the COVID shutdown hit in last March — and advanced to at least the second round in five of those postseasons.

Photo by Mark Newman/Griffins