Griffins Game #37 * Road Game #18 * AHL Game #587

Season Series: 0-3-0-0 Home Series: 0-1-0-0 Road Series: 0-2-0-0
All-Time Series: 58-41-9-11 All-Time Home Series: 36-13-5-5 All-Time Road Series: 22-28-4-6

Griffins at IceHogs
Fourth of eight meetings overall, third of four at the BMO Center…Dating back to the final meeting of the 2019-20 season, Grand Rapids now has points in 14 of the last 20 games (11-6-2-1, 0.625) against the IceHogs...The Griffins are 20-16-6-6 (0.542) since the 2017-18 season against Rockford and have outscored the IceHogs 132-131. On the road since 2017-18, Grand Rapids is just 7-13-2-3- (0.380) against the IceHogs, having been outscored 81-60...The Griffins have only one win in the past seven meetings at Rockford (1-6-0-0)...Rockford comes into the contest with a 10-5-1-2 home record this season and are enjoying a four-game home winning streak...Grand Rapids is 6-10-0-1 on foreign ice...The IceHogs are 6-3-1-0 in their last 10 and the Griffins are 3-5-0-2 in their last 10...Rockford ranks 10th in the AHL with 124 goals scored while its 112 goals are tied for 19th...Rockford is tied with Cleveland as Grand Rapids’ third-most frequent opponent (Milwaukee 207, Chicago 187, Cleveland 120), as tonight’s game marks the 120th meeting between the two franchises...Griffins head coach Ben Simon served as an assistant in Rockford for two seasons (2011-13).

Last Time Out
Victor Brattstrom and Zane McIntyre combined for 65 saves in the Wild’s 2-1 shootout win over the Griffins on Martin Luther King Jr. Day at Wells Fargo Arena. Brattstrom drew the start between the pipes for the first time since Dec. 30, making 28 saves on 29 shots. The Swede’s 0.966 save percentage is a season best outside of his eight saves on eight shots performance in just 9:22 of ice time on Oct. 23. Austin Czarnik scored the lone goal for Grand Rapids, claiming second place in goals scored by a Griffin this season with 10. The Griffins moved to 8-0-1-2 (0.864) in games decided by one goal this season.

Roster Shake Up
- Jan. 8—F Elmer Soderblom reassigned by Detroit
- Jan. 10—F Kirill Tyutyayev reassigned to Toledo by Grand Rapids
- Jan. 13—D Donovan Sebrango reassigned to Toledo by Detroit; F Drew Worrad reassigned to Toledo by Grand Rapids
- Jan. 15—F Drew Worrad recalled from Toledo by Grand Rapids
- Jan. 16—G Alex Nedeljkovic recalled by Detroit; G Alex Nedeljkovic assigned by Detroit

This Date in Griffins History
2003: Thanks to a 4-2 win over San Antonio at Van Andel Arena, the Griffins extend their lead atop the Central Division to 17 points, marking the largest margin in the team’s seven seasons.

Finding His Stride
Rookie Cross Hanas is off to a positive start to his professional career with 15 points (8-7—15) in 24 games. The 21-year-old posted 12 points (7-5—12) during his first 15 appearances, which included a three-point outing on Nov. 11 against the Toronto Marlies. Hanas suffered an upper-body injury in late November that kept him sidelined until Jan. 4, missing 12 games. After failing to find the scoresheet in his first three games back, Hanas now has three points (1-2—3) in his last four contests, including the game-winner in a 1-0 decision against Chicago on Jan. 14.

Alexander the Great
Netminder Alex Nedeljkovic has been a welcomed addition to the Griffins roster, as the goaltender was assigned on a conditioning loan by Detroit on Jan. 4. After clearing waivers on Jan. 16, the netminder was assigned to Grand Rapids on a regular loan. Through six outings, Nedeljkovic has a 3-2-1 record along with a 2.30 goals against average and a 0.920 save percentage. Last Saturday, Nedeljkovic posted a 27-save shutout against the Chicago Wolves, his first in the AHL since Feb. 7, 2020 against Hartford (17 saves). On Jan. 11, Nedeljkovic recorded his fourth assist and fifth point of his AHL career, which was his first AHL point since Jan. 19, 2020. The only other season in Grand Rapids history during which two NHL goalies (Nedeljkovic and Magnus Hellberg) played for the Griffins on conditioning stints was 2005-06, when both Chris Osgood (3 GP, 2-1, 3.34 GAA, 0.882%) and Manny Legace (1 GP, 1-0, 2.00 GAA, 0.909%) donned the Griffins’ wings instead of Detroit’s.

Few and Far Between
The Griffins have struggled to find the back of the net in recent games, as the team has scored a combined two goals in their previous three outings. Grand Rapids has not scored more than two goals since Jan. 6 when it scored four in a 4-2 victory over Texas. Since then, the Griffins have tallied a combined six goals in five contests (1.20 goals per game). Grand Rapids is tied for 29th out of 32 AHL teams with 96 goals scored this campaign (2.67 goals per game).

On the Road Again
Last week, the Griffins wrapped up their season-high seven-game homestand that spanned from Dec. 31-Jan. 14. Grand Rapids finished with a 3-3-0-1 mark and are now 8-9-1-1 in West Michigan this season. The Griffins will now play seven out of their next eight games on the road, which began with a 2-1 shootout defeat at the Iowa Wild on Jan. 16. Grand Rapids holds a 6-10-0-1 ledger on foreign ice.

Bobbing for Apples
Taro Hirose has been known for his passing abilities throughout four seasons with the Griffins. In fact, the former Michigan State Spartan has had at least 22 assists in each full AHL campaign in his career. He has already surpassed 22 assists this season, as Hirose has totaled a team-leading 23 helpers in 36 games, which is tied for 12th on the circuit. In addition, his 13 power-play assists are tied for eighth in the AHL. Hirose has points in 22 of the 36 contests this season (9-23—32).

Just Keep it Close
The Griffins have had an up-and-down start to the season, but they have excelled at winning close games. In fact, Grand Rapids is 8-0-1-2 (0.864) in games decided by one goal and 4-0-1-0 (0.900) in overtime contests. In comparison, the Griffins are just 6-19-0-0 (0.240) in games decided by two or more tallies. In the 2021-22 season, the Griffins finished with a 13-7-6-2 (0.607) mark in games decided by one goal.

Power Struggle
After beginning the season with a 29.3% power-play conversion rate in the first nine games of the year, the Griffins have struggled as of late. Grand Rapids is 5-for-51 (9.8%) on the man-advantage in its last 15 outings and have just eight power-play goals in its last 20 contests (8-for-79, 10.1%). Grand Rapids has been held off the scoresheet on the power play in five straight games (0-for-15). The Griffins are tied for 25th in the AHL on the power play with a conversion rate of 17.5%.

AHL Leaderboard Tracker
Pontus Andreasson—Four power-play goals are tied for eighth among rookies
Austin Czarnik—Four game-winning goals are tied for fourth
Taro Hirose—23 assists are tied for 12th, 13 power-play assists are tied for eighth
Joel L’Esperance—Eight power-play goals are tied for fourth

Milestones
Kyle Criscuolo skated in his 350th pro game on Jan. 16 at Iowa while Austin Czarnik suited up for his 250th AHL game.
Seth Barton—One game from 50 as a pro
Alex Chiasson—One point from 50 in the AHL
Austin Czarnik—Two points from 250 in the AHL
Joel L’Esperance—Two goals from 100 as a pro
Danny O’Regan—One game from 400 as a pro
Chase Pearson—Three assists from 50 as a pro, in the AHL and as a Griffin
Dominik Shine—One assist from 50 as a pro, as a Griffins and in the AHL
Tyler Spezia—Two goals from 50 as a pro
Jakub Vrana—Two goals from 150 as a pro, two assists from 150 as a pro, one game from 500 as a pro

Photo by Sarah Caputi/IceHogs