2023-24 SEASON ISSUE NO. 2
BLUE LINE BULWARK DEFENSEMAN BROGAN RAFFERTY O F F I C I A L
M A G A Z I N E
O F
T H E
G R A N D
R A P I D S
G R I F F I N S
We’re big fans of the Griffins. We’re also big fans of their fans. Huntington is proud to support the Grand Rapids Griffins, through all the wins and losses. No matter the outcome, it’s a joy to watch you from the stands, competing your hearts out. From all your fans at Huntington, go Griffins!
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Vol. 27, No. 2
TABLE OF CONTENTS STARTING LINEUP 26 ��������MAKING A NAME FOR HIMSELF Griffins alternate captain Brogan Rafferty has overcome obstacles to establish himself as a dependable defenseman at the pro level.
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32 ��������ON THE STRAIGHT AND NARROW Cross Hanas has long had his sights on a path that he hopes will lead to the National Hockey League. 42 ��������WITH A PASSION Griffins assistant coach Steph Julien harnesses his love of the game to bring out the best in those around him. 50 ��������HONEST-TO-GOODNESS Former Griffins defenseman John Gruden believes players appreciate candid coaches who are genuine and truthful to them while offering advice. 56 ��������TALENT ON THE RISE Cathy George, head coach of Grand Rapids’ major-league women’s sports team, is excited about the quality of play that will be on display when the Pro Volleyball Federation franchise springs into action in January.
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ON THE BENCH 2..........Chalk Talk 4..........Scouting Report 9..........Griffins Schedule 10.......Welcome Letters 12.......AHL Tradition 15.......Charitable Goals 16.......AHL Team Directory 21.......Detroit Red Wings 22.......Promotional Calendar
40.......Meet the Griffins 65.......Griffins Records 68.......Griffins All-Stars 73.......Penalty Calls 74.......AHL Teams Map 76.......It All Starts Here 79.......Kids Page 80.......Parting Shot
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Griffins alternate captain Brogan Rafferty has been policing the defensive zone on a pro level since 2019, when he broke into the NHL with the Vancouver Canucks. Photo by Mark Newman Griffiti magazine is published four times a year by the Grand Rapids Griffins, Van Andel Arena, 130 W. Fulton St., Grand Rapids, MI 49503. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. All contents ©2023 Grand Rapids Griffins. For advertising information, contact Griffins Sales & Marketing, (616) 774-4585. Unsolicited manuscripts and other materials will not be returned.
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WITH GRIFFINS HEAD COACH DAN WATSON Ten games into the 2023-24 season, Griffins head coach Dan Watson saw plenty of positive signs while confirming that consistent play was still an elusive concept. “We have some young players and older guys who are still trying to mesh as a team,” he said. “It’s producing inconsistency throughout periods and, as a result, our game looks like a roller coaster. There’s too much up and down, and not enough consistent, high-level play. We have a good group of guys. It’s just going to take time.” Watson has seen it before. Last season, his Toledo Walleye team came out of the gate with a record of 7-10-1. When the clock struck midnight on Dec. 31, 2023, his team was 12-12-5. The Walleye proceeded to win 18 straight games on the way to a 45-19-8 season that saw them reach the ECHL’s Western Conference Finals. Even championship teams can have less-thanstellar starts to a season. The Griffins’ 2013 Calder Cup club won only one of its first six games. The Griffins’ 2017 title team won its first three games but then lost four of its next six. Still, Watson knows his team can play much better. He acknowledges that there are a lot of moving pieces and it’s still a matter of figuring out how all the pieces will fit. “We’re still trying to figure out who’s going to play with who,” he said. “We’ve gone through a number of line combinations, trying guys on the wing, trying guys at center, just to see if there’s going to be that magical fit. We’re still waiting for it to happen.” Generating more offense would certainly boost the team’s fortunes. 2 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
“Right now we’re not making good puck decisions at all,” he said. “We’re not managing the puck in the right areas and we’re turning the puck over way too many times. Right now we either hang on to the puck too long or we’re forcing ourselves into the plays that are not there.” Watson would like to see the Griffins create more havoc in front of the opposing net. “We’ve got to play with the puck a little bit more, possess it more in the offensive zone,” he said. “There’s a lot of different ways to create chances, but to me, it boils down to possession of the puck, net-front presence, and net-front traffic, and then making the right decisions quickly with the puck. “Goalies are too good at this level to shoot from outside the dots, above the top of the circles, to hope for a clear shot to get through. They’re going to make those saves. It’s the ones that they can’t see, the shots that hit off somebody, that are going to find their way into the net. But, for that to happen, we’ve got to get guys there. “If we shoot without traffic in front, a lot of times you’re going to be a one-and-done team. If you get a shot to the net but can’t recover the puck, now you’re defending and you may not have the energy or the speed to get back on the rush. So we’ve got to work together and drive to the net through the middle to get to the net, and that is non-negotiable.” Some of the Griffins’ early struggles can be attributable to the youth of the team’s centers. That’s where Watson would like to see more support from others on the team. “We’ve got to skate to help these guys,” he said. “At times, I feel like we’re leaving guys on an island.
We’re not skating to support the puck and we’re a little behind at times. Guys are trying to make extra plays, extra moves, one-on-one, and we’re playing against really good teams and those types of plays aren’t going to be there.” When the Griffins have excelled this season, Watson contends that they have played as a team. “When we stay connected, we look like a really good hockey team,” he said. “We’re playing five-man units on the ice in our D-zone through the neutral zone and then offensively. When we want to do our own thing -- when we ad-lib and go off-script -- we don’t look like a very good hockey team. “When we don’t stay within our structure and our systems, we’re playing like we’re on our heels, we’re chasing pucks, and it looks like chaos out there, and we don’t want to look like that. “So our biggest focus is playing in five-man units and not as individuals.” The Griffins’ strongest showing of the young season probably came in a 2-1 victory at Milwaukee in early November when they outshot the Admirals by a 37-16 margin. “It was our best game in terms of how we managed the puck,” he said. “We didn’t spend a
lot of time in our defensive zone and we broke out of our zone clean, which meant we had a lot of energy for line rushes with speed. We were able to spend more time in the offensive zone.” Watson hopes the Milwaukee game is a harbinger of better things to come. “Bottom line, we need guys to step up and play better. We have a lot of young guys who are still learning how to play a pro-style game, so we’ve got to get them up to speed. It will take some time, but once we get them going, I think we’re going to be a really good team.” To date, Watson has been pleased with his players’ work ethic. “The competitiveness, the love of the game, the wanting to get better is all there,” he said. “Now we just have to make sure we get ourselves headed in the right direction.” A little winning streak could do wonders for the team’s confidence. “Last year with Toledo, we went on a three-game road trip, and I remember we didn’t play great, but we won all three and it just gave our guys confidence,” Watson said. “Once we can win two, three, or four games in a row, it will give the guys the little bit of confidence they need.”
2023-24 GRIFFINS HOCKEY OPERATIONS STAFF
General Manager Shawn Horcoff
Head Coach Dan Watson
Assistant Coach Steph Julien
Assistant Coach Brian Lashoff
Goaltending Coach Roope Koistinen
Video Coach Erich Junge
Athletic Trainer Austin Frank
Assistant Athletic Trainer Katie Berglund
Physical Therapist Zack Harvey
Equipment Manager Brad Thompson
Asst. Equipment Manager Kyle Hornkohl
Sports Science Data Analyst Jack Rummells
Strength-Cond. Coordinator Marcus Kinney
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 3
SCOUTING REPORT
All statistics are through games of Nov. 12, 2023.
TEXAS
DEC. 13, DEC. 14 In the 2022-23 regular season, Texas edged out the Milwaukee Admirals by three points to win the Central Division with a 40-209-3 record (92 pts., .639). The Stars finished the 2022-23 campaign in third place in the Western Conference but failed to reach the conference finals, losing 3-2 in the Central Division Finals to Milwaukee. 4 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
Rookie Logan Stankoven has accumulated 15 points (8-7—15) in his first 12 games as a professional. Among first-year players in the AHL, the WHL product ranks first in points and goals and is tied for second in assists. The 20-year-old was selected with the 47th overall pick by the Dallas Stars in the second round of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft.
CLEVELAND DEC. 31
Cleveland and Grand Rapids have had some memorable games so far in 2023-24, with the Griffins staging two late third-period comebacks. On Oct. 27 at Van Andel Arena, Grand Rapids scored two goals in the final 3:04 of play to force overtime and gather a point from Cleveland. A few days later, on Nov. 1 on the shores of Lake Erie, Grand Rapids scored with less than a second remaining to steal another point, ultimately losing in a shootout.
MILWAUKEE JAN. 10
Grand Rapids has faced Milwaukee 215 times, which is more than any other opponent in the Griffins’ 28-year history. Grand Rapids’ 110 victories against the Admirals are also the most against any foe. The Griffins and Admirals met for the first-ever time on Dec. 17, 1996, as the Admirals skated away with a 6-4 home win.
ROCKFORD
JAN. 12, JAN. 13, JAN. 24 Rookie netminder Drew Commesso posted an 18-save shutout of the Griffins on Oct. 28, his first whitewash as a professional. The 21-year-old, who competed for Team USA at the 2022 Beijing Olympics alongside former Griffin Pat Nagle, ranks fifth among rookie AHL goaltenders with a
BELLEVILLE JAN. 26, JAN. 27
The Belleville Senators are featured on the schedule for the first time since the 2019-20 campaign, with the Griffins holding a 2-1-0-2 record in the all-time series. Based in Belleville, Ontario, the Senators joined the AHL in 2017 and are the primary affiliate of the Ottawa Senators. Belleville reached the Calder Cup Playoffs just once in 2021-22, when it finished fourth in the North Division with a 40-28-4-0 record.
Cleveland’s Nick Blankenburg hails from Washington Township, Michigan, and competed for Romeo High School from 2013-16. He later skated for the University of Michigan from 2018-22 and served as captain during his senior season, winning the 2022 Big Ten championship. This is Blankenburg’s first year in the AHL, as he spent his entire 2022-23 rookie campaign in the NHL with the Columbus Blue Jackets, notching 14 points (410—14) in 36 games.
The Admirals lead the entire AHL with seven former first-round draft picks on their roster. Yaroslav Askarov (11th overall in 2020 by NSH) is the highest-drafted player on the roster, followed by Denis Gurianov (12th in 2015 by DAL), Joakim Kemell (17th in 2022 by NSH), Fedor Svechkov (19th in 2021 by NSH), Mark Jankowski (21st in 2012 by CGY), Zach L’Heureux (27th in 2021 by NSH), and Reid Schaefer (32nd in 2022 by EDM).
2.22 GAA and fourth with a .919 save percentage through five games. Twenty-nine-year-old veteran David Gust returns to the Rockford IceHogs after an unprecedented 2022-23 campaign. Gust posted career-high numbers in goals (26), assists (33), points (59) and penalty minutes (54) in 65 regular-season games. In 2022-23, Gust paced the IceHogs in points and assists while tying for second in goals.
Defenseman Donovan Sebrango, who competed for the Griffins from 2020-23, joined the Senators’ organization this past offseason through a trade that sent him and forward Dominik Kubalik to Ottawa with a 2024 conditional first-round pick and a 2024 fourth-round pick to Ottawa for forward Alex DeBrincat. Sebrango was the 63rd overall pick by the Detroit Red Wings in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 5
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2023-24 SEASON
Dear Griffins Fans, A new day is dawning for professional sports in Grand Rapids! For the first time since 2018, the Griffins are embarking on an American Hockey League season under new leadership. The Detroit Red Wings in June named Dan Watson the 12th head coach in our franchise’s illustrious history, and he brings both a wealth of organizational experience and an impressive resume of success from his 14 seasons with our ECHL affiliate, the Toledo Walleye. Watson never missed the playoffs in six seasons as Toledo’s head coach, reaching the Kelly Cup Finals twice and leading the Walleye to three division titles, three 100-point seasons, and two regular season championships. The fastest coach in ECHL history to reach 100 wins and the winningest head coach in Walleye history, Watson was named the ECHL’s 2016-17 Coach of the Year. His accomplishments speak for themselves, but it’s his familiarity with Griffins players and Red Wings prospects that give him an edge. Watson coached 56 future or former Griffins as Toledo’s head coach, and we are excited to see what this season has in store for him and his all-new coaching staff, which includes 2022-23 Quebec Major Junior Hockey League Coach of the Year Steph Julien, longtime Griffins defenseman Brian Lashoff, and goaltending coach Roope Koistinen. Watson, though, is not the only new sheriff in town. West Michigan’s first major-league women’s sports team, the Grand Rapids Rise (grrise.com), will take to the Van Andel Arena floor in January as members of Pro Volleyball Federation. A Rise roster packed with some of the finest volleyball players in the world – including a U.S. Olympian, collegiate national champions, All-Americans, and members of several countries’ national teams – will commence a 24game season under the guidance of head coach Cathy George. The winningest coach in the history of Michigan State volleyball, George led the Spartans for 17 seasons and totaled 35 years as a collegiate head coach, including 11 seasons at Western Michigan. Now she’s preparing to make an even bigger mark on the largest stage the sport of volleyball has ever enjoyed in the United States. Whether it’s thanks to a Griffins team you’ve loyally supported for 28 seasons or a Rise squad that you will soon fall in love with, there will be no shortage of breathtaking moments and incredible athletes for you to cheer at Van Andel Arena over the next nine months. Enjoy the ride! Sincerely,
Dan DeVos Chief Executive Officer Grand Rapids Griffins
10 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
2023-24 SEASON
A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT
A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESID Dear Fans,
It is my pleasure to welcome you to the 2023-24 American Hockey League season, as we continue a tradition of excellence that can be traced back to our league’s founding nearly nine decades ago.
DearThe Fans, AHL is as proud as ever of its role in developing nearly all of the
players, coaches, executives, trainers, broadcasters and officials who
SCOTT HOWSON PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER AMERICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
TT HOWSON
ND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER ICAN HOCKEY LEAGUE
you see throughout the National Hockey League today. Generations It is my pleasure to welcome you to the 2023-24 American of our great fans have cheered on future superstars, Stanley Cup champions and Hockey Hallcontinue of Famers asathey have comeof through the League season, as we tradition excellence th AHL. traced back to our league’s founding nearly nine decades a This season is sure to be another memorable one, from the
excitement of opening night to the pageantry of the AHL All-Star The AHL is as proud as ever of its role in developing nearly Classic in San Jose to the thrills and emotion of the Calder Cup players, coaches, executives, trainers, broadcasters and offi Playoffs. you see throughout the National League Ge On behalf of all of our teams, thank you forHockey your continuing supporttoday. of thegreat AHL. fans have cheered on future superstars, Stanle of our champions Sincerely, and Hockey Hall of Famers as they have come AHL.
This Scott season is sure to be another memorable one, from th Howson President & CEO | American Hockey League excitement of opening night to the pageantry of the AHL A Classic in San Jose to the thrills and emotion of the Calde Playoffs.
On behalf of all of our teams, thank you for your continuing the AHL. Sincerely,
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 11
BY THE NUMBERS
A TRADITION OF
87.2% Percentage of all NHL players in 2022-23 who were graduates of the AHL
924 Former AHL players who skated in the NHL last season
THE BEGINNINGS Embarking on its 88th season of play in 2023-24, the American Hockey League is continuing a tradition of excellence that began in 1936 when the Canadian-American Hockey League joined with the International Hockey League to form what is today known as the AHL. Eight teams hit the ice that first season, representing Buffalo, Cleveland, New
Haven, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Providence, Springfield and Syracuse.
Bears captured their league-best 12th championship last spring.
Frank Calder, the National Hockey League’s president at the time, was instrumental in the forming of this new league, and his name would be given to its championship trophy. The first Calder Cup was won by the Syracuse Stars in 1937; the Hershey
From those roots, the American Hockey League has grown into a 32-team, coast-to-coast league that provides fans with exciting, high-level professional hockey while preparing thousands of players, coaches, officials, executives, trainers, broadcasters and more for careers in the NHL.
375 AHL players who also played in the NHL in 2022-23
238 Former 1st- and 2ndround NHL draft picks who skated in the AHL in 2022-23
L . T O R . : A H L G R A D UAT E S M I K KO R A N TA N E N , I G O R S H E S T E R K I N , TAG E T H O M P S O N , J A S O N R O B E R T S O N , L I N U S U L L M A R K
12 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
THE PLAYERS
THE LEGENDS
THE COACHES
In today’s National Hockey League nearly 90 percent of the players are AHL alumni, including 2022-23 Vezina Trophy winner Linus Ullmark, Norris Trophy recipient Erik Karlsson and Selke Trophy winner Patrice Bergeron. The 2023 Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights were stocked with AHL graduates including captain Mark Stone, goaltender Adin Hill and three-time AHL All-Star and Conn Smythe Trophy winner Jonathan Marchessault.
For nearly nine decades, the American Hockey League has been home to some of the greatest players in the history of our sport. In fact, there are 130 honored members of the Hockey Hall of Fame who have been affiliated with the AHL during their careers. All-time greats from Milt Schmidt and Gump Worsley to Roberto Luongo and Martin St. Louis came through the AHL ranks and now find themselves enshrined in Toronto, and the coveted Calder Cup is inscribed with the names of legendary AHL alumni like Johnny Bower, Larry Robinson, Gerry Cheevers, Andy Bathgate, Tim Horton, Al Arbour, Emile Francis, Patrick Roy, Doug Harvey and Billy Smith.
At the start of the 2023-24 season, the National Hockey League featured 22 head coaches who were former AHL bench bosses, including Bruce Cassidy of the 2023 Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights and newcomers Greg Cronin of the Anaheim Ducks, Ryan Huska of the Calgary Flames and Spencer Carbery of the Washington Capitals. Tampa Bay’s Jon Cooper, Toronto’s Sheldon Keefe, Minnesota’s Dean Evason, Edmonton’s Jay Woodcroft and Detroit’s Derek Lalonde are also among the current NHL coaches who spent time in the American Hockey League before making the jump.
During the 2022-23 season, a total of 924 AHL alumni played in the National Hockey League. There were 375 players who skated in both leagues last year alone, and 238 former first- and second-round NHL draft picks developed their skills in the AHL last season, including Simon Nemec, David Jiricek, Jiri Kulich, Lukas Reichel, William Eklund, Jesper Wallstedt, Thomas Harley and Calder Cup champions Connor McMichael and Hendrix Lapierre. J O N AT H A N M A RC H E S SAU LT 3-TIME AHL ALL-STAR 2023 STANLEY CUP CHAMPION
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 13
Proud official to be the Griffins'
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WHEN THE GRIFFINS SCORE, OUR COMMUNITY WINS Through the Griffins’ long-running Charitable Goals program, local companies team up with Griffins players to help raise money for various charities. Every time the player scores a goal or makes a save, the company makes a donation toward a mutually agreed upon charity.
2023-24 CHARITABLE GOALS PARTNERSHIPS SPONSOR Acrisure
BHS Insurance
Centennial Securities
Consumers Credit Union
Fox Motors
Kilwins
Meijer
Planet Fitness
Tito’s
PLAYER
DONATION
JOEL L’ESPERANCE
$100
CROSS HANAS
$100
DOMINIK SHINE
$50
AUSTIN CZARNIK
$100
CARTER MAZUR
$100
GRIFFINS GOALTENDERS
Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital
PER GOAL
Feeding America West Michigan
PER GOAL
Kids’ Food Basket
PER GOAL
Fostering Futures Scholarship Fund
PER GOAL
Griffins Youth Foundation
PER GOAL
$1
Kids’ Food Basket
PER SAVE
TARO HIROSE
$50
TYLER SPEZIA
$50
GRIFFINS HOME PENALTY KILL
CHARITY BENEFITED
PER GOAL
Jamie Daniels Foundation Boys & Girls Clubs
PER GOAL
$25
Kids’ Food Basket
PER PENALTY KILL Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 15
A H L D I R EC TO RY
EASTERN CONFERENCE ATLANTIC DIVISION: Bridgeport, Charlotte, Hartford, Hershey, Lehigh Valley, Providence, Springfield, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton NORTH DIVISION: Belleville, Cleveland, Laval, Rochester, Syracuse, Toronto, Utica
HARTFORD WOLF PACK
NHL Affiliation:........................... New York Rangers Home Ice:....................................XL Center (15,635) General Manager:................................ Ryan Martin Interim Head Coach:..............................Steve Smith Entered AHL:...............................................1997-98 Calder Cups:........................................... One (2000) Seasons in Playoffs:..................................... 16 of 24 2022-23 Record:...................35-26-4-7, 81 pts./.563 Website:............................... hartfordwolfpack.com
PROVIDENCE BRUINS
NHL Affiliation:..................................Boston Bruins Home Ice:.Dunkin’ Donuts Center Providence (11,273) General Manager:.................................... Evan Gold Head Coach:....................................Ryan Mougenel Entered AHL:...............................................1992-93 Calder Cups:........................................... One (1999) Seasons in Playoffs:..................................... 24 of 29 2022-23 Record:...................44-18-8-2, 98 pts./.681 Website:................................providencebruins.com 16 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
BRIDGEPORT ISLANDERS
NHL Affiliation:..........................New York Islanders Home Ice:.................. Total Mortgage Arena (8,412) General Manager:.......................... Chris Lamoriello Head Coach:.......................................Rick Kowalsky Entered AHL:...............................................2001-02 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:..................................... 10 of 20 2022-23 Record:...................34-30-7-1, 76 pts./.528 Website:............................bridgeportislanders.com
HERSHEY BEARS
CHARLOTTE CHECKERS
NHL Affiliation:..............................Florida Panthers Home Ice:..................... Bojangles’ Coliseum (8,500) General Manager:....................... Gregory Campbell Head Coach:................................... Geordie Kinnear Entered AHL:...............................................2010-11 Calder Cups:........................................... One (2019) Seasons in Playoffs:....................................... 7 of 11 2022-23 Record:...................39-25-5-3, 86 pts./.597 Website:............................... charlottecheckers.com
LEHIGH VALLEY PHANTOMS
NHL Affiliation:....................... Washington Capitals Home Ice:...............................Giant Center (10,500) GENERAL MANAGER:..........................Bryan Helmer Head Coach:..........................................Todd Nelson Entered AHL:...............................................1938-39 Calder Cups:....... 12 (1947, 1958, 1959, 1969, 1974, 1980, 1988, 1997, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2023) Seasons in Playoffs:..................................... 70 of 83 2022-23 Record:...................44-19-5-4, 97 pts./.674 Website:......................................hersheybears.com
NHL Affiliation:..........................Philadelphia Flyers Home Ice:....................................PPL Center (8,420) General Manager:.............................Chuck Fletcher Head Coach:.......................................Ian Laperriere Entered AHL:.. 1996-97 (as Philadelphia Phantoms) Calder Cups:..................................Two (1998, 2005) Seasons in Playoffs:..................................... 13 of 25 2022-23 Record:...................37-29-3-3, 80 pts./.556 Website:................................phantomshockey.com
SPRINGFIELD THUNDERBIRDS
WILKES-BARRE/ SCRANTON PENGUINS
NHL Affiliation:................................. St. Louis Blues Home Ice:...................... MassMutual Center (6,793) General Manager:.............................Kevin Maxwell Head Coach:.................................... Drew Bannister Entered AHL:...............................................2016-17 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:.........................................2 of 5 2022-23 Record:...................38-26-3-5, 84 pts./.583 Website:..................... springfieldthunderbirds.com
NHL Affiliation:........................Pittsburgh Penguins Home Ice:.................................Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza (7,500) GENERAL MANAGER:.............................Erik Heasley Head Coach:............................................J.D. Forrest Entered AHL:...............................................1999-00 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:..................................... 18 of 22 2022-23 Record:...................26-32-8-6, 66 pts./.458 Website:......................................wbspenguins.com
2023-24
BELLEVILLE SENATORS
NHL Affiliation:..............................Ottawa Senators Home Ice:.................................... CAA Arena (4,400) General Manager:.............................Ryan Bowness Head Coach:.............................................David Bell Entered AHL:...............................................2017-18 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons In Playoffs:.........................................1 of 4 2022-23 Record:...................31-31-6-4, 72 pts./.500 Website:......................................bellevillesens.com
CLEVELAND MONSTERS
NHL Affiliation:.................... Columbus Blue Jackets Home Ice:................... Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse (18,277/9,447 lower bowl) General Manager:................................... Chris Clark Head Coach:..................................Trent Vogelhuber Entered AHL:..........2007-08 (as Lake Erie Monsters) Calder Cups:........................................... One (2016) Seasons in Playoffs:....................................... 3 of 14 2022-23 Record:...................33-32-5-2, 73 pts./.507 Website:............................. clevelandmonsters.com
LAVAL ROCKET
NHL Affiliation:........................ Montreal Canadiens Home Ice:....................................Place Bell (10,043) General Manager:................................Kent Hughes Head Coach:............................. Jean-Francois Houle Entered AHL:...............................................2017-18 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons In Playoffs:.........................................2 of 4 2022-23 Record:...................33-29-7-3, 76 pts./.528 Website:..........................................rocketlaval.com
THE ROAD TO THE CALDER CUP
ROCHESTER AMERICANS
NHL Affiliation:.................................Buffalo Sabres Home Ice:.......................................Blue Cross Arena at the War Memorial (10,662) General Manager:..........................Jason Karmanos Head Coach:..........................................Seth Appert Entered AHL:...............................................1956-57 Calder Cups:..........................Six (1965, 1966, 1968, 1983, 1987, 1996) Seasons in Playoffs:..................................... 48 of 65 2022-23 Record:...................36-27-6-3, 81 pts./.563 Website:............................................... amerks.com
TORONTO MARLIES
NHL Affiliation:........................Toronto Maple Leafs Home Ice:...................... Coca-Cola Coliseum (7,851) General Manager:..................................Ryan Hardy Head Coach:.........................................John Gruden Entered AHL:...............................................2005-06 Calder Cups:........................................... One (2018) Seasons in Playoffs:..................................... 12 of 16 2022-23 Record:...................42-24-4-2, 90 pts./.625 Website:...................................................marlies.ca
SYRACUSE CRUNCH
NHL Affiliation:...................... Tampa Bay Lightning Home Ice:.........Upstate Medical University Arena at Onondaga County War Memorial (6,110) General Manager:..................................Stacy Roest Head Coach:.......................................Joel Bouchard Entered AHL:...............................................1994-95 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:..................................... 17 of 27 2022-23 Record:...................35-26-7-4, 81 pts./.563 Website:...................................syracusecrunch.com
UTICA COMETS
NHL Affiliation:............................New Jersey Devils Home Ice:.................Adirondack Bank Center at the Utica Memorial Auditorium (3,917) General Manager:...........................Dan MacKinnon Head Coach:........................................Kevin Dineen Entered AHL:...............................................2013-14 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:.........................................5 of 8 2022-23 Record:...................35-27-6-4, 80 pts./.556 Website:........................................uticacomets.com
A total of 23 teams will qualify for the AHL’s 2024 postseason, with five rounds of playoffs leading to the crowning of a Calder Cup champion. The playoff field will include the top six finishers in the eight-team Atlantic Division, the top five finishers each in the seven-team North and Central Divisions, and the top seven teams in the 10-team Pacific Division. First Round matchups will be best-ofthree series. The two highest seeds in the Atlantic, the three highest seeds in each of the North and Central, and the first-place team in the Pacific will receive byes into the best-of-five Division Semifinals, with the First Round winners re-seeded in each division. The Division Finals will also be best-of-five series, followed by best-ofseven Conference Finals and a best-ofseven Calder Cup Finals.
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 17
A H L D I R EC TO RY
WESTERN CONFERENCE PACIFIC DIVISION: Abbotsford, Bakersfield, Calgary, Coachella Valley, Colorado, Henderson, Ontario, San Diego, San Jose, Tucson CENTRAL DIVISION: Grand Rapids, Chicago, Iowa, Manitoba, Milwaukee, Rockford, Texas
CALGARY WRANGLERS
NHL Affiliation:................................Calgary Flames Home Ice:.............Scotiabank Saddledome (19,289) General Manager:.................................Brad Pascall Head Coach:..............................................Trent Cull Entered AHL:...............................................2022-23 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:.........................................1 of 1 2022-23 Record:.................51-17-3-1, 106 pts./.736 Website:................................ calgarywranglers.com
HENDERSON SILVER KNIGHTS
NHL Affiliation:......................Vegas Golden Knights Home Ice:................. The Dollar Loan Center (5,567) General Manager:................................... Tim Speltz Head Coach:............................................Ryan Craig Entered AHL:...............................................2020-21 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:.........................................1 of 2 2022-23 Record:...................29-38-0-5, 63 pts./.438 Website:......................hendersonsilverknights.com 18 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
ABBOTSFORD CANUCKS
BAKERSFIELD CONDORS
NHL Affiliation:..........................Vancouver Canucks Home Ice:........................Abbotsford Centre (7,073) General Manager:..............................Ryan Johnson Head Coach:.....................................Jeremy Colliton Entered AHL:...............................................2021-22 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:.........................................2 of 2 2022-23 Record:...................40-25-3-4, 87 pts./.604 Website:............................ abbotsford.canucks.com
NHL Affiliation:..............................Edmonton Oilers Home Ice:................. Mechanics Bank Arena (8,751) General Manager:...............................Keith Gretzky Head Coach:......................................... Colin Chaulk Entered AHL:...............................................2015-16 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:.........................................3 of 6 2022-23 Record:...................37-31-2-2, 78 pts./.542 Website:.............................bakersfieldcondors.com
COACHELLA VALLEY FIREBIRDS
COLORADO EAGLES
NHL Affiliation:.................................Seattle Kraken NHL Affiliation:.........................Colorado Avalanche Home Ice:............................Acrisure Arena (10,100) Home Ice:..............Budweiser Events Center (5,073) Asst. General Manager:.........................Ricky Olczyk General Manager:.......................... Kevin McDonald Head Coach:..........................................Dan Bylsma Head Coach:...............................Aaron Schneekloth Entered AHL:...............................................2022-23 Entered AHL:...............................................2018-19 Calder Cups:.................................................... None REIGN Calder Cups:.................................................... None ONTARIO Seasons in Playoffs:.........................................1 of 1 Seasons in Playoffs:.........................................3 of 3 PRIMARY MARK 2022-23 Record:.................48-17-5-2, 103 pts./.715 2022-23 Record:...................40-22-7-3, 90 pts./.625 SAN DIEGO GULLS Website:...........................................cvfirebirds.com Website:................................... coloradoeagles.com PRIMARY MARK
ONTARIO REIGN
NHL Affiliation:............................Los Angeles Kings Home Ice:................................Toyota Arena (9,491) General Manager:.............................Richard Seeley Head Coach:.........................................Marco Sturm Entered AHL:...............................................2015-16 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:.........................................5 of 6 2022-23 Record:...................34-32-5-1, 74 pts./.514 Website:....................................... ontarioreign.com PANTONE 429 C
PROCESS BLACK
WHITE
SAN DIEGO GULLS
NHL Affiliation:............................... Anaheim Ducks Home Ice:.........Pechanga Arena San Diego (12,920) General Manager:..................................Rob DiMaio Head Coach:......................................Matt McIlvane Entered AHL:...............................................2015-16 2015-16 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:.........................................4 of 6 2022-23 Record:...................20-49-2-1, 43 pts./.299 Website:.....................................sandiegogulls.com PANTONE 1655 C
PANTONE MEDIUM BLUE C
PANTONE 5455 C
PROCESS BLACK
WHITE
2023-24
SAN JOSE BARRACUDA
NHL Affiliation:............................... San Jose Sharks Home Ice:...............................Tech CU Arena (4,200) General Manager:........................................Joe Will Head Coach:......................................John McCarthy Entered AHL:...............................................2015-16 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:.........................................4 of 6 2022-23 Record:...................31-34-2-5, 69 pts./.479 Website:.........................................sjbarracuda.com
CHICAGO WOLVES
NHL Affiliation:............................................... None Home Ice:.............................Allstate Arena (16,692) General Manager:............................Wendell Young Head Coach:........................................ Bob Nardella Entered AHL:...............................................2001-02 Calder Cups:......................Three (2002, 2008, 2022) Seasons in Playoffs:..................................... 14 of 20 2022-23 Record:...................35-29-5-3, 78 pts./.542 Website:....................................chicagowolves.com
MILWAUKEE ADMIRALS
NHL Affiliation:......................... Nashville Predators Home Ice:..............................Panther Arena (9,450) General Manager:.................................Scott Nichol Head Coach:............................................ Karl Taylor Entered AHL:...............................................2001-02 Calder Cups:........................................... One (2004) Seasons in Playoffs:..................................... 17 of 20 2022-23 Record:...................41-24-5-2, 89 pts./.618 Website:............................milwaukeeadmirals.com
TUCSON ROADRUNNERS
NHL Affiliation:...............................Arizona Coyotes Home Ice:................................Tucson Arena (6,521) General Manager:.............................John Ferguson Head Coach:.........................................Steve Potvin Entered AHL:...............................................2016-17 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:.........................................2 of 5 2022-23 Record:...................30-33-8-1, 69 pts./.479 Website:.............................tucsonroadrunners.com
IOWA WILD
NHL Affiliation:...............................Minnesota Wild Home Ice:.........................Wells Fargo Arena (8,356) General Manager:........................... Michael Murray Head Coach:........................................Brett McLean Entered AHL:...............................................2013-14 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:.........................................2 of 8 2022-23 Record:...................34-27-6-5, 79 pts./.549 Website:.............................................iowawild.com
ROCKFORD ICEHOGS
NHL Affiliation:........................Chicago Blackhawks Home Ice:............... BMO Harris Bank Center (5,895) General Manager:..............................Mark Bernard Head Coach:.................................. Anders Sorensen Entered AHL:...............................................2007-08 Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:....................................... 8 of 14 2022-23 Record:...................35-28-5-4, 79 pts./.549 Website:...............................................icehogs.com
GRAND RAPIDS GRIFFINS
NHL Affiliation:........................... Detroit Red Wings Home Ice:.........................Van Andel Arena (10,834) General Manager:.............................Shawn Horcoff Head Coach:..........................................Dan Watson Entered AHL:...............................................2001-02 Calder Cups:..................................Two (2013, 2017) Seasons in Playoffs:..................................... 13 of 20 2022-23 Record:...................28-36-4-4, 64 pts./.444 Website:.....................................griffinshockey.com
MANITOBA MOOSE
NHL Affiliation:..................................Winnipeg Jets Home Ice:....................... Canada Life Centre (7,808) General Manager:............................Craig Heisinger Head Coach:......................................Mark Morrison Entered AHL:.................... 2001-02 (played through 2010-11; re-entered 2015-16) Calder Cups:.................................................... None Seasons in Playoffs:..................................... 12 of 16 2022-23 Record:...................37-25-6-4, 84 pts./.583 Website:......................................moosehockey.com
TEXAS STARS
NHL Affiliation:......................................Dallas Stars Home Ice:........... H-E-B Center at Cedar Park (6,779) General Manager:..................................Scott White Head Coach:.........................................Neil Graham Entered AHL:...............................................2009-10 Calder Cups:........................................... One (2014) Seasons in Playoffs:....................................... 9 of 12 2022-23 Record:...................40-20-9-3, 92 pts./.639 Website:........................................... texasstars.com Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 19
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20 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
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DETROIT RED WINGS
T
he only former Grand Rapids Griffin to be named captain of the Detroit Red Wings, Dylan Larkin is leading the resurgence
TOP AFFILIATE: Grand Rapids Griffins • 22nd Season ARENA: Little Caesars Arena • Seating Capacity: 19,515 CONTACT: (313) 471-7000 • detroitredwings.com STANLEY CUPS: 1936, 1937, 1943, 1950, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2008
in Hockeytown. Now in their second season
MANAGEMENT EXECUTIVE VP/GENERAL MANAGER: Steve Yzerman ASSISTANT GENERAL MANAGERS: Shawn Horcoff, Kris Draper
boast a wealth of prospects and made several key
COACHING STAFF HEAD COACH: Derek Lalonde ASSISTANT COACHES: Bob Boughner, Alex Tanguay, Jay Varady GOALTENDING COACH: Alex Westlund VIDEO COORDINATOR: LJ Scarpace ASSISTANT VIDEO COORDINATOR: Jeff Weintraub
under head coach Derek Lalonde, the Red Wings offseason roster additions that have them poised for a return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
GRIFFINS WHO HAVE EARNED THEIR WINGS Justin Abdelkader Adam Almquist Joakim Andersson Andreas Athanasiou Sean Avery Riley Barber Ryan Barnes Jonatan Berggren Tyler Bertuzzi Patrick Boileau Darryl Bootland Madison Bowey Mathias Brome Fabian Brunnstrom Mitch Callahan Jake Chelios Alex Chiasson Dennis Cholowski Ty Conklin Chris Conner Jared Coreau Kyle Criscuolo Austin Czarnik Danny DeKeyser Aaron Downey
2008-09 2013-14 2011-12 2015-16 2002-03 2021-22 2003-04 2022-23 2016-17 2002-03 2003-04 2019-20 2020-21 2011-12 2013-14 2018-19 2022-23 2018-19 2011-12 2011-12 2016-17 2021-22 2022-23 2013-14 2008-09
Patrick Eaves Simon Edvinsson Christoffer Ehn Matt Ellis Turner Elson Cory Emmerton Jonathan Ericsson Adam Erne Landon Ferraro Valtteri Filppula Martin Frk Luke Glendening Mark Hartigan Darren Helm Joe Hicketts Taro Hirose Jimmy Howard Filip Hronek Jiri Hudler Matt Hussey Doug Janik Nick Jensen Tomas Jurco Jakub Kindl Tomas Kopecky
2013-14 2022-23 2018-19 2006-07 2021-22 2010-11 2007-08 2022-23 2013-14 2005-06 2017-18 2013-14 2007-08 2007-08 2017-18 2019-20 2005-06 2018-19 2003-04 2006-07 2009-10 2016-17 2013-14 2009-10 2005-06
Niklas Kronwall Marc Lamothe Josh Langfeld Dylan Larkin Brian Lashoff Brett Lebda Ville Leino Gustav Lindstrom Matt Lorito Matt Luff Joey MacDonald Donald MacLean Anthony Mantha Alexey Marchenko Darren McCarty Tom McCollum Dylan McIlrath Derek Meech Wade Megan Drew Miller Kevin Miller Mark Mowers Petr Mrazek Jan Mursak Anders Myrvold
2003-04 2003-04 2006-07 2015-16 2012-13 2005-06 2008-09 2019-20 2016-17 2022-23 2006-07 2005-06 2015-16 2013-14 2007-08 2010-11 2018-19 2006-07 2018-19 2016-17 2003-04 2003-04 2012-13 2010-11 2003-04
Alex Nedeljkovic Andrej Nestrasil Kris Newbury Tomas Nosek Gustav Nyquist Xavier Ouellet Chase Pearson Calvin Pickard Matt Puempel Teemu Pulkkinen Kyle Quincey Michael Rasmussen Dan Renouf Mattias Ritola Jamie Rivers Nathan Robinson Stacy Roest Robbie Russo Moritz Seider Riley Sheahan Brendan Smith Givani Smith Elmer Soderblom Ryan Sproul Garrett Stafford
2022-23 2014-15 2009-10 2015-16 2011-12 2013-14 2021-22 2019-20 2018-19 2013-14 2005-06 2018-19 2016-17 2007-08 2003-04 2003-04 2002-03 2016-17 2021-22 2011-12 2011-12 2019-20 2022-23 2013-14 2007-08
Ben Street Libor Sulak Evgeny Svechnikov Eric Tangradi Tomas Tatar Jordin Tootoo Dominic Turgeon Joe Veleno Jakub Vrana Jason Williams Luke Witkowski Filip Zadina
2016-17 2018-19 2016-17 2015-16 2010-11 2013-14 2017-18 2020-21 2022-23 2002-03 2021-22 2018-19
* not including conditioning stints for Curtis Joseph (2003-04), Chris Osgood (2005-06), Manny Legace (2005-06), Chris Chelios (2008-09), Andreas Lilja (2009-10), Jonas Gustavsson (2012-13), Carlo Colaiacovo (2012-13), Stephen Weiss (2014-15), Gemel Smith (2021-22) and Magnus Hellberg (2022-23).
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 21
MARK YOUR CALENDAR DEC. 15 A Griffins Christmas Vacation presented by Centennial Securities/Cousin Griffy Bobblehead Giveaway DEC. 31 26th Annual New Year’s Eve Celebration presented by Captain Morgan/Post-Game Fireworks/ 6 p.m. Start
2023-24
FEB. 10 Princess Night presented by Lake Michigan Credit Union/Character Appearances/Pre-Game Tea Party FEB. 16 Friends Night presented by Adventure Credit Union/Friends Hat Giveaway/Couch from Friends at Arena
JAN. 13 Heroes vs. Villains Night presented by Michigan First Credit Union/Character Appearances JAN. 27 What Could’ve Been Night presented by Acrisure/ Adult Flying Toasters Jersey Giveaway/Flying Toasters Jersey Auction JAN. 27-28 19th Annual Great Skate Winterfest at Rosa Parks Circle, benefiting the Griffins Youth Foundation
22 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
FEB. 22 17th Annual Griffins & Sled Wings Sled Hockey Game at Griff’s IceHouse at Belknap Park, benefiting the Grand Rapids Sled Wings and the Griffins Youth Foundation
FEB. 24 Hockey Without Barriers & Sensory Friendly Game presented by University of Michigan Health-West/ Sensory & Mental Health Awareness Jersey Auction
MARCH 15 12th Annual Purple Community Game presented by Van Andel Institute/Purple Jersey Auction
FEB. 25 Jake Engel Memorial Dog Game presented by Nestle Purina/5 p.m. Start MARCH 2 Salute to Badges Night presented by Comerica Bank/Belt Bag Giveaway
MARCH 16 Star Wars Night presented by DTE/Character Appearances/8 p.m. Start APRIL 12 HOPE Network Night presented by HOPE Network/ HOPE Network Jersey Auction
MARCH 13 10th Annual Hockey, Hops & Hope at FOX Subaru, benefiting Easterseals MORC
APRIL 21 Fan Appreciation Night presented by Huntington Bank/Mystery Bag Giveaway/5 p.m. Start Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 23
G N O -L N O S A E S E S E H T T U O CK CHE
S N O I T O PROM
urring promotioenasdovcc se e th tage f n o a te o n k Ta ake ! n so a se e th ry Be sure rltoy m t a roughoudogs, free tickets, milit and regula p th eer and discounts and more! of chea bst udent
$2 BEERS AND $2 HOT DOGS
LIBRARY NIGHTS
POST-GAME OPEN SKATES
Every Friday, enjoy $2 domestic drafts and $2 hot dogs from 6-8 p.m., at select stands while supplies last.
For all Wednesday and Sunday games, fans can present their Grand Rapids Public Library card or Kent District Library card at the Van Andel Arena box office on the night of the game or at The Zone anytime during the store’s regular business hours to purchase an Upper Level Faceoff ticket for $17 (regularly $23), an Upper Level Center Ice ticket for $20 (regularly $26), or a Lower Level Faceoff ticket for $24 (regularly $29). Limit four tickets per card per person, subject to availability.
Bring your skates to the rink and take to the ice for a post-game open skate on Dec. 31 and Feb. 10. As a reminder, Van Andel Arena has a no-bag policy, but security will allow fans to use bags to bring in their skates.
MILITARY NIGHTS
Every home game, current members of our military can purchase up to four Upper Level Faceoff or Crease tickets for $13 each, four Upper Level Center Ice tickets for $16 each, or four Lower Level Faceoff tickets for $20 each with a valid military ID. The offer also extends to veterans who present a VA ID or discharge papers. FREE RIDE FRIDAY ON THE RAPID
Ride the Rapid to and from any Friday game and enjoy a complimentary fare by showing your ticket to that night’s game. Visit ridetherapid.org for schedule information, routes and maps. WINNING WEDNESDAYS
Presented by Michigan First Credit Union, every time the Griffins win at home on Wednesday, each fan in attendance will receive a free ticket to the next Wednesday game. To redeem a Winning Wednesday ticket, please visit the box office following the Winning Wednesday game, The Zone during normal business hours, or the Van Andel Arena box office prior to the next Wednesday game beginning at 5:30 p.m. Fans who exchange their Winning Wednesday ticket at The Zone on a non-game day will receive 20% off the purchase of one item (excluding jerseys). One discount per person present.
FRIENDS & FAMILY 4-PACKS
These packs are available for all Saturday games during the 2023-24 season and include four or more game tickets, and $20 or more in concession cash. Visit griffinshockey.com/tickets or call (616) 774-4585 ext. 2. SUNDAY IS FUN DAY
For all Sunday games except for New Year’s Eve, enjoy $1 small Pepsi drinks and $1 small ice cream cups from 4-6 p.m. PEPSI READING GOALS
Children with Griff’s Reading Goals bookmarks who have completed the required three hours of reading can redeem their bookmark for two free Upper Level tickets to any of the following games: Bookmark #2 – Feb. 21, Feb. 25, March 27 and April 3.
POST-GAME AUTOGRAPH SESSIONS
Select players will sign autographs from the Griffins’ bench after the games on Jan. 13, March 2 and April 21. APPLIED INNOVATION ISLAND
Presented by Applied Innovation, this section, located on the terrace level above section 118, provides the best seats in the house for groups of up to 40 people, with La-Z-Boy chairs and an array of unprecedented amenities. Call (616) 744-4585 ext. 4. COLLEGE DISCOUNT
College students can buy online using their school .edu email address or show their ID at every Friday game to purchase an Upper Level Faceoff or Crease ticket for $13, an Upper Level Center Ice ticket for $16, or a Lower Level Faceoff ticket for $20. Limit one ticket per ID if purchasing in-person. Visit griffinshockey.com/tickets to purchase College Night tickets and sign up for text alerts.
All promotions and dates subject to change. • For more information, visit griffinshockey.com. 24 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
TECHNOLOGY
AU T O M AT I O N
IMAGING
Griffins alternate captain Brogan Rafferty has overcome obstacles to establish himself as a dependable defenseman at the pro level.
Story and photos by Mark Newman
MAKING A NAME FOR HIMSELF
26 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
May the road rise to meet you. May the wind be always at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face. The rains fall soft upon your fields. And until we meet again, May God hold you in the palm of his hand. “May the road rise to meet you” is an iconic Irish blessing that has passed through generations, shared to wish people good luck and good fortune on their journey through life. It’s inspired by the Gaelic phrase “Go n-éirí an bóthar leat,” an invocation to encounter success and happiness in whatever one chooses. Brogan Rafferty is almost 100 percent Irish, a fact underscored by his parents’ choice for his surname, Brogan, the moniker being associated with reliability and strength, traits that would serve him well later. Almost from the day he was born, he would be faced with overcoming the odds, making a name for himself in spite of every obstacle placed in his path. As the saying goes, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Flashback to when Rafferty was about 11, playing a hockey tournament in the summer for fun. “I went to go make a play and kind of put myself in an awkward position, and my back completely locked up and started spasming,” he said. “I went to the hospital and was in a wheelchair for a day or two while they examined me. They did the X-ray and everything, and they said you have a curved spine. I forget what the angle is, but it was acute scoliosis. “The doctors said it was very unlikely that I would play competitive sports, especially contact competitive sports, as I got older. The message was either that I needed to stop playing or surround my spine with a lot of muscle. And so that’s what I did, just tried to strengthen and support my spine. Now, incredibly, it’s nothing serious – I don’t have any metal rods in my spine – but it still affects me a little bit to this day. “Once or twice a year my back will flare up from increased activity and training, workload, and all that, but I found effective ways to deal with it. Looking back, at that age, I didn’t care. I felt like I was just going to keep doing what I love to do and try not to let it affect me.” Rafferty played other sports growing up in the Chicago suburbs, but the activities were mostly of the backyard variety, whether it was baseball or basketball, an occasional game of golf, or a little swimming. “In terms of organized sports, it was hockey – roller hockey and ice hockey,” he said. He was ably coached by his father, Brian, an employee benefits specialist who had been a Division I wrestler at Northern Illinois University after having played goalie until the beginning of his teens. “My dad was a very good athlete who played every sport – baseball, basketball, football, wrestling – but had to pick one for college, which was wrestling. For someone who had played goalie until he was 13, he really understood the sport of hockey. My dad was my coach until I was probably 14 years old, so he had a big impact on me.”
His influence, Rafferty suggests, extended beyond the rink. “He wanted the team to win and guys to succeed, for sure, but the right way,” Rafferty said of his father, who now owns his own financial services business, Rafferty & Associates. “He didn’t really care about the goals you scored, the assists, or the play on the ice, as long as you gave 110% effort, you controlled your attitude and your emotions, and you were a good teammate.” “My dad’s a very old-school kind of guy, very hardworking – that’s how you get to where you want to be, and there’s no other way to do it. He taught a lot of subtle life lessons to us when we were kids that we probably didn’t even understand at the time. “I attribute a lot of my success in my career to my dad. He was a great coach.” Rafferty credits his father for helping him keep his emotions in check. “I had a really bad temper growing up,” he said. “He helped me with channeling my emotions and managing my anger and doing good on the ice instead of making myself look bad wearing the Rafferty name on my jersey.” It was also his father who convinced him to switch to defense, showing him a list of undrafted free agents who were in the NHL now because they were defensemen. “I played center at the AA level in Illinois, which is a step below AAA,” he said. “I kept getting cut from the AAA team every year, so I would just go and play AA with my buddies and have a great time. I would be one of the better players on the team every year, but I could never make the AAA team.” When it came to playing hockey at a higher level, his name might as well have been mud. “At the time, I just laughed about it because the NHL wasn’t even close to being on the radar,” he said. “It was just AAA – not even juniors, not even college and not pro. It was all about the next step. When he showed me the undrafted list, I was open to the idea because I was getting cut every year. So I tried it out.” Rafferty finally had a path to making a name for himself. And then the weirdest thing happened. “We were at Buffalo Wild Wings, watching sports, hanging out with some of my teammates when my dad got a phone call from the president of the team I was playing for at the time,” he said. “He was like, ‘Where’s Brogan right now?’ And my dad says, ‘He’s right in front of me. Why?’” News reports announced that Brogan Rafferty was wanted by Akron, Ohio, police on multiple counts, including aggravated murder, robbery, and kidnapping, for the deaths of three men and the injury of a fourth, all of whom responded to a Craigslist helpwanted ad in 2011. To make matters worse, Rafferty recalls, the television report showed his picture. “My dad looked it up and saw the story on the internet,” Rafferty said, noting that the TV station later issued a public apology. “It was pretty crazy. I didn’t even know another Brogan and here was this 16-yearGrand Rapids GRIFFINS 27
Rafferty was named to the 2019-20 AHL Second All-Star Team.
old kid – same name, same age as me.” Suddenly, a “two minutes for slashing” penalty seemed a little more ominous. Although the Craigslist killer had used a firearm and the murders had happened in another state, Rafferty’s dad and mom, Deirdre, were worried that the name association would forever haunt their son. “My parents were freaking out because they were like, ‘Oh, it’s the same name. He’s not going to get a job because of background checks and everything.’ But I didn’t care. I thought it was crazy – I was getting Facebook friend requests from people in Ohio because that’s where he was from – but to me, it wasn’t anything life-altering. I wasn’t completely naive to it, but I didn’t care because it wasn’t me. I’m just playing hockey.” Rafferty would be much more consumed with learning to play the blue line. “I went to a couple of summer showcases for lowertier junior leagues and did well, got good feedback,” he recalled. “I ended up trying out for the AAA team that fall and making it because one of the coaches believed in me, and his vouching for me was the reason I made the team.” Playing defense was not a completely foreign concept to the young Rafferty. “I grew up playing roller hockey and I was always a defenseman, and then I’d go play ice hockey and I’d be a forward,” he said. “It wasn’t as hard of a switch for me as some people think it might have been because 28 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
I also played center, and you have a lot of defensive responsibilities as a centerman. “Roller hockey is a puck-possession sport and as a defenseman you have the puck a lot on your stick, and with roller hockey being a slower version of the sport, you get to control the puck and direct where guys go in their lanes. Roller hockey is a lot of fun, like playing street hockey. But learning to play defense, there are definitely scenarios as a defenseman that take some getting used to when you first start playing.” After a season at the AAA level, Rafferty spent two seasons polishing his defensive skills in the North American Hockey League with the Coulee Region Chill and another season in the United States Hockey League with the Bloomington Thunder. “Those seasons were big because I was still learning how to play defense properly,” he said. “I moved only about four hours away, which helped because people would come and visit frequently. For me, it was the perfect distance, where you’re not going to never see your family, but they’re not going to be all over you at the same time. So that was nice.” His progress in junior hockey was much like his earlier experience in youth hockey. “It was kind of the same story,” he said. “I kept getting cut from the USHL until I finally made it my third year of junior hockey, which was my 20-year-old season, which was my last year of eligibility. I felt like I really took a big step that year.” It led him to Quinnipiac University in Connecticut. “There was something about Quinnipiac that was just pulling at me – like, this is where I’m meant to be,” he said. “They were the No. 1 team in the nation at the time they were recruiting me, so it was very nice to have a team like that talk to me, let alone offer me.” This time, Rafferty did not need to worry about being cut. “One of the better things about college is once you’re in a program, you’re usually there, you’re locked in unless something kind of crazy happens and you have to leave,” he said. “So finally committing to a Division I school was a big relief.” Before turning pro, Rafferty played three seasons (2016-19) of ECAC Hockey against Ivy League schools and others. “Those three years were the biggest development years for me by far,” he said. “At first, it was developing my offensive skills, but then it was more defensively. Things all came together during my junior year when I played a really well-rounded game, which led me to leave after that year.” Rafferty attended a couple of NHL development camps during his college years. He went to the Chicago Blackhawks after his freshman year. “I had a couple of teams reach out to me and Chicago was one of them,” he said. “That was such a cool opportunity for me to play in front of some of my friends and family. “It was held at Johnny’s Icehouse in downtown Chicago. I was nervous because you don’t really know what to expect. You do all the fitness testing for the first time, and you think somehow it all matters, even
though it doesn’t. They just want to get you there and introduce you to the organization. But it was good to see the pro level and how they operate and see what it takes to make it to that level.” His second camp was with the New York Rangers. “It was a similar experience, but in terms of nerves and everything, it was less so because this was my second camp. New York was convenient because I was staying at Quinnipiac in the summer, so I just drove over, which was nice. Both are great organizations and they run things very well.” Rafferty decided to forego his senior season at Quinnipiac to sign with the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks. “There wasn’t a ton of consideration [of returning to school],” he said. “I felt like I was ready to go, and I was also getting offers that backed that up. When you’re in college and they’re offering you to play in the NHL three days from when they’re calling you, you’re like, ‘OK, this is real. This is my dream and it’s hanging right in front of my face. “I’m thinking, I could be in an NHL uniform in three days, so I’m taking it. I’m ready to go.” He had already finished his schooling, so it took any classroom work out of the equation. “I got my degree in finance in three years after my parents had instilled in me that I had to prioritize my education, so I had checked that box,” he said. “I felt good about where my game was at, so with the opportunity from Vancouver sitting there, I took it.” Rafferty appeared in two NHL games during the final stages of the 2018-19 season, making his NHL debut in Nashville on April 4, 2019. “I don’t remember a ton,” he confessed, admitting that the experience was a bit of a blur. “One minute I’m signing and then flying to Nashville, realizing I’m playing an NHL game tonight and I’m sitting in the locker room next to players I grew up watching. “I don’t think I had the best game, but I also didn’t have a terrible game. There are a lot of emotions but the butterflies eventually go away. It’s more that it’s just a really, really cool experience for your family.” Rafferty attended Vancouver’s training camp the following fall but spent the entire 2019-20 season with the Canucks’ AHL affiliate, the Utica Comets. He was selected to the AHL All-Star Game after being named the AHL Rookie of the Month for December. He was named to the 2019-20 AHL Second AllStar Team after the season was paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “All the stars aligned for me,” he said. “It was a comfortable environment, and the team, the coaches, and everything was great. I just truly enjoyed coming to the rink every day and playing with my friends and my teammates. “[Honestly], I didn’t even really care about the NHL level at that point. I felt like, wherever my feet are, I’m going to focus all my efforts on that and not think about who’s getting injured up top, or watching for this and that. It was a great year. Unfortunately, the season got ended by COVID.”
Rafferty is a smart, two-way defenseman with solid puck-moving skills.
Once the AHL season was canceled, Rafferty joined the Canucks in the playoff bubble until the team was eliminated several weeks later. He returned to the NHL level for the pandemic-delayed 202021 season, spending the entire campaign on the Canucks’ taxi squad. “I felt like I had so much momentum coming off that Utica season, so it was tough,” he said. “When you’re not playing, it’s a whole different experience than when you are playing. Mentally, when you’re in that situation – you know you’re not getting in – it’s very hard. We felt like we were being held prisoner because we were literally inside this gated area.” The taxi squad was usually segregated from the regular team to minimize potential exposure and disease spread. “We didn’t skate with them much, so we did a lot of hard drills, battle drills, and we would shoot on the goalies to keep them ready, but the workouts were tough. “It was a good experience being in the NHL bubble and seeing playoff hockey and seeing how an NHL team operates, but there was a lot of downside to it. There were long stretches where you couldn’t go outside because the hotel was attached to the rink. There was this little area outside with picnic tables, but it felt like a prison. It takes the wind out of your sails, for sure.” After living alone in the playoff bubble for 70 days, Rafferty was joined by his future wife, Michelle, for the abbreviated 2020-21 season. Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 29
Rafferty played three years of collegiate hockey at Quinnipiac University.
“We didn’t pay attention to all the rules necessarily about social distancing and stuff because, at the end of the day, you have to live your life. We’d go outside and go for walks because we didn’t see anything wrong with that. We would get out of our apartment and do something, occasionally grabbing a bite to eat. So we had a little fun. Otherwise, you’d go stir crazy.” Rafferty said some players handled the forced isolation better than others. “Everyone was struggling, to be honest,” he said. “No other family was allowed and because I was playing in Canada, no international travel was allowed because you would have to quarantine for 10 days. My grandma passed away in the States and I couldn’t even go to her funeral. I had to watch on Zoom, which was really tough. That’s the kind of stuff that really bothered me. And I wasn’t even playing. I was barely a part of the team.” He finally saw action in one game midway through the season. “I didn’t know I was playing in the game until I got to the rink,” he said. “One guy was kind of injured and they didn’t know if he was going to be able to go. So they told me in the morning, ‘Hey, you might be playing tonight if he can’t go.’ Suddenly I had to make that mental shift to turning it on again. Great, what’s my game day routine? I completely forgot because I hadn’t played a game in almost a year. “I watched probably 30 minutes of video with the 30 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
coaching staff, because when you’re on the taxi squad you couldn’t be a part of the video meetings that they would have every day. So I had to do video and I felt pretty overwhelmed. My whole routine was off. “On the first play of the game, I had a bad turnover and they scored. On the bright side, I finished the game getting the second assist on a goal, so I got my first NHL point, which is cool. But I never played another game the rest of the year.” It was time for a change of scenery. In July, he signed a one-year contract with the Anaheim Ducks for the 2021-22 season then got married in Virginia Beach in August to his wife, who is a dental hygienist. Signing with a U.S. team was a priority. “I felt like I needed to get back into America. Canada was still going through their delayed re-openings and rules, and everything was so unsure. I think I wanted to part ways just as much as they probably did.” After attending Ducks training camp, Rafferty was assigned to their AHL affiliate in San Diego, where he spent the entire season. The weather was nice but the hockey was less so. “It was a frustrating year on the ice in San Diego. The guys were great and we had a pretty tight-knit team, but we weren’t performing well on the ice and we had kind of a lackluster season. I never got a look in the NHL and that was frustrating because Anaheim wasn’t great.” Rafferty packed his bags again and signed a oneyear, two-way contract with the Seattle Kraken. He was assigned to the Coachella Valley Firebirds for their inaugural season in the AHL where he would play for Dan Bylsma, the Grand Haven, Michigan, native who had served as a Red Wings assistant coach under Jeff Blashill for three seasons after winning a Stanley Cup with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2009. “The year in San Diego to the year with Coachella was a complete 180 in terms of how things were run,” he said. “We had a really good team in Coachella and I could see it from day one of training camp. This was a special team. “They did a great job bringing in really good players and assembling a team with the right coaching staff.” The Firebirds went all the way to the seventh game of the Calder Cup Finals before losing 3-2 in overtime. “We had all the right pieces,” he said. “We were just missing one piece: one goal at the end of the year.” The problem was Coachella Valley ran into a neversay-die Hershey team coached by Todd Nelson, who had previously led the Griffins to their second Calder Cup in 2017. “In Game 7, we were up 2-0, they got a goal, and then they got a lucky goal off of a skate to tie it up. Then, in overtime, there was a scrum in front of our net, the puck was rattling around before it came loose and their guy scored. And it was over. “It was the craziest feeling. There’s so much emotion that goes into a playoff series, let alone a Game 7 overtime. Those are the moments you grow up dreaming about in your driveway, where you’re
announcing your own name after scoring the goal. “Those emotions are running through everybody’s head. And then it’s over, and you’re like, ‘No, it can’t be over.’ We should have won. Sitting there on the bench, when it ended, I was extremely devastated. I would never wish that feeling upon anybody, except maybe those Hershey guys.” Even so, that single loss could not spoil a successful season. “I still get emotional thinking about it because so much good came out of that year,” Rafferty said. “It was a really special year to look back on. It was a lot of fun and the coaches were outstanding, all of them were.” The Firebirds’ coaching staff included Jessica Campbell, a former forward with the Canadian women’s national team who became the first female, behind-the-bench assistant coach in the AHL’s 88-year history. “We went to camp with an open mind, accepting the fact that she’s probably here for a reason. If she was hired, let’s show her respect and see where it takes us. She was definitely nervous the first couple of weeks, but she was outstanding once she got comfortable. She has a really good hockey mind. She had a really good eye for the game. And she delivered her message really well, which I appreciated. “She was in charge of the power play and we had great power play numbers throughout the year and in the playoffs because she was able to get the most out of a lot of players. I have nothing but good things to say about Jess. She’s very respected, now more than ever because she’s proven to be a winner. The experiment worked; she’s the real deal. It was a great year for her and for our team – because of her.” Rafferty tallied a career-high 51 points (9-42--51) in 72 games with the Firebirds, which led him to sign a two-year contract with the Red Wings last summer. “I grew up a huge Red Wings fan, so they were always on my radar,” said Rafferty, who lists Pavel Datsyuk as his favorite player as a boy. “I had one other buddy who was a Red Wings fan, but most everybody else followed the Blackhawks and there were a couple of Penguins fans. “Even a few years ago, I thought if I could play here one day, it would be awesome. When they called my agent, I was pretty excited. Signing for two years was huge because now I have a family and some stability would be nice instead of moving around every nine months.” His wife gave birth to their daughter, Maren, on Aug. 26, 2022. He can now attest to the fact that becoming a parent changes your life. “It’s the best job ever, but it’s the hardest job ever,” he said. “It’s also the most rewarding. She’s about to start walking -- she’s taking some steps here and there -- so that’s a new milestone that we’re looking forward to. It’s awesome. “It’s amazing to watch her grow and pick up little things, like different words and different emotions. We think she’s pretty smart. She knows the different sounds
Growing up in the Chicago area didn’t stop Rafferty from becoming a Red Wings fan.
that animals make and she sings pretty well when we sing her songs. She has definitely changed our life.” He is happy to have found a home with the Griffins. “I’m still hungry to play in the NHL, maybe hungrier than I have ever been, but right now, my feet are in Grand Rapids and I’m focusing 100 percent on doing whatever it takes to win here. That’s No. 1 on the list because winning brings a lot of positives for the team and for individuals. “I’m looking forward to getting involved in the community and being a good role model for some of the younger guys. As one of the older guys, I feel like I have a responsibility to teach the younger guys and show them how to be successful. That’s the kind of team success that I want.” At age 28, Rafferty hopes he still has a lot of years to keep playing. He chuckles that he may have more motivation than most. “When I was in college, every time you looked up my name, you’d find the Craigslist killer, blah, blah, blah. You wouldn’t find me until the second page of the search. I want to become the best player I can be so that when people Google my name, it’s all about hockey, and not the other guy. “It’s like I’m trying to clear my own name for something I didn’t do.” And if leading Grand Rapids to a Calder Cup – or two – will help, Brogan Rafferty is all in. He is ready to put his name on the line. Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 31
Cross Hanas has long had his sights on a path that he hopes will lead to the National Hockey League. Story and photos by Mark Newman
ON THE STRAIGHT AND NARROW 32 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
Cross Hanas was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and grew up in Dallas, Texas, neither place recognized as the quintessential home to budding hockey players. But the Red Wings prospect was blessed with a propitious pedigree. His father, Trevor Hanas, was a Western Canadian product who played several years of professional hockey in the States, first with the Peoria Rivermen in the ECHL for two seasons and then two more with the Topeka Scarecrows in the CHL, before finishing his career in 2001-02 with the CHL’s Tulsa Oilers. Determined to dispel the disbelievers and negate all naysayers, Cross Hanas credits his upbringing for making him the player – and the person – he is today. From almost the time that he was pushed in a stroller, a puck was his proverbial pacifier, a mini stick his indispensable security blanket. Later, he would find contentment on rollerblades in the garage or street hockey on the driveway. Hockey was more likely to be the topic of conversation at the dinner table than the weather for Cross and brother Cru, much to the chagrin of their mom, Kim, and younger sister, Grace, who were clearly outnumbered. Cross, along with Cru (who is three years his junior), was obsessed with watching hockey videos. “We were kind of hockey nerds when we were younger, for sure,” said Hanas, who grew attached to his iPad. “I can’t even remember how many times we tried to recreate plays and the goals we had watched.” There was always plenty of encouragement and advice from dad, too. Trevor Hanas posted his best numbers during his rookie pro season when he tallied 20 goals and 32 assists in 62 games for Peoria. “It’s always good to have a father figure who played the game and understands how hard it is to make it to a high level,” Hanas said. “Literally since I started playing hockey, he’s been there, coaching and helping mold me into the player I am.” Hanas said his father never let him take the easy road out. “I’d say he pushed me pretty hard, especially when I was younger,” Hanas said. “He pushed me when I didn’t really want to work hard on the ice. I thought I could just score goals and stuff, but he harped on me quite a bit when I was younger that it’s not going to be the only thing you do. Scoring goals isn’t the only way you’re going to make it to the highest level.” Although a lifelong mentor, his father was actually his youth team’s head coach only briefly. “My mom kind of put an end to it,” Hanas recalled. “We’re both really passionate guys about the game and sometimes he’d bench me and then I’d yell back
at him. There was some bickering going on, and sometimes we would bring it back home and my mom didn’t like it, so she put an end to it and he just became a dad for the rest of the time.” Keeping the peace in the Hanas household was easier said than done whenever there was a competitive game in the works. “Me and my dad and my brother grew up playing a lot of cribbage, the game with the pegs and the cards,” Hanas said. “Sometimes those games got pretty heated, especially if one guy was winning and he was chirping and stuff. My brother would usually sit back and just observe. “But my dad knew he could always harp on me quite a bit. We knew we’d have some battles, but we would get over it. Things would often get intense, but it was always fun.” There could have been scriptural references to Matthew 5:9 -- “Blessed are the peacemakers.” In the Hanas household, you could be excused for wearing your heart on your sleeve. After all, you don’t name your kids Cross, Crusade, and Grace, and then be bashful about your Christian faith. “Obviously, the main goal in our life is to follow God’s way. That’s what we learned growing up,” Hanas explained. “We learned that it’s important to be a good person, and love everybody. I mean, we apply our faith to everything in our lives because it’s the most important thing. “At the end of the day, hockey is just a game, and it’s not going to be here forever. The most important thing is God, and our faith, and just being great people, loving everybody, and, yeah, doing the right thing.” Finding balance extended to athletic pursuits as well. Hanas played a couple of years of flag football for fun and he played high-level baseball until high school. He always played shortstop, although he tried pitching once. “I had one pitch in my career,” he said. “It was a little chopper back to me to end the inning and then I went back to shortstop right after.” He stopped playing baseball when hockey started getting serious. His father instilled the idea that if you’re going to do something, you have to make the commitment necessary to excel at every step of the process. “He kind of laid it all out when I was a super young age,” Hanas said. “It was ‘You’re going to have to do this to get here’ or ‘Do this to get here’ and keep building and building and building. It was all these next-step type mentalities. There were goals we had year after year as well as the long-term goals we always had, too.” Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 33
Hanas is considered a gifted, creative puck-handler. It’s the same philosophy that drove his dad to help incrementally build hockey in the Lone Star State. “When I was growing up, we had a lot of really good players back in Dallas, but nowadays it’s just crazy,” he said. “It’s nuts to see how far the sport has come from the very start when I was young. Some of the teams are in the top 10 in the nation every year.” Hanas found inspiration from hometown product Seth Jones. The Arlington, Texas, native was the fourth overall pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft after playing one year of junior hockey with the Portland Winterhawks, the WHL team that also employed Hanas’ father as a scout. “Deep down, I wanted to play in the WHL my whole life because I had watched Seth Jones go to Portland and then his younger brother, Caleb, went there a couple of years before me. My dad had played in the WHL and so did my uncle, Jason Clague, who was a goalie for Red Deer, and my cousin, Kale Clague, who is in the Buffalo Sabres organization after playing for Brandon and Moose Jaw. “Not too many WHL teams scout American kids, so I was super excited to talk to a couple of teams. When the draft came and Portland selected me, I knew that’s exactly where I wanted to be and that it was all God’s plan.” 34 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
In Portland, Hanas was able to learn from a veteran coaching staff that had decades of experience at all levels of hockey. Longtime Winterhawks head coach Mike Johnston had been head coach of the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins after several seasons as an assistant/associate coach with the Vancouver Canucks and Los Angeles Kings. Associate coach Don Hay had been behind the bench for nearly four decades, including time as the head coach of the Phoenix Coyotes and Calgary Flames. “At 16 years old, to have those guys as your coaches, it’s just a huge blessing,” Hanas said. “Everything we did was straight business and it was all about hockey and development, from how to present yourself at the rink to how to be a pro. They also have a winning mentality that shows in their record year after year. The organization is so professional -- it’s just top-notch.” In Portland, Hanas developed his two-way play while continuing to fine-tune his offensive abilities. During his overage year, Hanas recorded 26 goals and 60 assists for 86 points in 63 games, but it was his defensive play where he showed the most progress. “I was at the age where you really need to learn how to play defense and take it seriously,” he said.
Hanas is in his second season with the Griffins, following a rookie campaign that was abbreviated by injuries.
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 35
“Playing defense will help win games and will get you further than just scoring goals. You have to be a multi-dimensional player in order to succeed at the highest level.” Getting drafted by the Red Wings was obviously a big thrill. Detroit selected Hanas in the second round (55th overall) of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. “It was one of the long-term goals that my dad and I had talked about. I was really young, maybe 8 years old, when we started talking about my draft year being 2020, and every year we were one year closer to that goal.” Getting selected in the draft was confirmation of years of planning. It made Hanas a believer in the value of being committed. “When the year finally comes, you look back on all those years growing up – just how hard you worked and how you were coming from a market that nobody expects will be relevant in the draft class. Because of COVID, we didn’t go to the draft, but we had a big draft party at my house and a lot of the family from Illinois flew in. “My dad and I wanted to do something special with some of the younger kids in the Dallas hockey program who are really good players. We wanted to have them come to the house and experience the draft with us. We wanted to show them the joy that comes after so much hard work. “So we invited several kids and their families to be a part of the draft with us. It was super cool because I saw these kids around the rink a lot and whenever I saw them on the ice, I understood why they were so much better than I was at their age.” Hanas wasn’t sure which team was going to pick him, but he had a hunch that he was on Detroit’s draft list. “As the draft was getting closer and closer, you could tell some teams were more interested than others,” he said. “I had met with the Wings a few times, so I was feeling pretty good about that. And sure enough, they took me in the second round and that was just another huge blessing in my life.” When he signed a three-year, entry-level contract with Detroit, it was another step on the path set years earlier by Hanas and his father. He appeared in two preseason games with the Wings before the 2022-23 season. His first exhibition appearance was in Pittsburgh against the Penguins and Evgeny Malkin, his favorite player growing up. Malkin received the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP when the Penguins won the Stanley Cup in 2009 by defeating the Red Wings 2-1 in 36 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
Game 7 of the Final. His 36 points (14 goals and 22 assists) were the highest playoff total since Wayne Gretzky amassed 40 points in 1993. “I always liked Malkin. I just liked the way he played,” said Hanas, who has always worn Malkin’s #71 in his honor. “My dad flew up for the preseason game that morning and he got a pretty cool picture of me and Malkin kinda standing next to each other on the ice.” Hanas made his professional debut with the Griffins last season. He tallied seven goals in his first 13 games, then injured his shoulder the day after Thanksgiving. “I was out for about seven weeks, came back, and then a couple of weeks later I blew out the other shoulder. It happened in Texas. I went to hit [Stars defenseman Alex] Petrovic and I ended up pushing my arm out of the socket and had a posterior and anterior labrum tear, along with a little chip in my scapula bone. I had to have surgery.” Hanas admits that he took the news hard. “I’m a pretty passionate person, and I love playing the game, and I’ve never really been hurt before,” he said. “It was really frustrating because I was having a good year and I wanted to keep going and keep proving to people what I can do. “Unfortunately, I had to take a step back, look at the big picture, get my shoulder redone, and start the rehab process. I had to have the same mentality that I would play a game, only for a different reason. So I decided I was going to work as hard as I could so I would be able to play again as soon as possible.” He admits that he leaned on his faith during the process. “That was something me and my dad talked about,” he said. “Obviously it sucks that it happened, but being a young kid who was still growing and trying to get stronger, all the doctors said that once I rehabbed it, it should be way stronger than it was before. “We took that as a blessing in disguise and ran with it. It gave me an extra five or six months of an offseason to work on my overall strength too, not just my shoulder, and try to put on some weight and build more strength. I put on a good 12-14 pounds of muscle, so I was feeling really good when I came back.” His mom came up from Texas to help with cooking and other little things that were a chore right after the surgery. “I was living with Seth Barton at the time and he helped, too, but she hung out with me for a few days when I was down and out,” he said. Hanas admits that he felt a bit rusty coming into this season.
Hanas was selected by the Red Wings in the second round of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft.
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 37
Hanas wears jersey #71 in honor of his favorite player, Evgeny Malkin.
“Being off the ice for a long period of time, everything’s not going to come right back to you, and the first thing I found out was the game felt a lot faster right now,” he said. “You can only do so much conditioning off the ice, but nothing compares to being on the ice. “I knew that I probably wasn’t going to start the way that I ended, so I’m just trying to get that confidence back, knowing that I can score goals in this league, and be an effective player for our team. That’s the main goal I have right now.” Despite the Griffins’ slow start this season, Hanas is confident that everything will eventually come together. He feels that there are a number of players on the team who could be playing together for a long time. “We’re having a good time, getting to bond with each other because, hopefully, we will be teammates for quite a while, whether it’s here or in Detroit. It’s the core group that’s been talked about for the past couple of years, and we get to be together now, which is really fun. “Turning pro is super hard because you’re now playing against guys a few years older and some guys 38 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
who have kids of their own, and the strength and the speed goes to an absolute another level, as well the time and space on the ice is just so much shorter. It’s a really tough adjustment, but obviously, everybody goes through it. You’ve got to realize that you’re good enough to be here.” Hanas knows he has a lot of work still to do if he is going to reach the last step in the plan that he and his dad set forth. “Of course, that’s everybody’s goal and like everybody says, it’s really, really hard to get there, but it’s even harder to stay there. And I know that, everyone knows that, and even if you get the opportunity, you just gotta give it your all, and do your best. “We have a really good group of young guys, and we’re all good buddies and get along really well, plus we have great older guys on our team who help us, mentor us, and try to teach us the right ways. Everybody has been awesome. “It’s a pretty cool thing to be a part of, and hopefully something we all stay a part of for a while.”
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2023 - 24 GRAND RAPIDS GRIFFINS ROSTER
12
48
ZACH ASTON-REESE
JONATAN BERGGREN
27
44
Forward 6-0, 204 lbs. Born: 8/10/94 Staten Island, N.Y.
Defenseman 6-3, 223 lbs. Born: 4/8/93 Littleton, Colo.
17 CROSS HANAS
Forward 6-1, 180 lbs. Born: 1/5/02 Highland Village, Texas 40 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
Forward 6-1, 195 lbs. Born: 3/16/98 Appleton, Wis.
77 JOSIAH DIDIER
Forward 5-8, 170 lbs. Born: 12/12/92 Washington Twp., Mich.
33 TRENTON BLISS
Forward 6-0, 190 lbs. Born: 7/16/00 Enkoping, Sweden
AUSTIN CZARNIK
71
28
Forward 5-10, 170 lbs. Born: 6/30/96 Calgary, Alta.
Goaltender 6-6, 225 Born: 11/21/02 Hamilton, Ont.
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SIMON EDVINSSON Defenseman 6-6, 215 lbs. Born: 2/5/03 Onsala, Sweden
35 TARO HIROSE
SEBASTIAN COSSA
TIM GETTINGER
Forward 6-6, 218 lbs. Born: 4/14/98 Cleveland, Ohio
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MICHAEL HUTCHINSON Goaltender 6-3, 200 lbs
Born: 3/2/90 Barrie, Ont.
ALBERT JOHANSSON Defenseman 6-0, 185 lbs. Born: 1/4/01 Karlstad, Sweden
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27 Austin Czarnik g r i f f i n s h o c k e y. c o m
from the biggest of the big, to the littlest of the little. Whenever you shop Meijer, you help support the Grand Rapids Griffins and hundreds of local sports teams across the Midwest.
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MARCO KASPER
Forward 6-1, 183 lbs. Born: 4/8/04 Innsbruck, Austria
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JOEL L’ESPERANCE Forward 6-2, 210 lbs. Born: 8/18/95 Brighton, Mich.
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CARTER MAZUR
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Defenseman 6-1, 197 lbs. Born: 3/27/00 Truro, N.S.
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RILEY SAWCHUK
DOMINIK SHINE
Forward 5-11, 181 lbs. Born: 3/18/99 Prince Albert, Sask.
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Forward 5-11, 180 lbs. Born: 4/18/93 Detroit, Mich.
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NOLAN STEVENS Forward 6-3, 195 lbs. Born: 7/22/96 Brantford, Ont.
JOHN LETHEMON
Goaltender 6-3, 190 lbs. Born: 8/15/96 Farmington Hills, Mich.
40 JARED McISAAC
Forward 6-0, 175 lbs. Born: 3/28/02 Jackson, Mich.
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Defenseman 6-5, 205 lbs. Born: 1/20/01 Pori, Finland
Forward 5-11, 171 lbs. Born: 6/5/03 Aurora, Ont.
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WYATT NEWPOWER
BROGAN RAFFERTY
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Defenseman 6-4, 210 lbs. Born: 12/9/97 Hugo, Minn.
Defenseman 6-1, 203 lbs. Born: 5/28/95 West Dundee, Ill.
ELMER SODERBLOM
TYLER SPEZIA
Forward 6-8, 249 lbs. Born: 7/5/01 Goteborg, Sweden
5 ANTTI TUOMISTO
AMADEUS LOMBARDI
Forward 5-10, 175 lbs. Born: 6/7/93 Detroit, Mich.
22 EEMIL VIRO
Defenseman 6-1, 183 lbs. Born: 4/3/02 Vantaa, Finland
WILLIAM WALLINDER Defenseman 6-4, 190 lbs. Born: 7/28/02 Solleftea, Sweden
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 41
Griffins assistant coach Steph Julien harnesses his love of the game to bring out the best in those around him.
Story and photos by Mark Newman
WITH A PASSION 42 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
When the Red Wings hired Steph Julien to be an assistant coach for the Griffins, the organization was getting an experienced mind who had been around hockey for a long time. Although it is his first job at the AHL level, Julien has been active in hockey for more than four decades. His first year of junior hockey was spent in his native Quebec with Trois-Rivieres, two years after Steve Larouche and Michel Picard combined for 293 points (110 goals and 183 assists). A dozen years later, all three would be playing in Germany: Julien and Larouche as teammates in Berlin while Picard was in Mannheim before he returned to the Griffins, who would eventually retire his number 7. Julien’s mentor during his first year at the junior level was Yanic Perreault, who would later play 859 NHL games with six different teams, including three separate stints with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Perrault was a scoring machine (87–98–185) that season, but Julien remembers Perreault for the part he played in guiding a 16-year-old defenseman from Shawnigan, Quebec. “We lived together in the same building for a year before he turned pro,” said Julien, who later trained with Perreault during summers when the Trois-Rivieres franchise moved to the latter’s Sherbrooke hometown in Quebec. “He was a very good father figure for me. He was very serious about his game because he wanted to be an NHL player. He gave me a lot of advice both on and off the ice. He was really great with me.” Julien played two seasons in Sherbrooke with Mathieu Dandenault, the versatile forwarddefenseman who would play nine seasons with the Red Wings before finishing his NHL career in Montreal, where he would spend four seasons. Like the fleet-footed Dandenault, who led his team in scoring during the 1994-95 season, Julien could move the puck and exhibit a deft scoring touch. And yet, even though he was one of the highest-scoring defensemen in Canada, Julien went undrafted. “In those days, you had to be more of a big-size defensemen to get drafted and I was 5-foot-10,” he said. “If I was starting my career in junior right now, maybe it would
Julien spent most of his pro career in the DEL, the top hockey league in Germany, playing nine seasons and serving as captain for EHC München during the final two campaigns of his pro career from 2010-12.
be a different situation because more small defensemen are getting drafted, but that’s the way it was at the time.” Julien got looks from the New York Rangers and the Quebec Nordiques in separate seasons, but the 1994-95 NHL lockout might have cost him a chance to prove himself and he ended up playing a fifth year of junior hockey. “The only regret I probably have is that maybe I became a little frustrated and I left to go to Europe,” he said. He went to France for the 1995-96 season before returning for his only season of professional hockey in North America, in the ECHL with the Pensacola Ice Pilots. One of his teammates was Glen Metropolit, who would come to the Griffins for the next two seasons. Metropolit would eventually play for seven NHL teams in addition to playing in Finland, Switzerland, Germany and Italy during a 22year pro career. “When we played together in the East Coast League, I thought he was playing in the wrong league – big time,” Julien said. “He was so talented, very detailed. He was Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 43
a fun guy to be around. He loves the game and I’m not surprised that he’s coaching in Switzerland right now.” While Metropolit was heading to Michigan, Julien was packing his bags for Europe. “When the only thing you hear is you’re too small, it’s a little tough,” he said. “I thought it was time to give myself a shot in Europe, see whether I liked it or not. I ended up playing there for almost 17 years, so it worked out pretty well. “For me, there’s no regret. Everywhere I’ve been – Italy, Germany or Switzerland – they all were great experiences. I was treated very well by teams and I made some good money over there because, year after year, I took the best contract I could.” Julien crossed paths with numerous exGriffins over the years. In Cologne, he played four seasons with Ivan Ciernik (1999-2002). “We had a lot of success together on the power play,” Julien said. “I’d just throw the pucks at the net and he’d tip them in. I’m still in contact with him because I almost drafted his son [Alex] for our team in Canada. His son is very good.” Julien also played four years with Bryan Adams, the former Michigan State Spartan who played the 2002-03 season with the Griffins before spending the next 10 years in Germany. Sean Tallaire, who played 77 games over two seasons (1997-98, 1998-99), was a member of the Cologne Sharks with Julien, Ciernik, and Adams from 2006-08. During his time in Europe, Julien started getting into property management. “I was playing in Germany with a guy from Quebec, and we started to become very good friends,” he recalled. “He said his brother is buying some apartments, it’s a good deal, and you’re going to make money out of it. I wasn’t sure, so I went back and talked to my father-inlaw who worked for a bank and he said, ‘Well, it’s a tough business,’ because the market was not that good at the time. “I started to look around and I decided to start with nine units. This guy was going bankrupt, so I bought them from the bank. I didn’t have much cash because I was just starting my career, but my father-in-law said, ‘We’ll loan you some cash to start,’ and then the market started to get better. 44 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
“Every year, I was coming back to Quebec for the summer and I would buy another 10-15 units. So I was growing the company because, every year, I was buying some apartments. Pretty soon, I was up to 350 units. My brotherin-law started working for me and we had an office and everything. “When I retired from playing in 2012, I became an assistant coach for the junior team in Sherbrooke. At the same time, another management company called me because they wanted to get out. I ended up buying their business, so we went from 350 units to 2,000 apartments to manage.” It didn’t take long for Julien to realize it was all too much. “Everything happened so fast,” he said. “I was not expecting to buy that other company but I thought it was the perfect deal because my company was doing pretty well, and I was supposed to be an assistant coach in junior to start, just to see how I liked it. “After my first year of coaching, I told the team, ‘I cannot do coaching and run my business at the same time.’ But they said, ‘We’d like you to stay, work with the young guys, help with their skills twice a week, and come to the games.’ I said, ‘Good deal,’ because I could stay in the game a little.” Julien did that for two more years, but then things were not going very well with the team the third year so they fired the head coach. “They asked me to coach for three games after Christmas and we won all three games, so the owner asked if I would keep coaching until the end of the season.” At the end of the season, he was asked if he wanted to become the full-time head coach. “It was a tough decision because my real estate business was doing well. I had three companies – managing condos, apartments, and buildings – and I was pretty proud of what I did with those companies, building them year after year. But I decided to sell two of my companies and go into full-time coaching. Nobody, including my whole family, could understand why I would do it.” Julien realized he was passionate about hockey. While he enjoyed making money, managing properties didn’t have quite the same allure as the sport he had always loved. “At one point, I had over 80 employees. It
Photo credit: Sherbrooke Phoenix
In addition to his duties as bench boss, Julien served as general manager for Sherbrooke the past three campaigns (2020-23), accumulating a 104-47-6-6 ledger for a .675 winning percentage.
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 45
was one of the biggest property management companies in the east of Quebec. I was managing a lot of money and it takes a lot of money to manage 2,000 apartments, so there’s a lot of stress in business. There’s a lot of stress in hockey, too, but when I started coaching, there was something in my head that said this is where I belong.” Julien started the process of slowly selling off his remaining assets. He realized that he needed to be totally committed to coaching if he was going to build a winning program in Sherbrooke. He quickly realized that developing a winning culture doesn’t happen overnight. “Jocelyn Thibault, the former NHL goaltender, was one of the part-owners of the team in Sherbrooke and we had played together in junior hockey,” he said. “I was the captain of a lot of my teams and I told him that culture is very important to me and that was missing in Sherbrooke. “So I said, ‘If I take over, for real, it’s going to be hard for players and the organization. We’re going to have some tough times, but I’m going to build something very strong.’ And that’s what we did. We built a structure and culture that is very strong. For the past four years, Sherbrooke has been one of the best junior teams in Canada.” Julien completely rebuilt the program, confident that he knew the formula after playing so many years in Europe. “You have to believe in yourself first, you know,” he said. “So it was a little bit of everything, from our habits on and off the ice to our practices to the little details that are important in junior hockey. “As a coach, you don’t want to be fake and I was like that as a player. I worked hard as a player, always in good shape, and I always try to teach my young guys the same thing. And that’s why we had success.” His Sherbrooke squad finished out of the playoffs his first full season behind the bench as head coach, but his teams then made the postseason every year except 2019-20 when the pandemic ended the year prematurely. Before COVID-19 struck, his team compiled an impressive 51-8-4 slate. “It was probably not the best team on paper, but we were strong on chemistry and character inside the team,” he said. “I don’t think I raised my voice once in practice all year, that’s how 46 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
that team was working hard. We were first in all of Canada for a while, so it was very disappointing. Of course, because of COVID, many teams around the world probably thought they were winning the championship. We were one of them.” After an abbreviated 2020-21 campaign, his teams went 46-17-5 and 50-13-5 the past two seasons, going deep into the playoffs both years. During his tenure as head coach he led Sherbrooke to a 262–161–24–17 record, with three division titles and one league championship. He twice won the Ron Lapointe Trophy, as QMJHL Coach of the Year, in 2020 and 2023. In addition, Julien guided Canada’s U18 squad to a gold medal at the 2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup as head coach and earned another gold medal as an assistant for Team Canada at the 2023 World Junior Championship. Looking back, he admits that flipping the script in Sherbrooke was a bigger challenge than he anticipated. “The hardest part as a head coach, after being a player and enjoying success, is figuring out how to translate that to your players,” he said. “You have 22-23 players and they don’t have the same personality or the same character. So, to adapt to these young guys, it takes time. But you learn a lot from those young guys, this new generation of hockey players.” The proof is in the pudding, as they say. “When I see guys coming back every year, whether they are coming back to the team or after they start playing pro, and they’re very grateful for what we did with them – for me, that’s like a trophy. When you build your team with discipline, character, and good habits, it’s nice to keep hearing from those guys.” Julien signed a new four-year deal with Sherbrooke but felt he needed a new challenge. He talked to four NHL organizations, but the Red Wings seemed most interested. “When I talked to Shawn [Horcoff], Steve [Yzerman], and [Kris] Draper, it seemed like a good fit.” In fact, Julien thought he might land the head coaching job in Grand Rapids before the decision came down to him and Dan Watson, but the latter’s long service with the organization’s ECHL affiliate in Toledo gave him the edge. The day after getting the job,
Julien made the jump to the AHL and became an assistant to Griffins head coach Dan Watson (right) after twice being named the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) Coach of the Year.
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 47
Photo credit: Nicolas Carrillo
As the head coach of QMJHL’s Sherbrooke franchise, Julien posted a 262-161-24-17 record (.609) with three division titles and one league championship.
Watson offered Julien the chance to be an assistant coach alongside longtime Griffins defenseman Brian Lashoff, who was going behind the bench after retiring. “I had a good feeling that this is the way I should go,” said Julien, who saw the job as a chance to grow with one of the NHL’s Original Six organizations. “I was very grateful for the opportunity, that he called me back, for sure. I thought we had a lot of things in common as a coach and I’m here to help. I know what I have to do as an assistant coach to make this team grow. And so far, I have had a lot of fun.” Experience, Julien contends, is the biggest difference between coaching in junior hockey and the pros. “Some guys have been in the league for seven or eight years, and you don’t approach a guy with experience the same thing that you do in junior,” he said. “To gain the trust of your players, it takes time. I’ve been on the other side. I’ve seen it. Building trust and confidence takes time, but I think we’re on the right track.” For the first time in the organization’s history, the Griffins have three former 48 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
defensemen behind the bench. Julien has been tasked with working with the team’s forwards and power play. “I think we’ve progressed a lot from day one, which is very good, but we still have a lot of things to work on. It’s a good group. They want to learn. They want to progress and as a coaching group, we want to see the team progress every day.” It’s the first year coaching at the AHL level for all three coaches, so they’re adapting, too. “Everything takes time and the biggest part is to believe in what we want to do. It’s a process, and some days are good and some days are not like you want, but you keep doing it because nothing happens overnight.” Although Julien is anxious to replicate the success he enjoyed in Sherbrooke, he is content to enjoy the process however long it takes. “Mentally, I feel way better behind a bench than behind a desk,” he said. “Every morning I wake up is not hard. Walking to the rink every day is not hard. For me, it’s a passion. I love what I do.”
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 49
Former Griffins defenseman John Gruden believes players appreciate candid coaches who are genuine and truthful to them while offering advice.
HONEST-TOGOODNESS 50 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
When John Gruden visited Grand Rapids as the head coach of the Toronto Marlies in early November, it marked the first time he had been inside Van Andel Arena in more than 21 years. He admitted that while it seemed like it had only been yesterday that he was wearing a Griffins jersey as a veteran presence on the blue line, so much had transpired in the intervening years that it made him pause to contemplate all that had happened on his way back. But it was not melancholy that Gruden was feeling when he showed up for the Marlies’ morning skate between a pair of early season games against the Griffins. A bout of flu sent him back to the hotel so he could rest before being back behind the bench for the teams’ second meeting. After Toronto won both games by four-goal margins, Gruden was admittedly in better spirits. “Anytime your team plays well, it makes you feel a little bit better,” he said. Gruden was also cheered by his recollections of all the time in spent in the building two decades earlier. A member of the Ferris State University Athletics Hall of Fame, he spent three seasons on the blue line for the Griffins from 1999-2002, helping Grand Rapids win three consecutive division titles. He earned a spot on the AHL’s 2001-02 First All-Star Team and represented the Griffins in both the 2000 IHL All-Star Game and the 2002 AHL AllStar Classic. The games with his current team represented Gruden’s first appearance at Van Andel Arena since April 21, 2002. “I have a lot of great memories,” Gruden said a few days after returning to Toronto, no worse for the wear. “It was close to where I went to college and I was coming to an organization in the IHL that was regarded as one of the best franchises in the league.” Gruden was already seven seasons into his pro career when he came to Grand Rapids. An eighthround pick of the Boston Bruins in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft out of Ferris, where he had captained his junior and senior seasons, Gruden had appeared in 59 games with the Bruins. He had split the two previous seasons between the Ottawa Senators and the IHL’s Detroit Vipers. “When I signed with Ottawa, it worked out for me because Grand Rapids changed their affiliation from independent to Ottawa, so I was able to stay close to my Michigan ties, and there were people that I still talk to, and my son [Jonathan, 23, a fourth-round pick of Ottawa in the 2018 draft] was born in GR, plus the good teams we had.” All three of Gruden’s Griffins teams were
Gruden was a Griffins defenseman from 1999-2002.
championship-caliber clubs and each lost to the eventual title winner: Chicago (IHL, 2000), Orlando (IHL, 2001), and Chicago (AHL, 2002). “The last one was tough because we knew the winner of the series was going to win the championship, and they did,” he said. “I guess the only thing I wish I could have had was to somehow come away with a championship, but at the end of the day, it doesn’t change anything for myself and I know it didn’t for the Griffins because they went on to win a couple of them, which was great to see.” Gruden was an all-star selection in both the IHL and AHL and from his standpoint, they were equally good leagues. At the time, the IHL featured primarily older, more experienced players while the AHL was considered more development-oriented due to its youth and its closer affiliation to the NHL. “In the AHL, I thought the game itself got a little faster because of the age of the players, although I don’t know if it got necessarily better. If anything, joining a younger league brought out the best of some of the older players. You could probably ask Travis Richards [the Griffins legend who was the same age as Gruden] and he would probably say the same thing.” Gruden played for head coach Guy Charron his first two years in Grand Rapids, then future Stanley Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 51
Gruden was named head coach of the AHL’s Toronto Marlies on July 4, 2023.
Cup winner (Vegas, 2023) Bruce Cassidy during his third season. “When I look back at the coaches that I had, I think the one common thing that sticks out to me with those winning teams and the coaches was just the honesty that you got from them,” he said. “You knew where you stood and there wasn’t any gray area. “I think honesty is one of the better qualities of the better coaches. There’s no guessing game. You always knew where you stood, whether it was good or bad.” Gruden is quick to add that truthfulness without tact, however, can torpedo the message. “If you let them know where they stand, I think it’s always important to give them examples of where they can improve and so forth,” he said. “You can’t sugarcoat things, but you also cannot do it with an iron fist. You have to be able to teach. I mean, that’s our job as coaches. It’s just how you communicate it, that’s what matters.” After the Griffins began their NHL affiliation with the Red Wings, Gruden opted to head to Europe. He played one season for Eisbären Berlin, where he was reunited with former Griffins teammates John Emmons, David Roberts and Keith Aldridge, along with Mark Beaufait and Kelly 52 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
Fairchild from the Orlando Solar Bears and Steve Walker from the Detroit Vipers. “We had a really good year,” Gruden said. “I think we won the [regular season] league but lost to the eventual champions in the playoffs. When I look back at my career, I was so close but always the bridesmaid, which is okay because I still had a great time in Berlin.” Gruden returned to North America the following season (2003-04) when he was reunited with Cassidy, who had accepted the head coaching job with the NHL’s Washington Capitals the previous year. But injuries and Cassidy getting sacked in midseason spoiled the homecoming. “It wasn’t the greatest way to end, but your journey is your journey and your path is not always how you want to script it, but at the end of the day, you gotta make the best of it and go from there,” Gruden said. “I think that kind of thinking goes into my coaching philosophy as well. “There are certain things you can’t control,” he continued. “The one thing you can control is, when you get that opportunity you have to be prepared for it.” When he retired, Gruden was unsure where his next opportunity might be. He coached hockey for two years at Birmingham Brother Rice High School
and three years at Stoney Creek High School in Rochester Hills, where he had made his home. “I didn’t know what I was going to do. I honestly had no plan,” he said. “After the injuries, I didn’t know that I wasn’t going to be able to play again and I didn’t have a backup plan. I didn’t have anything. So I started coaching high school and I took a regular job selling irrigation.” Gruden got involved with his son’s hockey teams and subsequently opened a training facility. “Then I got a phone call one day and it was Danton Cole. He wanted to know if I was interested in becoming an assistant coach in the [USA Hockey National Team] development program.” Cole, who had his name etched on the Stanley Cup as a member of the 1995 New Jersey Devils, was an assistant coach with the Griffins during Gruden’s first two seasons in Grand Rapids before becoming the head coach of the Muskegon Fury for the 2001-02 season. “Danton brought me on board and I spent four years with him,” Gruden said. “I used that time as a benefit to groom myself in terms of how I wanted to coach and how I wanted to be perceived; first, as an assistant coach, and, later, as a head coach in the OHL.” Gruden became the head coach of the OHL’s Flint Firebirds for 2015-16 and proceeded to be fired not once but twice by the same team in the same season. In a highly publicized incident, he was relieved of his duties after the team owner was reportedly unhappy with his son’s playing time. Gruden’s players staged a successful walkout that led to his reinstatement as the Firebirds’ head coach, only to be fired again three months later in the season. “It wasn’t really a nightmare because things happen and it was indeed unfortunate, but I think it helped me as I moved forward,” he said. “Stuff happened off the ice that was out of my control, and like anyone else in life, when you come to adversity, it’s not the fact that you hit adversity, it’s how you handle it that counts. “He was the owner, the boss, so you just try to handle it with class and wish everyone the best because hopefully, it’s something you don’t have to deal with ever again. It helped me grow as a human, not only as a coach, and as a human being you have to understand it’s not personal, it’s just sometimes the way life works.” On the positive side, it led Gruden to become the head coach of the OHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs, and he led the team to become league playoff champions during his second season. “I was very fortunate to get a second opportunity and then take full advantage of it by winning a championship,” he said.
Gruden, who enjoyed stops in the NHL with Boston, Ottawa and Washington, uses his experience and knowledge of the game to help teach young players.
Success in his second attempt at coaching in the OHL led to an assistant coaching position with the NHL’s New York Islanders. He spent four years working with head coach Barry Trotz, who won the Stanley Cup behind the bench with the Washington Capitals the year before coming to the Islanders. “I could see why he was in the position he was because, number one, I saw how great of a human being he is,” Gruden said. “Number two, he makes everyone in that locker room feel just as important, including the staff, equipment managers, and the trainers. There’s a reason why he’s been in the league for 25 years now. I was very fortunate to get to work with someone like him.” When the Islanders missed the 2021-22 playoffs the entire staff was let go, prompting Gruden to get in touch with Bruins general manager Don Sweeney. “I played with Don in Boston and although I hadn’t spoken to him in a while, I called him for Jim Montgomery’s number so I could reach out to Jim,” Gruden said. In the small world category, Montgomery had been introduced as the Bruins’ new head coach, replacing Cassidy, who had led Boston to six straight playoff appearances, including the 2019 Stanley Cup Final when the Bruins lost in seven games to the St. Louis Blues. Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 53
When he was hired by Boston, Gruden was coming back to the organization that had originally drafted him and where he had broken into the NHL 30 years earlier. “It’s a great organization that’s now been around 100 years and Boston is a great city, a great sports town.” Gruden was part of the coaching staff that helped the Bruins to the most successful regular season in NHL history. Boston finished the season with a record 65 wins, passing the 1995-96 Detroit Red Wings (62-13-7) and the 2018-19 Tampa Bay Lightning (62-16-4). Neither of those teams won the Stanley Cup in its record-setting season and the same happened to the Bruins, who were ousted in the first round by the Florida Panthers. “Obviously the year didn’t end the way we wanted, but it was still an historic season,” he said. “I think we always knew we were going to be a good team, but it was probably around Christmas when we knew, wow, we have a really good team. “It was a special team with a lot of good players and a lot of good leaders and some future Hall of Famers, too. It was a great experience learning from Jimmy, who’s a great hockey mind. I got to learn from another really good head coach in the National Hockey League, which was very important and very instrumental to helping me become who I am today.” If there was a consolation prize, it was the head coaching position in Toronto. On July 4, 2023, the Marlies organization announced that it was hiring Gruden as the eighth head coach in the club’s history. “I had worked for some great coaches in the National Hockey League, and I was at that point where I thought that for me to grow more as a coach, it was time to be a head coach at this level. It’s a great city, great organization, and I’m very fortunate to have gotten the job,” he said. “I’m excited to work with the great young players who are prospects for the Leafs. It’s still early, but I’m really enjoying it. [Maple Leafs head coach] Sheldon [Keefe] made it easy for me to come in and fit in, and I believe it’s a great opportunity for me to grow as a head coach at this level.” Does Gruden feel any added pressure because the Toronto organization is still looking for its first Stanley Cup since 1967? The Maple Leafs’ 48-season drought between championships is currently the longest in the NHL. “In this big city, this big market, the Leafs are huge – it’s a proud organization and the fans are proud, so it’s a great environment to be in,” said Gruden, who notes while the two teams share the same practice rink, they don’t see each other much. “We’re just at a smaller version of it, and at the end of the day, we just have a job to do, so we try to stick 54 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
Gruden has fond memories of his time in Grand Rapids more than two decades ago.
to those responsibilities, and execute them at the best of our ability.” Gruden hopes to mold the team in his image. “We’re a team first,” he said. “Throughout my playing career –- and I don’t care what league you’re in –– you don’t get to where you need to be without your teammates. So it’s important to put them in an environment where they can grow as human beings and players. “There’s a lot of pressure on these young athletes, so we want them excited about coming to the rink and coming to work. To maximize their potential, we’ll start the teaching process by helping them become better players. That’s our job as coaches. “It’s not just to coach two or three or four guys, but to coach 23, so we’re going be a good team as far as balance goes. They have to know that there will be some nights where you’re not at your best, but if the consistency is there, and if your effort is there, the wins will happen. I’m a big believer in that.” This past season Gruden witnessed the first fruits of one of his earliest coaching endeavors when his son Jonathan made his NHL debut as a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins. On the second day of the 2020 NHL draft, Ottawa traded Gruden and the 52nd overall pick for goalie Matt Murray. The younger Gruden made his NHL debut in
a 4-3 overtime home win against the Anaheim Ducks at PPG Paints Arena, but his dad couldn’t attend because he got stuck at work. The Bruins were busy beating the Philadelphia Flyers 6-0 on the same date. “I wasn’t able to go to his first game, but my wife was there,” Gruden said. “I did go to his third game when Monty gave me a day where I could go watch them play Ottawa in Pittsburgh, which was nice, so that was an exciting time for him and our family.” The 23-year-old center, who is currently playing in the AHL for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, made his father proud. “I was there at times for him when he was younger, but I know how hard he works in the summer. I know he gets up every morning and he eats right, and he’s gone out of the house by seven o’clock in the morning every day in the summer. I know he works and he wants it and he loves it. Most of the time, we just talk father to son, but I told him if he ever needs anything or any advice, don’t be afraid to ask, because I’m there to support him in any way I can. “When he got called up last year, that was a proud moment.” And now Gruden is focused on doing the same for his Marlies. “Coaching is all about helping players become better pros,” he said.
Gruden, who helped Grand Rapids win three straight division titles, was an allstar in both the IHL and AHL.
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Cathy George, head coach of Grand Rapids’ major-league women’s sports team, is excited about the quality of play that will be on display when the Pro Volleyball Federation franchise springs into action in January. 56 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
TALENT ON THE RISE
Cathy George is positive about the future of women’s professional volleyball and is convinced that she knows how to win others to her side. Just watch.
She speaks with authority – not to mention considerable passion and purpose. After 37 years of coaching volleyball, including 17 years at Michigan State University and 11 at Western Michigan University, she is determined to do whatever she can to be a champion of Pro Volleyball Federation, both literally and figuratively. As head coach of the Grand Rapids Rise, George is excited for people to see the sport for themselves. “We would love for people to check us out,” she said. “We have seen the growth of women’s volleyball across the country in the last decade and we know it’s a sport that’s contagious. We want people to come and be a part of this inaugural season that sends this whole thing in motion. As a fan, you can say you helped get us started. You were there that first year.”
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 57
Rise players and coaches are making appearances across the West Michigan community. (Photo by Maria Gordon)
George has been a witness to what watching the sport can do. “I guarantee you every time I’ve had somebody as a guest to a match, they ended up buying courtside seats the following year,” she said. “They were amazed at the athleticism, passion and energy and wanted to be a part of it. And I think if people come, they’re going to want to come again. “The matches are family-friendly and affordable. They’re for everyone. And as a sport, we can reach out in communities because our players are accessible. They enjoy interacting and making a difference while being role models for your daughters and granddaughters. I think this is such an amazing opportunity to present the sport at the highest level.” George, who left Michigan State two years ago to care for her mother during her final days, jumped at the chance to coach in the new league, which begins its inaugural season in January 2024. The Rise will open their 24-match season by hosting the Columbus Fury on Jan. 25 at Van Andel Arena. 58 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
She believes people will be impressed by the level of play in Pro Volleyball Federation, which also includes teams in Atlanta, Columbus, Las Vegas, Omaha, Orlando and San Diego. Meanwhile, Dallas and Kansas City have begun operations in preparation for the 2025 season. “I think people will find the speed, the athleticism, and the excitement of the rallies, with points scored on every opportunity, just amazing,” she said. “The competitive level is really far beyond anything anybody has seen in this area, for sure.” George has reason to be optimistic about the potential market for pro volleyball. “One of the reasons the league started was because of the wild growth of the sport on the Big Ten Network. Women’s volleyball was the number-three sport watched on TV behind football and basketball. The demographics are very exciting and drew the attention of many.” And the evidence is not anecdotal either. Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska, was filled with 92,003 fans last August when the five-time NCAA champion Nebraska volleyball team set a record for the largest crowd to
witness a women’s sports event. MSU regularly ranked near the top of Big Ten attendance. “These things aren’t accidents,” George said. “We’re breaking attendance records almost every week in volleyball nationally, and the owners, sponsors and players are all paying attention. The momentum for volleyball is really off the charts.” George said the league is already attracting some of the best talent in the world. “We’re seeing an influx of high-level players,” she said. “Most of them have been All-Americans out of their colleges and almost all have been playing professionally or playing on their national or Olympic teams. Many have been playing overseas, and now this is an opportunity to play closer to home.” The Rise’s roster includes three Michigan natives: outside hitter Symone Abbott, who starred at Northwestern, is from Northville; middle blocker Alyssa Garvelink-Jensen, a twotime Second-Team All-American at MSU, is from Holland; and outside hitter Holly Toliver, who was an All-American Honorable Mention at MSU, is from Berrien Springs.
Other players hail from Arizona, California, Illinois, Maryland, Ohio and Wisconsin. The roster also includes two international players. Camila Gomez, a libero who played collegiately at Texas A&M, has been a member of Team Colombia. Opposite hitter Emiliya Dimitrova, who has 14 years of professional experience in Europe and Asia, is a member of the Bulgaria women’s national volleyball team. The latter’s husband is a member of George’s coaching staff. Assistant coach Denislav Dimitrov played seven seasons as a professional in Europe from 2011-18 in Bulgaria, France and Turkey, in addition to coaching in Francis, Romania and Turkey as well as his native Bulgaria. “Denis has been coaching in Europe for several years after playing professionally, and I wanted someone with his technical background who understood professional volleyball and could be a great teacher,” she said. Her associate head coach is Bill Walton – not the NBA Hall of Fame center who played at UCLA but the Bill Walton who spent 24 seasons as head coach at the University of
Rosalynn Bliss (right), mayor of Grand Rapids, helped welcome Cathy George when she was named head coach of the local Pro Volleyball Federation team last March. (Photo by Nicolas Carrillo) Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 59
SAVE THE DATE!
On March 13th, 2024 RAISE A GLASS WITH THE GRIFFINS! Featuring the Grand Rapids Griffins!
Join us for our annual wine and beer sampling event. Along with delicious samples, there will be tasty food, great music, and a wonderful silent auction all while raising funds for Easterseals MORC!
Players and coaches will be serving samples throughout the night.
TO BENEFIT:
For more information, please visit www.EastersealsMORC.org 60 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
The Rise are one of seven franchises stretching coast to coast that will compete during the inaugural Pro Volleyball Federation season that begins in January 2024. (Photo by Nicolas Carrillo)
Houston from 1986-2009, leading the Cougars to 11 NCAA Tournament appearances and winning the 1990 National Invitational Volleyball Championship. Walton, who most recently served as head coach of the Texas Tornados, a club volleyball team, began his coaching career at the NCAA Division III level with Elmhust College (1981-85). He played from 1970-74 at George Williams College, where he was a two-time NAIA All-American. Walton, who helped George Williams claim the 1974 national championship during his senior season, was also a member of the 1976 and 1980 USA National Teams. “Bill was a 24-year head coach at Houston and is a volleyball junkie with an analytical mind. I have known him since he was at Elmhurst and I was playing at Illinois State,” she said. “We’re looking forward to him bringing his wealth of experience and expertise to our program. We were very excited to add Bill to our staff.” George expects the quality of players in
the new league will be matched by the quality of coaching. Columbus, for example, will be coached by Angel Perez, who coached Las Pinkin de Corozal to back-to-back championships in the Puerto Rican Women’s Superior Volleyball League and is considered one of the best-ever players in his home country. Orlando’s head coach is Amy Pauly, who was the associate head coach of USC’s women’s volleyball program and is considered one of the top up-and-coming coaches in the college volleyball ranks. Omaha hired Shelton Collier, a 2022 American Volleyball Coaches Association Hall of Fame inductee who ranks seventh in career NCAA victories. Atlanta, meanwhile, will be led by head coach Todd Dagenais after he spent the past 15 seasons at the University of Central Florida. From top to bottom, Pro Volleyball Federation is determined to turn heads by attracting some of the sport’s top talent, including some of the best volleyball players and coaches in the U.S. along with elite players Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 61
from around the world. “Some players that we initially contacted were taking a wait-and-see approach, but once they saw some names we signed, they were like, ‘Wait, this is going to be a really good league,’ and more and more of them started to want to be a part of the inaugural season,” George said. “This is their chance to place their name in history in terms of starting this thing. It’s something that everybody will be able to say they were a part of and help others to build something that could provide future opportunities for other women.” George is enthusiastic when she talks about taking on the new challenge of coaching pro athletes. “I don’t know if it’s going to be different, but I will be working with players who are older, anywhere from 22 to 32 years of age in our case,” she said. “Everyone is at different places in their lives. Some have had children. But they all understand how to train, how to get their bodies ready, and how to do those things they know they need to do to be successful.
“So whether it’s college athletes or pros, they’re all trying to compete at their highest level because they are invested – they understand their responsibility to the team and program as a whole. They all want to grow, they want to improve and keep going in the sport, and our job as coaches is to provide them the best opportunity to do that.” George is thrilled that she has been given an opportunity to help build something special in Grand Rapids. She wants the Rise to become a team that Michigan sports fans will wholeheartedly embrace as the newest sports franchise in the state. “I want to get this organization rolling in the right direction and I feel we have all the right pieces in place,” she said. “The league will continue to grow and we’re going to add more teams and players in the future. “I couldn’t be more excited or more grateful about this opportunity for women and for Grand Rapids.”
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Rise middle blocker Alyssa GarvelinkJensen, a native of Holland, Michigan, was a two-time Second-Team All-American at Michigan State. (Photo courtesy Michigan State University)
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Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 63
RECORD BOOK AND LEADERS
Through games of Nov. 23, 2023
GAMES PLAYED All-Time Active Leader Single-Season 2022-23
Travis Richards Dominik Shine (3rd) 5 players tied Joel L’Esperance GOALS
655 370 *82 *72
All-Time Active Leader Single-Season 2022-23
Michel Picard Dominik Shine (25th) Donald MacLean (2005-06) Joel L’Esperance ASSISTS
158 52 *56 25
All-Time Active Leader Single-Season 2022-23
Michel Picard Taro Hirose (5th) Jiri Hudler (2005-06) Taro Hirose POINTS
222 132 60 41
All-Time Active Leader Single-Season 2022-23
Michel Picard Taro Hirose (T9th) Michel Picard (1996-97) Taro Hirose PLUS/MINUS
380 177 101 57
All-Time Active Leader Single-Season 2022-23
Travis Richards Nolan Stevens (T154th) Ivan Ciernik (2000-01) Alex Chiasson PENALTY MINUTES
+131 +3 *+41 +6
All-Time Active Leader Single-Season 2022-23
Darryl Bootland Dominik Shine (9th) Darryl Bootland (2005-06) Wyatt Newpower
1,164 439 390 68
Dominik Shine
Donald MacLean
Joey MacDonald
Tom McCollum
GOALIE GAMES PLAYED All-Time Active Leader Single-Season 2022-23
Taro Hirose
263 10 *66 26
All-Time Active Leader Single-Season 2022-23
Martin Prusek Michael Hutchinson (n/a) Martin Prusek (2001-02) Alex Nedeljkovic WINS
1.83 3.65 *1.83 2.71
All-Time Active Leader Single-Season
Tom McCollum Sebastian Cossa (T33rd) Joey MacDonald (2004-05) Mike Fountain (2000-01) Alex Nedeljkovic SHUTOUTS
123 3
All-Time Active Leader Single-Season 2021-22
Joey MacDonald n/a 6 players tied Alex Nedeljkovic/Jussi Olkinuora SAVES
20 n/a 6 1
All-Time Active Leader Single-Season 2022-23
Tom McCollum Sebastian Cossa (34th) Joey MacDonald (2004-05) Alex Nedeljkovic SAVE PERCENTAGE
6,640 240 1,785 681
All-Time Active Leader Single-Season 2022-23
Martin Prusek Michael Hutchinson (n/a) Joey MacDonald (2003-04) Alex Nedeljkovic
0.930 0.882 0.936 0.912
2022-23
Michel Picard
Tom McCollum Sebastian Cossa/John Lethemon (T35th) Joey MacDonald (2004-05) Alex Nedeljkovic GOALS AGAINST AVERAGE
* = Led League
34 *34 13
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 65
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The AHL All-Star Classic was not held in either 2020-21 or 2021-22 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
GRIFFINS IN THE ALL-STAR GAME 2022-23 2019-20 2018-19 2017-18 2016-17 2015-16 2014-15 2013-14 2012-13 2011-12
Brian Lashoff (captain) Matthew Ford, Chris Terry Chris Terry Matt Lorito, Matt Puempel Matt Lorito, Robbie Russo, Todd Nelson (head coach) Jeff Hoggan (captain), Xavier Ouellet Xavier Ouellet, Teemu Pulkkinen Alexey Marchenko, Jeff Blashill (co-coach) Chad Billins, Petr Mrazek, Gustav Nyquist Gustav Nyquist
2010-11 2009-10 2008-09 2007-08 2006-07 2005-06 2004-05 2003-04
2002-03
Ilari Filppula, Brendan Smith Patrick Rissmiller Jakub Kindl, Daniel Larsson Jonathan Ericsson, Jimmy Howard Derek Meech, Kip Miller (captain) Valtteri Filppula, Jiri Hudler, Donald MacLean Niklas Kronwall, Joey MacDonald Jiri Hudler, Niklas Kronwall, Travis Richards (captain), Nathan Robinson Marc Lamothe, Mark Mowers
2001-02
2000-01 1999-00 1998-99 1997-98 1996-97
Chris Bala, John Gruden, Kip Miller, Martin Prusek, Petr Schastlivy, Bruce Cassidy (head coach), Gene Reilly (asst. coach) Mike Fountain, Joel Kwiatkowski, Travis Richards, Todd White, Bruce Cassidy (co-coach) John Gruden, Jani Hurme, Kevin Miller, Petr Schastlivy Robert Petrovicky, Maxim Spiridonov Ian Gordon, Kerry Huffman, Michel Picard Jeff Nelson, Michel Picard, Pokey Reddick
2023 - Brian Lashoff
2020 - Chris Terry
2020 - Matthew Ford
2019 - Chris Terry
2018 - Matt Puempel
2018 - Matt Lorito
2016 - Jeff Hoggan and Xavier Ouellet
2015 - Teemu Pulkkinen
2014 - Alexey Marchenko
2013 - Chad Billins
2013 - Petr Mrazek
2013 - Gustav Nyquist
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PENALTY CALLS BOARDING Called for any action which causes an opponent to be thrown violently into the boards.
HIGH STICKING Making contact with an opponent while carrying the stick above shoulder hight.
MISCONDUCT 10-minute or disqualification penalty for excessive or additional misbehavior on the ice.
TRIPPING Called for using the stick, arm or leg to cause an opponent to trip or fall.
CHARGING Taking a run at an opposing player using more than three strides to build up speed.
HOLDING Clutching an opposing player’s body with the hands, arms or legs.
ROUGHING Called for engaging in fisticuffs or shoving.
UNSPORTSMANLIKE CONDUCT Called for unsportsmanlike actions such as disputing an official’s decision, grabbing the face mask of a player, etc.
CROSS CHECKING A check or block delivered by a player with both hands on the stick and no part of the stick on the ice.
HOOKING The use of the stick or blade to impede the progress of an opponent.
SLASHING Striking an opposing player with the stick.
DELAYED PENALTY Referee extends his arm and points to the penalized player until the penalized team regains possession of the puck.
INTERFERENCE When a player impedes the progress of an opponent who is not in possession of the puck.
SPEARING Called for using the stick like a spear.
ELBOWING Called when a player uses an elbow to impede an opponent.
KNEEING Called when a player uses a knee to impede an opponent.
WASH-OUT When used by the referee, it means goal disallowed. When used by linesmen, it means there is no icing or no offside.
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 73
2023-24 AHL TEAM MAP
ABBOTSFORD CANUCKS BAKERSFIELD CONDORS BELLEVILLE SENATORS BRIDGEPORT ISLANDERS CALGARY WRANGLERS CHARLOTTE CHECKERS CHICAGO WOLVES CLEVELAND MONSTERS COACHELLA VALLEY FIREBIRDS COLORADO EAGLES GRAND RAPIDS GRIFFINS HARTFORD WOLF PACK HENDERSON SILVER KNIGHTS HERSHEY BEARS IOWA WILD LAVAL ROCKET LEHIGH VALLEY PHANTOMS MANITOBA MOOSE MILWAUKEE ADMIRALS ONTARIO REIGN PROVIDENCE BRUINS ROCHESTER AMERICANS ROCKFORD ICEHOGS SAN DIEGO GULLS SAN JOSE BARRACUDA SPRINGFIELD THUNDERBIRDS SYRACUSE CRUNCH TEXAS STARS TORONTO MARLIES TUCSON ROADRUNNERS UTICA COMETS WILKES-BARRE/SCRANTON PENGUINS
74 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
GRIFFINS Photo Credit: Getty Images
IN THE NHL IT ALL STARTS HERE
Since their inception in 1996, the Griffins have sent 203 players to the National Hockey League, and 19 former players or coaches have gone on to win the Stanley Cup. In fact, a Griffins alumnus has had his name engraved on Lord Stanley’s chalice in each of the last four years, 10 times in the last 16 years, and 12 times in the last 19 seasons. In chronological order, here are the 26 goalies and 177 skaters who have worn an NHL sweater after playing for Grand Rapids, along with the dates of their NHL debuts/returns. 76 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
1............Pavol Demitra............................3/17/97 STL at PHX 2............Kevyn Adams...........................10/1/97 TOR vs. WSH 3............Tyler Moss................................10/28/97 CGY vs. PIT 4............Michel Picard..................................1/6/98 STL at SJ 5............Jeff Nelson.............................10/10/98 NSH vs. FLA 6............Patrick Traverse.......................10/10/98 OTT at COL 7............Mark Greig...................................1/7/99 PHI vs. NYI 8............Radim Bicanek............................2/1/99 OTT at VAN 9............Robert Petrovicky........................2/15/99 TB at NYI 10..........Andrei Vasilyev...........................3/5/99 PHX vs. DET 11..........Todd Hlushko...............................4/25/99 PIT vs. NJ 12..........Patrick Lalime............................10/2/99 OTT at PHI 13..........Glen Metropolit......................10/2/99 WSH at FLA 14..........Kevin Miller.............................10/31/99 OTT at ATL 15..........Karel Rachunek.......................10/31/99 OTT at ATL 16..........Erich Goldmann....................11/11/99 OTT vs. NSH 17..........Yves Sarault...............................11/20/99 OTT at NJ 18..........John Gruden...........................11/30/99 OTT vs. CHI 19..........Mike Fountain..............................12/3/99 OTT at NJ 20..........Dave Van Drunen....................12/13/99 OTT at TOR 21..........Petr Schastlivy..............................1/3/00 OTT vs. NJ 22..........John Emmons............................1/6/00 OTT vs. PHX 23..........Slava Butsayev..........................1/28/00 OTT at BUF 24..........Aris Brimanis.............................2/13/00 NYI at NYR 25..........Dieter Kochan............................3/28/00 TB vs. DAL 26..........Jani Hurme....................................4/9/00 OTT vs. TB 27..........Shane Hnidy.............................10/5/00 OTT at BOS 28..........Donald MacLean...................10/14/00 TOR vs. OTT 29..........David Oliver...............................11/4/00 OTT vs. CBJ 30..........Jamie Rivers............................11/12/00 OTT at CAR 31..........Sean Gagnon.........................11/26/00 OTT at NYR 32..........Joel Bouchard........................11/29/00 PHX at COL 33..........Mike Crowley..........................12/8/00 ANA at MIN 34..........Ivan Ciernik.................................1/23/01 OTT at NYI 35..........Darren Rumble..............................2/6/01 STL at COL 36..........Joel Kwiatkowski......................2/19/01 OTT at BUF 37..........Todd White................................2/19/01 OTT at BUF 38..........Chris Neil....................................10/3/01 OTT at TOR 39..........Toni Dahlman..........................1/3/02 OTT vs. WSH 40..........Steve Martins............................1/11/02 OTT at FLA 41..........Kip Miller.......................................1/17/02 NYI at SJ 42..........Jody Hull.........................................2/4/02 OTT at TB 43..........Dmitry Afanasenkov.......................2/6/02 TB at FLA 44..........Simon Lajeunesse..........................3/7/02 OTT at SJ 45..........Martin Prusek...........................3/23/02 OTT vs. ATL 46..........Chris Bala....................................3/27/02 OTT at NYI 47..........Neil Little...................................3/28/02 PHI at CAR 48..........Josh Langfeld..............................3/30/02 OTT vs. TB 49..........Gaetan Royer...............................4/1/02 TB vs. NYR 50..........Jason Spezza...........................10/24/02 OTT at BOS 51..........Sean Avery................................10/29/02 DET vs. SJ 52..........Jason Doig.................................12/3/02 WSH at PIT 53..........Jason Williams.........................12/5/02 DET at PHX 54..........Patrick Boileau......................12/19/02 DET vs. DAL 55..........Stacy Roest...............................2/20/03 DET vs. EDM 56..........Wade Brookbank..................10/9/03 NSH vs. ANA 57..........Julien Vauclair........................10/25/03 OTT at MTL 58........ Jiri Hudler............................10/29/03 DET vs. STL 59..........Curtis Joseph..........................10/30/03 DET at NSH 60..........Darryl Bootland......................11/8/03 DET vs. NSH 61..........Mark Mowers........................11/19/03 DET vs. CBJ 62..........Nathan Robinson..................11/28/03 DET vs. NYI 63..........Blake Sloan.................................12/4/03 DAL at LA 64........ Niklas Kronwall...................12/10/03 DET at BUF 65..........Ryan Barnes...........................12/15/03 DET vs. FLA 66........ Chris Kelly............................... 2/5/04 OTT vs. TOR 67..........Marc Lamothe.........................2/23/04 DET at EDM 68..........Anders Myrvold........................2/26/04 DET at CGY 69..........Mathieu Chouinard...................2/29/04 LA at ANA 70..........Brett Lebda..................................10/5/05 DET vs. STL
71..........Mark Eaton..................................10/5/05 NSH vs. SJ 72..........Chris Osgood.............................10/29/05 DET at CHI 73..........Kyle Quincey..........................11/25/05 DET at ANA 74..........Jimmy Howard.........................11/28/05 DET at LA 75..........Valtteri Filppula.........................12/15/05 DET at FLA 76..........Rob Collins..............................12/17/05 NYI vs. COL 77..........Manny Legace............................1/5/06 DET vs. STL 78..........David Gove...............................1/31/06 CAR at MTL 79..........Tomas Kopecky..............................2/28/06 DET at SJ 80..........Alexandre Giroux........................3/25/06 NYR at TB 81..........Joey MacDonald........................10/19/06 DET at SJ 82..........Derek Meech...............................12/7/06 DET vs. STL 83..........Matt Ellis...................................12/18/06 DET at CBJ 84..........Matt Hussey...............................1/26/07 DET at STL 85..........Sheldon Brookbank.......................2/6/07 NSH at PIT 86..........Danny Syvret..........................2/27/07 EDM vs. PHX 87..........Mark Hartigan.........................11/29/07 DET vs. TB 88..........Drew MacIntyre........................12/13/07 VAN at SJ 89..........Peter Vandermeer..................2/10/08 PHX vs. NSH 90..........Jonathan Ericsson.....................2/22/08 DET at CGY 91..........Garrett Stafford.........................2/23/08 DET at VAN 92..........Darren Helm...............................3/13/08 DET vs. DAL 93..........Mattias Ritola..........................3/15/08 DET vs. NSH 94..........Clay Wilson................................3/25/08 CBJ at NSH 95..........Darren McCarty..........................3/28/08 DET vs. STL 96..........Krys Kolanos.................................11/4/08 MIN at SJ 97..........Landon Wilson.....................11/22/08 DAL vs. ANA 98..........Bryan Helmer.....................11/28/08 WSH vs. MTL 99..........Chris Chelios ..........................12/13/08 DET at PHX 100........Aaron Downey.........................1/29/09 DET vs. DAL 101........Justin Abdelkader..................1/31/09 DET at WSH 102........Ville Leino................................1/31/09 DET at WSH 103........Aaron Gagnon......................10/16/09 DAL vs. BOS 104........Scott Parse................................10/24/09 LA at PHX 105........Doug Janik...............................11/3/09 DET vs. BOS 106.........Ryan Keller................................11/25/09 OTT at NJ 107........Jakub Kindl.............................12/3/09 DET vs. EDM 108........Kris Newbury........................12/14/09 DET vs. PHX 109.........Darren Haydar...........................2/10/10 COL vs. ATL 110........Andreas Lilja................................3/1/10 DET at COL 111.........Jeremy Williams......................10/24/10 NYR vs. NJ 112........Jan Mursak..............................12/27/10 DET at COL 113........Chris Mueller.........................12/28/10 NSH vs. DAL 114........Tomas Tatar......................12/31/10 DET vs. NYI 115........Cory Emmerton........................1/22/11 DET vs. CHI 116.........Patrick Rissmiller......................2/23/11 ATL at BUF 117 .......Tom McCollum .........................3/30/11 DET vs. STL 118 ......Gustav Nyquist ...............11/1/11 DET vs. MIN 119 ........Fabian Brunnstrom....................11/5/11 DET vs. ANA 120.......Brendan Smith..................11/17/11 DET at SJ 121......Mark Cullen.................11/29/11 FLA at CAR 122........Chris Conner..............................12/2/11 DET at BUF 123........Joakim Andersson.................12/27/11 DET vs. STL 124.......Ty Conklin ..........................3/21/12 DET at NYR 125......Riley Sheahan.................4/7/12 DET vs. CHI 126........Brian Lashoff..............................1/21/13 DET at CBJ 127........Mike Knuble...............................1/26/13 PHI at FLA 128........Jamie Tardif.................................2/2/13 BOS at TOR 129........Petr Mrazek ...........................2/7/13 DET at STL 130........ Jonas Gustavsson...................2/19/13 DET at NSH 131........Carlo Colaiacovo.........................4/1/13 DET vs. COL 132........Danny DeKeyser......................10/2/13 DET vs. BUF 133.......Luke Glendening...........10/12/13 DET vs. PHI 134........Xavier Ouellet............................10/21/13 DET vs. SJ 135........Adam Almquist .....................11/4/13 DET at WPG 136........Chad Billins...............................11/5/13 CGY at MIN 137........Patrick Eaves............................12/14/13 DET vs. PIT 138........Tomas Jurco..............................12/15/13 DET vs. TB 139........Jordin Tootoo..........................12/19/13 DET vs. CGY 140........Alexey Marchenko......................1/4/14 DET at DAL
141........Teemu Pulkkinen ..................3/14/14 DET vs. EDM 142........Landon Ferraro........................3/18/14 DET vs. TOR 143.......Calle Jarnkrok....................3/21/14 NSH at CGY 144........Mitch Callahan...........................3/25/14 DET at CBJ 145........Ryan Sproul................................4/13/14 DET at STL 146........Andrej Nestrasil.......................10/9/14 DET vs. BOS 147........Stephen Weiss.......................11/24/14 DET vs. OTT 148.....Mattias Janmark............10/8/15 DAL vs. PIT 149.......Dylan Larkin.....................10/9/15 DET vs. TOR 150...... Kevin Porter...........................10/10/15 PIT at ARI 151.......Andreas Athanasiou......11/8/15 DET vs. DAL 152.....Tomas Nosek...............12/26/15 DET at NSH 153........Eric Tangradi...............................1/25/16 DET at NYI 154.......Anthony Mantha..............3/15/16 DET at PHI 155........Alan Quine...................................4/9/16 NYI vs. PHI 156........Martin Frk..............................10/18/16 CAR at EDM 157.....Tyler Bertuzzi.................11/8/16 DET at PHI 158........Jared Coreau...............................12/3/16 DET at PIT 159.......Nick Jensen........................12/20/16 DET at TB 160........Drew Miller...............................2/28/17 DET at VAN 161........Robbie Russo..............................3/7/17 DET at TOR 162......Dan Renouf.................. 3/27/17 DET at CAR 163......Ben Street.....................3/28/17 DET at CAR 164........Evgeny Svechnikov....................4/3/17 DET vs. OTT 165........Matt Lorito.................................4/8/17 DET vs. MTL 166........Kyle Criscuolo.........................11/17/17 BUF at DET 167........Dominic Turgeon.......................1/14/18 DET at CHI 168........Joe Hicketts..................................1/22/18 DET at NJ 169........Dennis Cholowski.....................10/4/18 DET vs. CBJ 170........Libor Sulak................................10/4/18 DET vs. CBJ 171.....Filip Hronek...................10/4/18 DET vs. CBJ 172........Wade Megan..............................11/1/18 DET vs. NJ 173........Christoffer Ehn........................11/6/18 DET vs. VAN 174........Eddie Pasquale............................12/4/18 TB at DET 175.....Michael Rasmussen........2/7/19 DET vs. VGK 176.....Filip Zadina......................2/24/19 DET vs. SJ 177........Matt Puempel..........................3/23/19 DET at VGK 178.....Dylan McIlrath..................3/25/19 DET at SJ 179........Jake Chelios.................................3/29/19 DET vs. NJ 180.....Givani Smith.............. 10/25/19 DET vs. BUF 181.....Calvin Pickard..............11/29/19 DET at PHI 182........Madison Bowey.....................12/14/19 DET at MTL 183........Taro Hirose...................................2/6/20 DET at BUF 184.....Gustav Lindstrom........... 2/6/20 DET at BUF 185.....Joe Veleno..................... 4/27/21 DET at CBJ 186........Mathias Brome............................5/7/21 DET at CBJ 187.....Moritz Seider................10/14/21 DET vs. TB 188........Riley Barber..............................12/18/21 DET vs. NJ 189........Gemel Smith................................2/2/22 DET vs. LA 190........Luke Witkowski.........................3/12/22 DET at CGY 191........Chase Pearson............................3/24/22 DET at NYI 192........Harri Sateri.................................4/7/22 ARI vs. VAN 193........Turner Elson..............................4/26/22 DET at TOR 194........Matt Luff.................................10/27/22 DET at BOS 195.....Austin Czarnik............... 11/6/22 DET at NYR 196.....Jonatan Berggren...... 11/10/22 DET vs. NYR 197.....Magnus Hellberg........12/14/22 DET at MIN 198........Elmer Soderblom..................12/14/22 DET at MIN 199.....Jakub Vrana................. 2/21/23 DET at WSH 200.....Adam Erne......................3/2/23 DET vs. SEA 201........Alex Chiasson...............................3/4/23 DET at NYI 202........Simon Edvinsson.....................3/18/23 DET vs. COL 203.....Alex Nedeljkovic............3/23/23 DET vs. STL Bold = Has played in the NHL this season (as of Nov. 26, 2023) Italics = Had name engraved on the Stanley Cup after playing for Grand Rapids All photos by Getty Images Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 77
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TECHNOLOGY
78 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
AU T O M AT I O N
IMAGING
KIDS PAGE • KIDS PAGE • KIDS PAGE • KIDS PAGE • KIDS PAGE • KIDS PAGE • KIDS PAGE • KIDS PAGE
ANAGRAMS
P R IMAT ES’ N I GHTLY FA NFA R E
(= NAME THAT GRIFFINS PLAYER) Unscramble the goofy words to form the name of a Griffins player. Good luck!
Hutch Lions Machine
Nearby Frog Raft
Recall One’s Jeep
Sierra Hoot
Tot is Mutation
I Mile Over
Bold Mere Morsel
Ruin! A Snack Zit
Hornet’s Nasal Job
Pare Stylize
1........Hutch Lions Machine 2........Nearby Frog Raft 3........Recall One’s Jeep 4........Sierra Hoot 5........Tot is Mutation 6........I Mile Over 7........Bold Mere Morsel 8........Ruin! A Snack Zit 9........Hornet’s Nasal Job 10......Pare Stylize 11......Academic Jars 12......Don Miss Venison 13......Yule Rickshaw 14......Assassinate Cob 15......Mitt Greeting 16......A Son’s Crash 17......Minions Hiked 18......Hi, Iodised Jar! 19......Re: Wild Animal Will 20......Aerate Schnozes 21......A Nelson Vents 22......Ban Regent Jargon 23......A Barmaid’s Module 24......Rum Art Craze 25......Pro Mars Cake 26......Wet Own Wry Pate
PLAYERS Academic Jars
Don Miss Venison
Yule Rickshaw
Assassinate Cob
Mitt Greeting
A Son’s Crash
Minions Hiked
Hi, Iodised Jar!
Re: Wild Animal Will
Aerate Schnozes
A Nelson Vents
Ban Regent Jargon
A Barmaid’s Module
Rum Art Craze
Pro Mars Cake
Wet Own Wry Pate
14...... Sebastian Cossa 15...... Tim Gettinger 16...... Cross Hanas 17...... Dominik Shine 18...... Josiah Didier 19...... William Wallinder 20...... Zach Aston-Reese
7........ Elmer Soderblom 8........ Austin Czarnik 9........ Albert Johansson 10...... Tyler Spezia 11...... Jared McIsaac 12...... Simon Edvinsson 13...... Riley Sawchuk
ANSWERS 1........ Michael Hutchinson 2........ Brogan Rafferty 3........ Joel L’Esperance 4........ Taro Hirose 5........ Antti Tuomisto 6........ Eemil Viro
Grand Rapids GRIFFINS 79
Zach Aston-Reese Jonatan Berggren Sebastian Cossa Austin Czarnik Josiah Didier Simon Edvinsson Tim Gettinger Cross Hanas Taro Hirose Michael Hutchinson Albert Johansson Marco Kasper Joel L’Esperance Amadeus Lombardi Carter Mazur Jared McIsaac Wyatt Newpower Brogan Rafferty Riley Sawchuk Dominik Shine Elmer Soderblom Tyler Spezia Nolan Stevens Antti Toumisto Eemil Viro William Wallinder
21...... Nolan Stevens 22...... Jonatan Berggren 23...... Amadeus Lombardi 24...... Carter Mazur 25...... Marco Kasper 26...... Wyatt Newpower
PARTING SHOT
80 Grand Rapids GRIFFINS
Not even a camouflage jersey could hide the 6-foot-8 frame of Red Wings prospect Elmer Soderblom when the Griffins faced the Toronto Marlies during the first night of backto-back games on Nov. 10-11. The Griffins wore the special jerseys as part of Military Appreciation Night presented by DTE. Photo by Nicolas Carrillo
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