GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- The Grand Rapids Griffins’ comeback attempt fell short, as they suffered a 2-1 loss against the Rockford IceHogs on Saturday at Van Andel Arena. 

The Griffins trailed 2-0 until a third-period power-play tally from Amadeus Lombardi gave them their lone goal of the outing with assists from Shai Buium and Sheldon Dries. Netminder Jan Bednar made his second start for Grand Rapids, saving 27 shots. Through his first seven periods in the AHL, Bednar holds a 1.30 goals-against average alongside a .944 save percentage. 

The first period finished scoreless and the IceHogs struck first just 2:15 into the second frame when Paul Ludwinski scored off a rebound. The Griffins went on a power play at 4:40, looking to even the tallies at one. However, 47 seconds into the man advantage, Samuel Savoie stole the puck and sped past the Grand Rapids defense before going forehand to backhand for the short-handed goal. 

Only 4:43 into the third period, Josiah Didier took exception to a cross-check and battled it out on the ice with Nolan Allan. The hit earned Grand Rapids a power-play chance and the brawl seemed to ignite the Griffins’ momentum. Off the opening draw in the Rockford zone, Buium dished the puck to Lombardi and he buried a wrist shot above the left circle to make the score 2-1 with 15:10 left. 

Grand Rapids remained on the offensive, attempting to knot the game at two in the final minutes. As time trickled down, the Griffins pulled Bednar with 1:55 left. Grand Rapids continued to hold the puck in the Rockford zone, sending multiple attempts toward the goalmouth, but the IceHogs kept the disc out of the net and the Griffins fell 2-1.

Notes

• The Griffins’ power play finished a combined 40% (4-for-10) in three straight games against Rockford. 

Box Score

Rockford 0 2 0 - 2
Grand Rapids 0 0 1 - 1

1st Period- No Scoring.Penalties-Allan Rfd (holding), 3:42; Doucet Gr (slashing), 7:00.

2nd Period-1, Rockford, Ludwinski 5 (Luypen, Pietroniro), 2:15. 2, Rockford, Savoie 7 (Fitzgerald), 5:27 (SH). Penalties-Sanford Rfd (tripping), 4:40; Lombardi Gr (cross-checking), 10:33; Seger Gr (tripping), 18:42.

3rd Period-3, Grand Rapids, Lombardi 13 (Buium, Dries), 4:50 (PP). Penalties-Lombardi Gr (tripping), 2:02; Allan Rfd (cross-checking, fighting), 4:43; Didier Gr (fighting), 4:43; Fitzgerald Rfd (high-sticking), 7:02.

Shots on Goal-Rockford 9-10-10-29. Grand Rapids 8-8-11-27.
Power Play Opportunities-Rockford 0 / 4; Grand Rapids 1 / 4.
Goalies-Rockford, Commesso 14-13-3 (27 shots-26 saves). Grand Rapids, Bednar 1-1-0 (29 shots-27 saves).
A-7,715

Three Stars

1. RFD Savoie (short-handed game-winner); 2. RFD Commesso (W, 26 saves); 3. GR Lombardi (power-play goal)

Record/Next Game 

Grand Rapids: 32-24-4-2 (70 pts.) / Wed., March 26 vs. Texas 7 p.m. 

Rockford: 27-27-6-1 (61 pts.) / Tue., March 25 vs. Chicago 7 p.m. CDT

Photo by Mark Newman/Griffins