This Week’s Games

GRIFFINS vs. Cleveland Monsters // Tue., Dec. 31 // 6 p.m. // Van Andel Arena
GRIFFINS at Cleveland Monsters // Thu., Jan. 2 // 7 p.m. // Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse

Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM & 1300 AM at 5:45 p.m. on Tuesday, and 6:45 p.m. on Thursday

Watch: AHLTV on FloHockey 

Season Series: 2-1-0-0 Overall, 1-1-0-0 Away, 1-0-0-0 Home. Fourth of eight meetings overall, second of four at Van Andel Arena, third of four at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse

All-Time Series: 75-40-9-13 Overall, 32-22-5-10 Away, 43-18-4-3 Home 

NHL Affiliation: Columbus Blue Jackets  

Noteworthy: The Griffins are in a stretch of games that will see them play Cleveland three straight times, which began last Saturday in a 5-1 win at the Monsters. 

GRIFFINS at Milwaukee Admirals // Sat., Jan. 4 // 7 p.m. EST // Panther Arena

Listen: 96.1 The Game at 6:45 p.m. EST

Watch: AHLTV on FloHockey 

Season Series: 3-1-0-0 Overall, 1-0-0-0 Away. Fourth of eight meetings overall, second of four at Panther Arena

All-Time Series: 116-84-7-9-8 Overall, 53-44-5-6-5 Away

NHL Affiliation: Nashville Predators 

Noteworthy: Milwaukee’s Vinnie Hinostroza ranks first in the AHL in points (11-22—33) and assists (22) in 26 games. In net, the Admirals’ Matthew Murray ranks sixth with a 2.04 goals-against average and third with a .935 save percentage in 14 outings. 

Well Rested: The AHL’s Holiday Break came at a good time for the Griffins, as they entered the break on a season-high three-game winless streak (0-1-2-0) and had dropped five of their last seven outings (2-3-2-0). In their first game back, the Griffins claimed a 5-1 victory over the Cleveland Monsters. Grand Rapids remains in first place in the Central Division, second in the Western Conference, and tied for fourth in the AHL with an 18-9-3-0 record and 39 points through 30 games. When Dec. 30 dawned last season, the Griffins stood fourth place in the division with an 11-13-3-1 record. Grand Rapids has faired well against its division rivals with a 12-7-2-0 mark and has remained the top team in the division since Nov. 8. 

The Watson Supercomputer: Dan Watson has been named the coach for the Central Division in the 2025 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Spotlight 29 Casino, to be held Feb. 2-3 at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, California. The Griffins have clinched the top spot in the division through the end of play on Dec. 31 with an 18-9-3-0 record and 39 points, meriting Watson’s selection. The Griffins have gone 12-7-2-0 against their division rivals this season and have remained the top team since Nov. 8. Watson became the first Griffins coach to achieve the honor since Todd Nelson in 2017 and the fourth head coach in franchise history to coach in an all-star game, joining Nelson, Jeff Blashill (2014), and Bruce Cassidy (2002 AHL, 2001 IHL). This will mark Watson’s third all-star appearance, as he was chosen to coach in the ECHL All-Star Game in both 2017 and 2022 with the Toledo Walleye. Rosters for each division will be released at a later date.

Road Trip: The Griffins concluded their season-high six-game road trip on Dec. 18 at the Texas Stars and finished the stretch of games with a 3-2-1-0 mark. Grand Rapids has hit the pavement once again, as it is in the midst of a stretch that will see it play nine of 12 games on the road, which began on Dec. 7 at Chicago and will end on Jan. 4 in Milwaukee. The Griffins are 10-5-2-0 (.647) in foreign territory with 22 points, which ranks third in the AHL on the road. Through the first 17 road games last season, Grand Rapids sported a 5-9-2-1 record (.382). 

No Ordinary Joe: Joe Snively logged his third-career AHL hat trick last Saturday at the Cleveland Monsters, and now has eight points in his last seven games (5-3—8). Snively ranks first on the roster in points (13-11—24) and goals (13) through 30 appearances. His goal count is also tied for 10th in the AHL. The Herndon, Virginia, native has won the last two Calder Cups with the Hershey Bears and showed a combined 33 points (6-27—33) in 40 games during the postseason with a 28-12 record in the past two playoffs. Snively also aided Hershey to a regular-season title last year with a 53-14-0-5 mark (111 pts., .771), the second-best regular-season record in AHL history and the most wins by an AHL team in a 72-game season. The 28-year-old is in search of his third straight Calder Cup, as only 11 players in league history have won three consecutive cups in the AHL and no one has achieved this feat since the 1978 season. 

Damn Daniel, Back At It Again: Rookie Nate Danielson, selected ninth overall by Detroit in 2023, secured his first three-point night (0-3—3) as a pro last Saturday at the Cleveland Monsters. Danielson ranks first on the roster with 16 assists, which is also tied for second among first-year players in the AHL. The 20-year-old made his pro debut with Grand Rapids on May 20 at Milwaukee during the Calder Cup Playoffs last year and finished the postseason with two appearances. Prior to turning pro, Danielson spent four campaigns in the WHL from 2020-24 and amassed 217 points (83-134—217) in 199 regular-season games.

Shine Bright: Veteran Dominik Shine is tied for second on the roster in points (8-15—23) and second in assists (15) in 30 games. Shine collected his sixth multi-point game of the season on Dec. 7 at Chicago (0-2—2), which tied for his career-high mark set in 2021-22, and now has four points (2-2—4) in his last five contests. Last year, Shine posted career-high numbers in assists (23), points (33) and plus-minus rating (+8) and is on pace to reach 55 points (19-36—55) this season. The Detroit native has spent his entire career with Grand Rapids since 2016-17 and has accumulated 161 points (69-92—161) and 509 penalty minutes in 452 appearances. In the Griffins’ all-time rankings, Shine places third in games played, sixth in penalty minutes, tied for 10th in overtime goals (2), and tied for third in unassisted goals (9).

Rollercoaster Ride: Through the first 10 games of the season, the Griffins scored more than two goals just three times and averaged 2.20 goals per game, which ranked 29th in the AHL as of Nov. 4. Grand Rapids then averaged 4.10 goals per game from Nov. 7-Dec. 1 and went 8-2-0-0 during the run. However, the Griffins have struggled to find the back of the net as of late, with 2.60 goals per game in their last 10 outings since Dec. 6 and have gone 4-4-2-0 in those contests. The Griffins rank 19th on the circuit with 2.97 goals per outing, while tying for fourth in goals against per game (2.60). When scoring at least three goals this season, Grand Rapids is 15-0-0-0 compared to 3-9-3-0 when scoring fewer than three goals.

Austin Powers: Veteran Austin Watson enjoyed a team-high four-game point streak from Dec. 1-8 (2-2—4), and has secured a point in 10 of the past 13 games (7-5—12). Watson is tied for second on the roster with 23 points (9-14—23) in 28 games and is tied for the team lead with four power-play goals. The Ann Arbor, Michigan, native has spent the majority of his career in the NHL, showing 118 points (60-58—118) in 518 appearances. At the AHL level, Watson possesses 155 points (82-73—155) in 262 outings, as he had spent his entire AHL career with Milwaukee before this season.

Lock it Down: Through the months of October and November, the Griffins averaged 2.32 goals against per game, which ranked first in the AHL. Since Dec. 1, Grand Rapids has allowed 3.09 goals per game. The Griffins remain one of the top defensive teams in the AHL, as they are tied for fourth with 2.60 goals against per game. Dating back to last season, Grand Rapids has allowed just 36 goals in its last 16 regular-season games at Van Andel Arena (2.25 GA per game). Also dating back to last season, the Griffins have allowed 51 goals in their last 19 regular-season road games (2.68 GA per game).

Battle for Power: The Griffins scored a power-play goal in five straight games from Nov. 24-Dec. 6 (5-for-15, 33.3%) but have now converted on six of their past 36 man-advantages (16.7%) since Dec. 7. The power play ranks 13th on the circuit at 18.3% (19-for-104). If you break it down further, Grand Rapids’ home power play is 7-for-37 (18.9%, 14th) and its road power play is 12-for-67 (17.9%, 17th). The Griffins have also given up the five short-handed goals, which is tied for the sixth-most. The Griffins’ penalty kill ranks third in the AHL at 87.4% and their four short-handed goals are tied for sixth. Grand Rapids has surrendered a power-play goal in six of its last 10 outings (31-for-38 on PK, 81.6%).   

Holy Goalies: Sebastian Cossa, the 15th overall pick by the Detroit Red Wings in 2021, has been the go-to netminder for the Griffins this season, as he has a 10-5-3 mark with a 2.31 GAA and a .919 save percentage in 18 games. Cossa ranks among the AHL leaders in minutes played (1,063:16, 5th), games played (T5th), GAA (10th) wins (T5th), and save percentage (9th). The 22-year-old collected his first NHL victory during his debut on Dec. 9 at the Buffalo Sabres with a 6-5 shootout victory behind 12 saves and two stops in the shootout. Cossa became the first netminder in NHL history to win his debut via a shootout in a relief effort. Veteran Jack Campbell was assigned to Grand Rapids on Nov. 18 and made his Griffins debut on Dec. 6 against the Chicago Wolves. He later bagged his first win as a Griffin on Dec. 17 at Texas behind 20 saves in a 4-2 victory. Through three games with Grand Rapids, Campbell has a 2.37 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage. Campbell has 441 pro games under his belt with a 2.67 GAA and 230 wins since 2011-12, splitting time between the NHL (176 GP), AHL (238 GP) and ECHL (27 GP). Ville Husso was reassigned to the Griffins by Detroit on Dec. 19. Husso has a 5-1-0 ledger with one shutout to go along with a 2.18 goals-against average and a .924 save percentage in seven appearances with the Griffins this season. Through eight career games with Grand Rapids, Husso has a 6-1-0 record with two shutouts, a 1.88 goals-against average, and a .933 save percentage.

Keep It Close: The Griffins have excelled at winning close games, as they are 7-1-3-0 when a game is decided by one goal. Grand Rapids is 11-8-0-0 when the contest is decided by two or more tallies. The seven wins in one-goal games are tied for eighth in the AHL. The Griffins have struggled in overtime thus far with a 1-3 mark compared to a 3-0 ledger in a shootout. When leading or tied after the first period, Grand Rapids is 16-2-2-0 compared to 3-7-1-0 when trailing after the first.

Shoot Your Shot: The Griffins have outshot their opponent just six times in the first 30 contests, with three of those six coming against Chicago. The Griffins average 24.7 shots per game, which ranks last in the AHL. Grand Rapids has been held to under 20 shots six times and has exceeded 30 shots six times. On the flip side, the Griffins’ opponents average 29.3 shots per game (16th in AHL) and have been held to under 30 shots 13 times. The third period has given the Griffins the most problems, as they are being outshot 270-212 compared to being outshot 290-264 in the second and 300-251 in the first. However, Grand Rapids has a 12-4-2-0 ledger when recording 20-29 shots and a 10-5-2-0 mark when allowing 30-39 shots. 

AHL Leaderboard Tracker:
Shai Buium—Tied for seventh among rookie defensemen in assists (10), tied for 11th among rookie defensemen in points (10), tied for sixth among rookie defensemen in plus-minus rating (+6), tied for 11th among rookies in plus-minus rating (+6)
Sebastian Cossa—Fifth in minutes played (1,063:16), tied for fifth in games played (18), 10th in GAA (2.31), tied for fifth in wins (10), and ninth in save percentage (.919)
Nate Danielson—Tied for second in short-handed assists (2), tied for first among rookies in short-handed assists (2), tied for second among rookies in assists (16), tied for ninth among rookies in power-play assists (6)
Alex Doucet—Tied for third in short-handed goals (2), tied for first among rookies in short-handed goals (2)
Amadeus Lombardi—Tied for third in game-winners (4)
Joe Snively—Tied for 10th in goals (13)
Austin Watson—First in major penalties (7) 

Milestones:
Last Saturday, Joe Snively bagged his third-career hat trick during his 250th AHL game at Cleveland. 
Alex Doucet—One point from 50 as a pro
Sheldon Dries—Four assists from 100 in the AHL, three points from 250 as a pro 
Joe Snively—Four points from 200 in the AHL
Elmer Soderblom—Three assists from 50 as a pro, three points from 50 as a Griffin and in the AHL

Photo by Mark Newman/Griffins