This Week’s Games

GRIFFINS at Texas Stars // Tue., Dec. 17 // 8 p.m. EST // H-E-B Center at Cedar Park 
GRIFFINS at Texas Stars // Wed., Dec. 18 // 8 p.m. EST // H-E-B Center at Cedar Park
GRIFFINS vs. Texas Stars // Sun., Dec. 22 // 4 p.m. // Van Andel Arena

Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM & 1300 AM at 7:45 p.m. EST on Tuesday, 96.1 The Game at 7:45 p.m. EST on Wednesday, and WOOD 106.9 FM & 1300 AM at 4 p.m. on Sunday

Watch: AHLTV on FloHockey on Tuesday and Wednesday, WXSP-TV and AHLTV on FloHockey on Sunday

Season Series: First, second and third of eight meetings overall, first and second of four at the H-E-B Center at Cedar Park, first of four at Van Andel Arena

All-Time Series: 42-29-5-5 Overall, 19-17-4-1 Away, 23-12-1-4 Home

NHL Affiliation: Dallas Stars 

Noteworthy: Texas’ Antonio Stranges is tied for sixth in the AHL with 26 points (10-16—26) in 21 games this season. Former Griffin Magnus Hellberg (2022-23) is the primary goaltender for the Stars and his nine wins are tied for fourth in the AHL. 

GRIFFINS vs. Milwaukee Admirals // Fri., Dec. 20 // 7 p.m. // Van Andel Arena

Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM & 1300 AM at 6:45 p.m.

Watch: AHLTV on FloHockey 

Season Series: 3-0-0-0 Overall, 2-0-0-0 Home. Fourth of eight meetings overall, third of four at Van Andel Arena

All-Time Series: 116-83-7-9-8 Overall, 63-39-2-3-3 Home

NHL Affiliation: Nashville Predators  

Noteworthy: This game features the top two teams in the Central Division and is a rematch of last year’s Central Division Finals. The Griffins are 3-0-0-0 against their rivals with a plus-six scoring margin (10-4). 

Keep It Steady: Despite dropping four of their past seven games, the Griffins still rank first in the Central Division, second in the Western Conference, and tied for fifth in the AHL with a 16-8-1-0 record and 33 points through 25 games. This marks the first time that Grand Rapids has been atop the division in December or later since the 2018-19 season, when it held a share of first place as late as March 8. When Dec. 16 dawned last season, the Griffins stood fourth place in the division with a 9-12-2-1 record. The Griffins have won with defense, as they have allowed two goals or less in 14 of the 25 contests and have scored an average of 3.00 goals per game (T18th).

Road Trip: The Griffins will conclude their season-high six-game road trip with a pair of contests at the Texas Stars on Tuesday and Wednesday. Grand Rapids is 2-2-0-0 in the first four games of the trip that began on Dec. 7 at Chicago. The Griffins are 8-5-1-0 (.607) in foreign territory this campaign with 17 points, which is tied for fifth in the AHL on the road. Through the first 14 road games last season, Grand Rapids sported a 2-9-2-1 record (.250).

Damn Daniel, Back At It Again: Rookie Nate Danielson, selected ninth overall by Detroit in 2023, had just two points (1-1—2) in his first eight games as a pro. However, he enjoyed a team-high four-game point streak (1-4—5) from Nov. 24-Dec. 1 and has 12 points (2-10—12) in his last 13 contests. His 13 assists in 25 games are tied for fifth among rookies while his 16 points are tied for 15th among first-year players. Danielson also ranks fourth on the roster in points and tied for first in assists. The 20-year-old made his pro debut with Grand Rapids on May 20 at Milwaukee during the Calder Cup Playoffs 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. 

Austin Powers: Veteran Austin Watson enjoyed a team-high four-game point streak from Dec. 1-8 (2-2—4), which was three games short of his career best in the AHL. Watson has secured a point in seven of the past nine games (5-2—7) and is tied for second on the roster with 18 points (7-11—18) in 24 games. 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 150 points (80-70—150) in 258 outings, as he had spent his entire AHL career with Milwaukee before this season.

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 two of their past 20 man-advantages (10.0%). The power play ranks 19th on the circuit at 17.0% (15-for-88). If you break it down further, Grand Rapids’ home power play is 6-for-30 (20.0%, T12th) and its road power play is 9-for-58 (15.5%, 23rd). The Griffins’ penalty kill ranks third in the AHL at 88.6% and their four short-handed goals are tied for fourth. Grand Rapids has surrendered a power-play goal in four of its last five outings (19-for-23 on PK, 82.6%).  

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 10-5-1 mark with a 2.24 GAA and a .922 save percentage in 16 games. Cossa ranks among the AHL leaders in minutes played (939:00, 3rd), GAA (9th) wins (3rd), and save percentage (7th). 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. Through two games with Grand Rapids, Campbell has a 2.55 goals-against average and a .919 save percentage. Campbell has 440 pro games under his belt with a 2.67 GAA and 229 wins since 2011-12, splitting time between the NHL (176 GP), AHL (237 GP) and ECHL (27 GP).

Young Sheldon: Veteran Sheldon Dries has scored a goal in the three of the last four games and has seven points (4-3—7) in his last seven outings. The Macomb, Michigan, native is first on the roster with 10 goals in 22 games and is on pace for his second 30-plus goal campaign (35 in 2021-22). Dries is no stranger to West Michigan, as he spent four seasons at Western Michigan University from 2013-17 and totaled 84 points (44-40—84) in 148 contests, serving as captain for three campaigns. The 30-year-old has competed in 418 pro games with 244 points (139-105—244) and 218 points (123-95—218) in 296 AHL appearances.

He Shoots, He Scores: 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. Since then, Grand Rapids has scored at least four goals in eight of the last 15 contests, averaging 3.53 goals per game. However, the Griffins have struggled to find the back of the net as of late, with 2.40 goals per game in their last five outings. The Griffins are tied for 18th on the circuit with 3.00 goals per outing while tying for first in goals against per game (2.52). When scoring at least three goals this season, Grand Rapids is 13-0-0-0 compared to 3-8-1-0 when scoring fewer than three goals.

No Ordinary Joe: Newcomer Joe Snively enjoyed a team-high four-game goal streak from Nov. 13-22 and has 11 points (7-4—11) in his last 13 outings. Snively is tied for second on the roster in both points (9-9—18) and goals (9) through 25 appearances. 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.

If You Ain’t First, You’re Last: Starting the game off on the right foot has been imperative for the Griffins early this season. Grand Rapids is 11-1-1-0 when scoring the game’s first goal and 13-2-1-0 when either tied or leading after the first period. The Griffins have scored the first goal 13 times, tied for the ninth-most in the AHL, and their 11 wins while scoring the first tally are tied for fourth on the circuit. When the Griffins allow the first goal they are 5-7-0-0, and 3-7-0-0 when trailing after two periods. 

Let’s Show Some Love to the Defense: The Griffins are tied for first in the AHL with 2.52 goals allowed per game, as the 63 goals surrendered are tied for fifth in the AHL. Dating back to last season, Grand Rapids has allowed just 27 goals in its last 14 regular-season games at Van Andel Arena (1.93 GA per game). Also dating back to last season, the Griffins have allowed 45 goals in their last 16 regular-season road games (2.81 GA per game).

Shoot Your Shot: The Griffins have outshot their opponent just five times in the first 25 contests, with three of those five coming against Chicago. The Griffins average 24.9 shots per game, which ranks last in the AHL. Grand Rapids has been held to under 20 shots five times and has exceeded 30 shots five times. On the flip side, the Griffins’ opponents average 29.6 shots per game (18th in AHL) and have been held to under 30 shots 10 times. The third period has given the Griffins the most problems, as they are being outshot 232-177 compared to being outshot 242-227 in the second and 255-204 in the first. However, Grand Rapids has a 10-4-1-0 ledger when recording 20-29 shots and a 9-5-1-0 mark when allowing 30-39 shots.

AHL Leaderboard Tracker:
Shai Buium—Tied for 12th among rookie defensemen in plus-minus rating (+4), tied for 12th among rookie defensemen in assists (7)
Sebastian Cossa—Third in minutes played (939:00), tied for third in games played (16), ninth in GAA (2.24), third in wins (10), and seventh in save percentage (.922)
Nate Danielson—Tied for second in short-handed assists (2), tied for first among rookies in short-handed assists (2), tied for fifth among rookies in assists (13)
Alex Doucet—Tied for second in short-handed goals (2), tied for first among rookies in short-handed goals (2)
William Lagesson—Tied for eighth among defensemen in plus-minus rating (+10), tied for third among defensemen in short-handed assists (1)
Amadeus Lombardi—Tied for first in game-winners (4)
Austin Watson—First in major penalties (6) 

Milestones:
Last Saturday, Elmer Soderblom registered his 100th point as a pro with an assist at Colorado and Austin Watson collected his 150th AHL point with a goal. 
Alex Doucet—One point from 50 as a pro
Sheldon Dries—Four games from 300 in the AHL, five assists from 100 in the AHL
Tim Gettinger—One game from 300 in the AHL

Photo by Nicolas Carrillo/Griffins