This Week’s Games

GRIFFINS (19-1-0-1) vs. Milwaukee Admirals (12-6-2-0) // Wed., Dec. 10 // 7 p.m. // Van Andel Arena

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

Watch: AHLTV on FloHockey 

Season Series: First of 12 meetings overall, first of six at Van Andel Arena 

All-Time Series: 117-87-7-9-8 Overall, 64-40-2-3-3 Home

NHL Affiliation: Nashville Predators

Noteworthy: In terms of points percentages, the Griffins (.929) and Admirals (.650) are the top two teams in the Central Division. Milwaukee is Grand Rapids’ most frequent opponent, as Wednesday’s game marks the 229th meeting.      

GRIFFINS vs. Rockford IceHogs (9-12-2-1) // Sat., Dec. 13 // 7 p.m. // Van Andel Arena  

Listen: 96.1 The Game at 6:45 p.m.

Watch: AHLTV on FloHockey 

Season Series: 3-0-0-0 Overall, 1-0-0-0 Home. Fourth of 10 meetings overall, second of five at Van Andel Arena

All-Time Series: 77-52-11-11 Overall, 44-20-6-5 Home 

NHL Affiliation: Chicago Blackhawks

Noteworthy: Dominik Shine will be honored for his 500th game as a Griffin during a pregame ceremony.  

GRIFFINS at Chicago Wolves (11-7-3-1) // Sun., Dec. 14 // 4 p.m. EST // Allstate Arena

Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM & 1300 AM at 3:45 p.m. EST

Watch: AHLTV on FloHockey 

Season Series: 0-0-0-1 Overall, 0-0-0-1 Road. Second of 10 meetings overall, second of five at Allstate Arena 

All-Time Series: 104-91-2-8-6 Overall, 53-51-0-2-2 Road 

NHL Affiliation: Carolina Hurricanes

Noteworthy: The Wolves are just one of two teams to defeat the Griffins this season through 21 games, albeit a 4-3 shootout victory. 

Record-Setting Pace: The Griffins have continued their franchise-record start with a 19-1-0-1 ledger and 39 points through 21 games. The 37 points through 20 games was the third-best start in the 90-year history of the AHL and the 18 wins tied for the second-most ever (see table). The team is currently on a season-high eight-game win streak from Nov. 22-Dec. 7. The perfect 8-0 start was the best by an AHL team in four years, and Grand Rapids was the league’s last undefeated team for the first time since the 2000-01 IHL season. The Griffins’ 10-1 victory at Texas on Nov. 25 marked the largest margin of victory in franchise history. The Griffins’ 9-0-0-1 start on the road is the best in franchise history (previously 9-1 in 2004-05), and the 10-1 start at home is also a new franchise best. Grand Rapids ranks first in the AHL in both points (39) and points percentage (.929), and has an 11-point cushion in the Central Division.   

Shine On, Captain: On Sunday at Toronto, Dominik Shine became just the third player in franchise history to reach 500 games with the team, scoring a goal in the process. He is in his 10th season with Grand Rapids, becoming just the third player in team history to reach the milestone (Brian Lashoff 14, Travis Richards 10). Shine collected his first-career hat trick on Nov. 24 in Texas, and on Nov. 25 became just the seventh Griffin to reach 200 points with the team. He has 14 points (8-6—14) in his last 12 outings, is tied for fifth in the AHL with 11 goals, and ranks second on the team with 19 points (11-8—19) in 17 games. On Oct. 9, Dominik Shine was named the 19th captain in franchise history. On the all-time regular-season franchise leaderboard, Shine ranks third in games played (500), fifth in goals (86), eighth in assists (117), tied for fifth in points (203), sixth in penalty minutes (567), tied for fifth in shorthanded goals (6), tied for fifth in game-winners (13), tied for first in unassisted goals (10), and fourth in shots (838).  

Any Way You Want It: The Griffins have outscored their opponents 84-39 this season but have a plus-eight scoring margin in their last five games (15-7). In fact, Grand Rapids has one-goal victories in three of its last five contests, improving its overall record in one-goal games to 8-1-0-1. Forty-two percent of the Griffins’ league-leading 19 wins have come by just a single goal. 

You Get an Award, and You Get an Award, and You Get an Award: The Griffins cleaned up during the AHL monthly awards for November. John Leonard was named the player of the month, and Sebastian Cossa was dubbed the goaltender of the month. It marked the first time in franchise history that the team garnered both the player and goaltender of the month awards. Leonard became only the third player in franchise history to win the award and Cossa became just the fourth goaltender. In addition, Cossa was named the AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Nov. 30 when he went 3-0 with one shutout, a 1.33 GAA and a .945 save percentage. In November, Cossa posted a 5-1 record, a 1.50 GAA and a .941 save percentage. Leonard logged 16 points (9-7—16) in 10 games during November and was held scoreless in just one game. His stat line included three game-winners, two three-point outings and five multi-point games. 

Pucks on Net: The Griffins exploded for 10 goals on Nov. 25 against Texas, which were the most goals scored since Jan. 19, 2013. In the two games at Texas from Nov. 25-26, Grand Rapids totaled 16 goals over consecutive outings for the first time since Jan. 19-23, 2013 (11-6 W at RFD, 5-4 SOW vs. OKC). The team now has 31 goals in its last seven games (4.43 per game). The Griffins rank first in the AHL with 4.00 goals per game and have outscored their opponents 84-39. The Griffins have outscored their opponents 38-16 at home, while possessing a 46-23 advantage on the road. Grand Rapids has its largest scoring margin against its opponents in the third period (33-14). In addition to ranking first in goals, the Griffins place 14th in shots per game (29.1). John Leonard leads the team and league with 17 goals, Eduards Tralmaks ranks second on the roster with 12, and Dominik Shine places third with 11. 

Historic Run: John Leonard has 26 points and 17 goals through his first 17 games as a Griffin. Leonard was named the Fortune Tires “Expect More” AHL Player of the Month for November with 16 points (9-7—16) in 10 games. He became just the third player in franchise history to win the award, joining Riley Barber (April 2022) and Chris Minard (Feb. 2012). Leonard’s career-best 10-game point streak set a franchise record to begin both a season and a Griffins career. His career-high six-game goal streak from Oct. 11-Nov. 2 tied with teammate Austin Watson, Jiri Hudler, Kip Miller and Pavol Demitra for the third-longest run in franchise history. Leonard is first in the AHL in goals, tied for second in points, tied for 10th in plus-minus (+12), and first in points-per-game among players with at least 10 games (1.53). Last season, he ranked among the league leaders in points (61, T10th), goals (36, T2nd), power-play goals (10, T9th), short-handed goals (5, T1st) and shots (252, 2nd). Throughout his six-year AHL career since 2020-21, Leonard has 197 points (100-97—197) in 266 games.

Future is Bright: Sebastian Cossa, the 15th overall pick in 2021, is off to a 10-1-0 start this season with a 1.56 goals-against average and a .943 save percentage. Cossa was named the AHL Goaltender of the Month for November with a 5-1 record, one shutout, a 1.50 GAA and a .941 save percentage. He became just the fourth netminder in franchise history to win the award, joining Jared Coreau, Jimmy Howard and Simon Lajeunesse. In the AHL rankings, Cossa ranks first in GAA, first in save percentage, tied for third in shutouts and tied for first in wins. He registered his second shutout of the season on Nov. 30 behind 26 saves in a 1-0 win over Iowa. It marked his fifth AHL shutout and ninth as a pro. Last season, Cossa was named to his first AHL All-Star Classic and ranked among the AHL regular-season leaders in games played (41, T8th), minutes played (2,424:37, 7th), GAA (2.45, 11th), save percentage (.911, T13th), and wins (21, T10th). In parts of four seasons with Grand Rapids since 2022-23, Cossa has notched a 54-26-14 mark with five shutouts to go along with a 2.41 GAA and a .913 save percentage in 95 outings. 

Just Getting Started: Michael Brandsegg-Nygard was one of three rookies to make the Detroit Red Wings’ opening-night roster out of training camp. The 15th overall pick in 2024 showed one assist in nine games with Detroit before being assigned to the Griffins on Oct. 27. The Oslo, Norway, native has nine points (3-6—9) in his last seven appearances with Grand Rapids. Brandsegg-Nygard has posted two points in four of his last seven outings. He has 14 points (5-9—14) in 16 AHL games this season, which is tied for 14th among first-year AHL players and his nine assists are tied for 10th. Last year, Brandsegg-Nygard tied for the team lead with three points (2-1—3) in three Calder Cup Playoff games, following his SHL season with Skelleftea. The 20-year-old has also competed with Team Norway in the last two World Championships, totaling a combined nine points (3-6—9) in 12 outings. 

On the Right Trail: Riga, Latvia, native Eduards Tralmaks tallied his first AHL hat trick on Nov. 25 at Texas. He now has 10 points (8-2—10) in his last 11 games and ranks second on the team with 12 goals. His 12 goals also place fourth in the AHL. Last season, Tralmaks ranked first in the Czech Extraliga with a career-best 51 points (23-28—51) in 48 games, adding career-high totals in goals (23), assists (28) and penalty minutes (66). He also competed for Team Latvia at the last two World Championships and posted seven points (3-4—7) in seven games during the 2025 tournament. After spending the previous two campaigns in Czechia, Tralmaks returned to the AHL for the first time since 2022-23. As a free agent out of the University of Maine, Tralmaks signed with the Providence Bruins in 2021 and skated in three seasons with the franchise, compiling 41 points (22-19—41) in 87 contests. 

Special Powers: The Griffins scored on the power play in four straight games from Nov. 1-12 (6-for-16, 37.5%), and have since gone 7-for-27 (25.9%) in their last 11 games. Grand Rapids’ power play is sixth in the AHL at 25.4% (16-for-63). However, the Griffins have allowed four shorthanded goals this season, which is tied for third in the AHL. The penalty kill has allowed just four power-play goals in the last 14 games (34-for-38, 89.5%) and ranks first overall in the AHL at 87.5% (56-for-64). The 64 times shorthanded are tied for the fifth-fewest in the league.

Defense Wins Championships: The Griffins’ defense is one of the best in the AHL, as it ranks first with 1.86 goals allowed per contest. Grand Rapids has allowed more than two goals just twice in its last 15 games and has averaged just 1.50 goals allowed in its last 10 outings. In addition, the team’s penalty kill places first at 87.5% (56-for-64). Despite ranking first in goals allowed, the Griffins are tied for 21st with 29.0 shots allowed per game. In net, Sebastian Cossa sports a 1.56 GAA with a .943 save percentage, while rookie Michal Postava possesses a 2.15 GAA and a .936 save percentage. The Griffins have four defensemen who have played at least 100 games in the NHL in Erik Gustafsson (516), Justin Holl (396), Ian Mitchell (110), and William Lagesson (107). Last season, the Griffins finished ninth in the AHL with 2.82 goals allowed per game but spent much of the campaign in the top five for goals allowed per contest. 

Good Problem to Have: The Griffins’ roster features eight veterans, including forwards Sheldon Dries, John Leonard, Dominik Shine and Austin Watson, and defensemen Erik Gustafsson, Justin Holl, William Lagesson and Ian Mitchell. With eight veterans, the Griffins are two over the playing limit and are required to scratch two of them each game due to the AHL’s development rule. Even with two being scratched for each contest, the veterans on the team have combined for 105 points (45-60—105) in 128 games, which accounts for 48% of the scoring for the team and 55% of the goals. Leonard ranks first among the veterans with 26 points (17-9—26) in 17 games, while Shine (11-8—19 in 17 GP) ranks second, and Dries (6-9—15 in 17 GP) places third. 

AHL Leaderboard Tracker:  
Michael Brandsegg-Nygard—Tied for second in game-winners (4), tied for 10th among rookies in assists (9), tied for 14th among rookies in points (14), tied for seventh among rookies in plus-minus (+8), first among rookies in game-winners (4)
Sebastian Cossa—First in GAA (1.56), first in save percentage (.943), tied for third in shutouts (2), tied for first in wins (10)
Erik Gustafsson—Tied for 12th in plus-minus (+11), tied for 14th among defensemen in points (12), tied for seventh among defensemen in assists (12), tied for 12th in plus-minus (+11), tied for fourth among defensemen in plus-minus (+11)
Justin Holl—Tied for sixth in plus-minus (+13), third among defensemen in plus-minus (+13)
William Lagesson—Fifth in plus-minus (+14), second among defensemen in plus-minus (+14)
John Leonard—First in goals (17), tied for second in points (26), tied for 10th in plus-minus (+12), first in game-winners (6)
Ian Mitchell—Tied for 11th among defensemen in plus-minus (+9)
Dominik Shine—Tied for fifth in goals (11), tied for 14th in power-play goals (4) 
Eduards Tralmaks—Fourth in goals (12), tied for 14th in power-play goals (4)
Antti Tuomisto—Tied for eighth among defensemen in goals (4), tied for 12th among defensemen in points (13), tied for seventh among defensemen in plus-minus (+10)
Austin Watson—Tied for 10th in penalty minutes (55)

Milestones: On Sunday at Toronto, Dominik Shine skated in his 500th game as a Griffin, becoming just the third player in franchise history to reach the milestone. In addition, Ian Mitchell bagged his 100th AHL point during a two-assist night. 
William Lagesson—Four assists from 100 as a pro
John Leonard—Three assists from 100 in the AHL, three points from 200 in the AHL
Dominik Shine—One unassisted goal from claiming sole possession of the franchise record of 11
Eduards Tralmaks—Five points from 150 as a pro
William Wallinder—One game from 150 as a Griffin
Austin Watson—Three goals from 100 in the AHL

Photo by Nicolas Carrillo/Griffins