This Week’s Games

GRIFFINS vs. Springfield Thunderbirds // Wed., Feb. 12 // 7 p.m. // Van Andel Arena

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

Watch: AHLTV on FloHockey 

Season Series: 1-0-0-0 Overall, 0-0-0-0 Home. Second of two meetings overall, first and only at Van Andel Arena

All-Time Series: 2-0-1-0 Overall, 0-0-1-0 Home

NHL Affiliation: St. Louis Blues

Noteworthy: This will mark just the second time in franchise history that the Griffins will host the Springfield Thunderbirds. They met at Van Andel Arena for the first-ever time on Jan. 21, 2023, with Springfield taking a 3-2 overtime victory.  

GRIFFINS at Iowa Wild // Fri., Feb. 14 // 8 p.m. EST // Wells Fargo Arena
GRIFFINS at Iowa Wild // Sat., Feb. 15 // 7 p.m. EST // Wells Fargo Arena  

Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM & 1300 AM at 7:45 p.m. EST on Friday and 6:45 p.m. EST on Saturday

Watch: AHLTV on FloHockey 

Season Series: 2-1-0-0 Overall, 1-0-0-0 Away. Fourth and fifth of eight meetings overall, second and third of four at Wells Fargo Arena

All-Time Series: 52-25-5-3 Overall, 26-14-1-1 Away

NHL Affiliation: Minnesota Wild

Noteworthy: It has been over two months since the Griffins and Wild last met on Nov. 24. Grand Rapids is 2-1-0-0 this season against Iowa and has won nine of the past 11 meetings, with a plus-14 scoring margin.   

Highs and Lows: After posting a four-game win streak (Jan. 18-29) and a six-game point streak (Jan. 15-29), the Griffins are now on a season-high four-game losing streak from Jan. 31-Feb. 8 with a minus-12 scoring margin (15-3). Grand Rapids has now dropped to second place in the Central Division for the first time since Nov. 7. During this four-game stretch, the Griffins were shut out in a franchise-record three straight games and have averaged just 0.75 goals per contest while allowing 3.75 tallies. Scoring at least three goals has been key for Grand Rapids, as it has a 20-1-0-1 mark (.932) when reaching at least three goals. The defense has been solid once again, allowing just 2.57 goals per game since the start of January and tying for second overall with 2.56 goals allowed per game this season. In addition to falling to second place in the division, Grand Rapids moved to sixth in the Western Conference and 14th in the AHL with a 25-16-3-1 record and 54 points through 45 games. 

Career Year: Through 42 games this season, Dominik Shine has already tied his career high of 33 points and is on pace to reach 54 (18-36—54) this season. The veteran is also one assist from tying his career high of 23 (2023-24) and six goals from tying his career best of 17 (2021-22). He has already notched career-high totals in power-play goals (4), game-winners (3), and multi-point outings (8). On Jan. 18, Shine moved into a tie for 10th place on the team’s all time goals scored list with his 72nd tally as a Griffin. The 31-year-old also has 14 points (5-9—14) in his last 17 contests. Shine ranks first on the roster in points (11-22—33) and assists (22), fourth in goals (11), and third in power-play goals (4). The Detroit native has spent his entire career within the Red Wings organization since 2016-17 and has accumulated 171 points (72-99—171) and 515 penalty minutes in 464 appearances with the Griffins. In the Griffins’ all-time rankings, Shine places third in games played, sixth in penalty minutes, tied for 10th in goals scored (72), tied for 10th in overtime goals (2), and tied for first in unassisted goals (10). On Jan. 27, Shine signed his first NHL contract, a two-year deal with the Detroit Red Wings, and later that evening, he made his NHL debut against the Los Angeles Kings. Shine, 31, became the oldest skater to make his NHL debut since defenseman Evgeny Medvedev did it with the Philadelphia Flyers at 33 on Oct. 8, 2015, and the oldest Red Wings player to make his NHL debut since center Vaclav Nedomansky did it at 33 on Nov. 18, 1977. Shine later bagged his first NHL point with an assist on Feb. 1 at Calgary and finished his call-up with one assist in four outings. 

Goose Egg: The Griffins made franchise history in the wrong way, as they were shut out in three straight games for the first-ever time from Jan. 31-Feb. 7, being outscored 11-0. From Jan. 31-Feb. 1, the Griffins were shut out in back-to-back nights for the first time in franchise history, as Colorado’s Adam Scheel made a combined 55 saves in the two games. The team returned from the all-star break and was shut out again for the third straight game, as Matthew Murray collected 35 saves. The 6-0 defeat on Jan. 31 against Colorado was just the third time in franchise history that Grand Rapids allowed a hat trick and was shut out in the same game. Gabriel Seger’s first-period tally at Milwaukee last Saturday halted 189:20 minutes played without a goal for Grand Rapids.

Leaders of the Clubhouse: Veteran leadership has led the way for the Griffins this season, as the average age of their top four scorers is 30. Dominik Shine paces the team in points with 33 (11-22—33), while Austin Watson (12-17—29) is tied with Joe Snively (16-13—29) for second, and Sheldon Dries rounds out the top four with 24 points (17-7—24). The four players are also the only ones to score at least 10 goals this season for Grand Rapids. Combined, the players have 1,992 pro games under their belt with 926 points (443-483—926).

Come Out Firing: When the Griffins start hot, things usually turn out pretty well for the team, as they have a 15-2-2-1 record when scoring the game’s first goal compared to a 9-14-1-0 mark when they allow the first tally. They also have yet to suffer a regulation loss when leading after the second period (14-0-2-0) and just one regulation loss when leading after the first period (9-1-2-1). Grand Rapids is 3-10-1-0 when trailing after the opening frame, and 4-12-0-0 when it trails after the second period. 

Lock it Down: The Griffins have allowed 2.57 goals per game since the start of January and are tied for second overall with 2.56 goals allowed per game this season. Sebastian Cossa has shown a 2.23 GAA and .918 save percentage through 26 games, Jack Campbell has a 2.39 GAA and a .911 save percentage in seven appearances, and Ville Husso possesses a 2.55 GAA and a .913 save percentage in 11 contests. Dating back to last season, Grand Rapids has allowed just 59 goals in its last 25 regular-season games at Van Andel Arena (2.36 GA per game). Also dating back to last season, the Griffins have allowed 66 goals in their last 25 regular-season road games (2.64 GA per game).

Ups and Downs: After going 6-for-13 (46.2%) on the man-advantage in five games from Jan. 15-25, Grand Rapids has failed to score on the power play in its last five outings (0-for-15). The power play ranks 24th on the circuit at 17.3% (26-for-150). If you break it down further, Grand Rapids’ home power play is 12-for-66 (18.2%, 16th) and its road power play is 14-for-84 (16.7%, 21st). The Griffins have given up six short-handed goals, which is tied for the seventh-most. The Griffins’ penalty kill has struggled as of late, allowing a power-play goal in three straight games (6-for-13 on PK, 46.2%) and in nine of its last 13 games (33-for-46 on PK, 71.7%). Grand Rapids has also surrendered a power-play goal in 16 of its last 25 outings (68-for-89 on PK, 76.4%). However, the penalty-kill unit remains in the top half of the league, as it ranks 15th at 82.5%. Grand Rapids has scored six short-handed tallies, which is tied for eighth in the AHL. When scoring on the power play, the Griffins are 14-4-2-1 and 7-12-1-1 when they allow a power-play goal.

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 14-9-3 mark with a 2.23 GAA and a .918 save percentage in 26 games. Cossa ranks among the AHL leaders in minutes played (1,532:57, 8th), games played (26, T8th), GAA (T7th), wins (T7th), and save percentage (T6th). Veteran Jack Campbell made his Griffins debut on Dec. 6 against the Chicago Wolves and later bagged his first win as a Griffin on Dec. 17 at Texas behind 20 saves in a 4-2 decision. Through seven games with Grand Rapids, Campbell is 2-3-1 with a 2.39 GAA and a .911 save percentage. In the AHL since 2011-12, Campbell has shown a 119-85-27 record with a 2.71 GAA and a .911 save percentage. Ville Husso was reassigned by the Red Wings on Jan. 18 and has shown a 7-3-0 mark with two shutouts in 11 games with the Griffins this year to go along with a 2.55 GAA and a .913 save percentage. Throughout his 12-game career with Grand Rapids since 2023-24, Husso has an 8-3-0 ledger with three shutouts, a 2.31 GAA and a .920 save percentage.

AHL Leaderboard Tracker:
Shai Buium—Tied for seventh among rookie defensemen in assists (15), Tied for 10th among rookie defensemen in points (15), tied for seventh among rookie defensemen in plus-minus rating (+8), tied for 11th among rookie defensemen in power-play assists (4)
Sebastian Cossa—Eighth in minutes played (1,532:57), tied for eighth in games played (26), tied for seventh in GAA (2.23), tied for seventh in wins (14), tied for sixth in save percentage (.918)
Nate Danielson—Tied for 10th among rookies in assists (18), tied for first in short-handed assists (3), first among rookies in short-handed assists (3), tied for 11th among rookies in power-play assists (7)
Josiah Didier—Tied for fourth in short-handed assists (2), tied for second among defensemen in short-handed assists (2)
Alex Doucet—Tied for seventh in short-handed goals (2), tied for first among rookies in short-handed goals (2)
Sheldon Dries—Tied for 14th in goals (17), tied for fourth in game-winners (5)
Amadeus Lombardi—Tied for 15th in game-winners (4)
Austin Watson—First in major penalties (9), tied for seventh in short-handed goals (2) 

Milestones:
Last Saturday at Milwaukee, Dominik Shine collected his 100th assist as a pro and tied his career high of 33 points in a season. 
Alex Doucet—Two games from 100 as a pro
Sheldon Dries—Two assists from 100 in the AHL, four goals from 150 as a pro
Brogan Rafferty—Two games from 100 as a Griffin
Carter Mazur—Two points from 50 as a pro
Dominik Shine—One unassisted goal from claiming the franchise record of 11 in a career, one goal from moving into a tie for ninth place in the franchise’s all-time goals scored list (Derek King, 73), one assist from 100 as a Griffin
Antti Tuomisto—Three assists from 50 as a pro

Photo by Nicolas Carrillo/Griffins