GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. The Grand Rapids Griffins of the American Hockey League will commence their tenth annual training camp this Friday, Sept. 23 at Griffs IceHouse at Belknap Park (30 Coldbrook NE). Approximately 30 players will begin preparations for the Griffins fourth season as the primary affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings, under the guidance of head coach Greg Ireland and new assistant coach Jim Paek.

Friday, Saturday and Sunday will feature identical schedules, with split-squad practices at 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m., followed by a 4:30 p.m. scrimmage. All training camp sessions at Griffs IceHouse are open to the public.

Most of the players expected to comprise Grand Rapids 2005-06 roster will still be with the Red Wings as camp opens. Fifteen players who wore the Griffins crest last season are currently in Detroits camp, including goaltenders Joey MacDonald and Drew MacIntyre; defensemen Greg Amadio, Bryan Helmer, Brett Lebda and Derek Meech; and forwards Darryl Bootland, Matt Ellis, Eric Himelfarb, Jiri Hudler, Todd Jackson, Tomas Kopecky, Eric Manlow and Blake Sloan.

Following 10 a.m. practices next Monday and Tuesday, Grand Rapids will begin its preseason slate with a pair of road games. On Wednesday, Sept. 28, the Griffins will visit the Milwaukee Admirals for an 8 p.m. EDT faceoff at the Mullett Ice Center in Hartland, Wisc. Theyll head south the following night to take on the Chicago Wolves in an 8 p.m. EDT start at the West Meadows Ice Arena in Rolling Meadows, Ill. Tickets for both games will be available at the door on game night ($10 in Milwaukee, $6 in Chicago).

The Griffins will complete their docket by welcoming the Cleveland Barons to the Georgetown Ice Arena in Hudsonville on Saturday, Oct. 1 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets will be available at the door, priced at $5 for adults and $3 for children under 18.

Grand Rapids will kick off its tenth season at Van Andel Arena on Saturday, Oct. 8 at 7 p.m. versus the Milwaukee Admirals. 10th Anniversary Opening Night presented by Comcast will feature performances by Claude, The Happy Trumpeter and intermission entertainment by the Gentleman Jugglers. The first 3,000 fans will receive a 10th Anniversary commemorative poster.

Tickets for all 40 Griffins regular season home games can be purchased in person at The Zone at Van Andel Arena and all Star Tickets Plus locations (including Meijer stores), by phone through Star Tickets Plus at 800-585-3737, or via the web at griffinshockey.com. Full season tickets, five- and 10-game value plans, and group ticket packages are available through the Griffins office at (800) 2-HOCKEY.


2005 Grand Rapids Griffins Training Camp Schedule

Friday, Sept. 23 GRIFFS ICEHOUSE AT BELKNAP PARK

Team 1 Practice 9-10:30 a.m.
Team 2 Practice 10:30 a.m.-Noon
Scrimmage 4:30 p.m.

Saturday, Sept. 24 GRIFFS ICEHOUSE AT BELKNAP PARK

Team 2 Practice 9-10:30 a.m.
Team 1 Practice 10:30 a.m.-Noon
Scrimmage 4:30 p.m.

Sunday, Sept. 25 GRIFFS ICEHOUSE AT BELKNAP PARK

Team TBD Practice 9-10:30 a.m.
Team TBD Practice 10:30 a.m.-Noon
Scrimmage 4:30 p.m.

Monday, Sept. 26 GRIFFS ICEHOUSE AT BELKNAP PARK

Practice 10 a.m.
Off-Ice Workout Noon

Tuesday, Sept. 27 GRIFFS ICEHOUSE AT BELKNAP PARK

Practice 10 a.m.
Off-Ice Workout Noon

Wednesday, Sept. 28 GRIFFS ICEHOUSE AT BELKNAP PARK

Pre-Game Skate 10 a.m.
Bus to Milwaukee 12:30 p.m.
Preseason Game #1 at Milwaukee Admirals (Mullett Ice Center) 8 p.m.
Bus to Chicago 11 p.m.

Thursday, Sept. 29

Pre-Game Skate 12:15 p.m.
Preseason Game #2 at Chicago Wolves (West Meadows Ice Arena) 8 p.m.
Bus to Grand Rapids 11 p.m.

Friday, Sept. 30 GRIFFS ICEHOUSE AT BELKNAP PARK

Practice 10:30 a.m.

Saturday, Oct. 1 GRIFFS ICEHOUSE/GEORGETOWN ICE ARENA

Pre-Game Skate (Griffs IceHouse at Belknap Park) 10 a.m.
Preseason Game #3 vs. Cleveland Barons (Georgetown Ice Arena) 7:30 p.m.

All times are Eastern. Times and locations subject to change.
For more information contact Randy Cleves (x3046) or Ryan Schuiling (x3026) at (616) 774-4585.


2005 Grand Rapids Griffins Training Camp Roster (as of 9/21/05)

# FORWARDS (19) POS S HGT WGT BIRTHPLACE D.O.B. 2004-05 CLUB(S)
53 Robin Big Snake LW L 6-0 219 Siksika Nation, Alberta 4/10/84 Portland (WHL)/Owen Sound (OHL)
54 Brad Bonello C L 5-11 180 Brampton, Ontario 4/15/84 Ottawa (OHL)
42 Billy Collins C R 6-2 200 Enderby, British Columbia 11/17/81 Muskegon (UHL)
32 Ryan Gale F R 5-11 180 St. Catharines, Ontario 3/18/81 Niagara (CHA)
Michael Hackert* F L 5-11 191 Heilbronn, Germany 6/21/81 Frankfurt (Germany)
19 Eric Himelfarb* RW R 5-9 170 Toronto, Ontario 1/1/83 GRIFFINS
17 Todd Jackson* RW R 5-10 180 Syracuse, New York 4/10/81 GRIFFINS/Toledo (ECHL)
18 Patrick Jarrett C L 5-11 180 Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario 2/6/84 Owen Sound (OHL)
29 Ryan Keller RW R 5-10 186 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan 1/6/84 Saskatoon (WHL)
52 Jason Kostadine RW R 6-2 190 Silver Spring, Maryland 10/22/83 Texas (ECHL)
Ken Magowan F L 6-2 205 Kelowna, British Columbia 7/22/81 Augusta (ECHL)/Albany (AHL)
21 Jeff Nelson C L 6-0 190 Prince Albert, Saskatchewan 12/18/72 Muskegon (UHL)
3 Colin Shields F R 5-10 175 Glasgow, Scotland 1/27/80 San Diego, Atl. City and Greenville (ECHL)
50 Scooter Smith LW L 5-10 180 Calgary, Alberta 11/11/80 Toledo (ECHL)
8 Cory Stillman C L 6-2 211 Lindsay, Ontario 3/2/83 Pensacola (ECHL)
11 Josh Tataryn LW L 6-0 185 Orton, Ontario 7/23/82 Port Huron (UHL)
14 Daniel Tkaczuk C L 6-1 195 Toronto, Ontario 6/10/79 Lada Togliatti (Russia)
51 Mark Wires F L 5-11 180 North York, Ontario 3/20/82 Texas (ECHL)/Laredo (CHL)
44 David Wrigley LW L 6-0 200 Washago, Ontario 6/1/80 Mercyhurst (AH)/Muskegon (UHL)

# DEFENSEMEN (8) POS S HGT WGT BIRTHPLACE D.O.B. 2004-05 CLUB(S)
2 Greg Amadio+ D L 6-2 225 Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario 5/13/81 Col. (ECHL)/Mtb. & GRIFFINS (AHL)
4 Brett Angel D L 6-6 229 Kingston, Ontario 4/29/81 Acadia U. (CIS)
25 Bryce Charpentier+ D R 6-5 220 Temecula, California 3/29/82 Peoria & Florida (ECHL)
55 Jon Insana D R 6-1 202 Mt. Clemens, Michigan 9/2/80 Muskegon (UHL)/GRIFFINS
5 Tim Judy D R 5-10 170 Bowie, Maryland 1/14/81 Northeastern (HE)/Trenton (ECHL)
6 Nick Martens D L 6-1 195 Ann Arbor, Michigan 9/11/82 Michigan (CCHA)
24 Travis Richards+ v D L 6-1 195 Crystal, Minnesota 3/22/70 GRIFFINS
33 Clay Wilson D L 6-0 195 Sturgeon Lake, Minnesota 4/15/83 Mich. Tech (WCHA)/Muskegon (UHL)

# GOALTENDERS (2) POS C HGT WGT BIRTHPLACE D.O.B 2004-05 CLUB(S)
31 Kevin LaPointe G L 6-0 181 Quebec City, Quebec 4/11/80 Sacred Heart (AH)
1 Drew MacIntyre* G L 6-1 184 Charlottetown, P.E.I. 6/24/83 GRIFFINS/Toledo (ECHL)

* Detroit Red Wings contract + Griffins contract v Veteran

GENERAL MANAGER: Bob McNamara
HEAD COACH: Greg Ireland
ASSISTANT COACH: Jim Paek
MEDICAL THERAPIST: Rob Snitzer
EQUIPMENT MANAGER: Brad Thompson
ASSISTANT EQUIPMENT MANAGER: Jim Heintzelman

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