The Grand Rapids Griffins play games on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and ahead of a busy weekend, the Griffins have filed their weekly press release. Here are some highlights thereof:
Keep The Good Times Rolling: With a 12-4-1-0 record and 25 points through 17 games, the Griffins have tied the second-best start in franchise history, with their best coming in 2005-06 with 27 points and a 13-3-0-1 mark. The Griffins rank first in the Central Division, second in the Western Conference and tied for fourth in the AHL. In 29 seasons, this was the fourth Griffins team to win at least 10 of its first 14 games, and the first since 2009-10. The Griffins have won with defense, as they have allowed two goals or less in 11 of the 17 contests and have scored an average of 3.06 goals per game (T15th).
Let’s Show Some Love to the Defense: The Griffins rank first in the AHL with just 2.18 goals allowed per game, as the 37 goals surrendered rank second in the AHL. For comparison, Grand Rapids ceded 52 goals in the opening 17 games last year and 69 in 2022-23. Dating back to last season, Grand Rapids has allowed just 18 goals in its last 11 regular-season games at Van Andel Arena (1.64 GA per game).
Busy Bodies: The Griffins will play back-to-back three games in three days during the next two weeks. Grand Rapids will start with Milwaukee, Chicago and Cleveland from Friday to Sunday this week. The Griffins went 3-0-0-0 in their first 3-in-3 from Oct. 25-27, defeating Springfield and Lehigh Valley (twice). This marked the first time since April 5-7, 2002 that Grand Rapids went undefeated while playing three games in three days.
One, Two Punch: Sebastian Cossa, the 15th overall pick by the Detroit Red Wings in 2021, is off to a strong start through the opening 12 games of his season, showing a 7-4-1 mark with one shutout, a 2.08 goals-against average, and a .931 save percentage. The 21-year-old ranks among the league leaders in minutes played (692:11, 3rd), shutouts (T5th), GAA (T6th), wins (T3rd), and save percentage (5th). Ville Husso has also gotten off to a fast start with the Griffins, as he has a 4-0-0 ledger with one shutout to go along with a 1.58 goals-against average and a .944 save percentage in five appearances. Through six career games with Grand Rapids, Husso has a 5-0-0 record with two shutouts, a 1.29 goals-against average and a .953 save percentage. Jack Campbell joined the goaltending room last week when he was assigned by the Red Wings. Campbell, the 11th overall pick by Dallas in 2010, has appeared in 438 games since 2011-12 and possesses a 229-141-47 ledger with 32 shutouts to go along with a 2.67 goals-against average. Last season, the 32-year-old showed an 18-13-1 record, a 2.63 goals-against average and a .918 save percentage in 33 games with the Bakersfield Condors.
