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Griffins Grind Moose 5-2 - Move on to 3rd Round
Second line stars in win...
By Jason Kasiorek
www.griffinscentral.com
May 8, 2026
Carter Mazur had his second consecutive two-goal game and linemates Michael Brandsegg-Nygard (game winning goal) and Amadeus Lombardi (2 assists) starred as the Griffins put a punctuation mark on the series with a 5-2 win. Eddie Tralmaks and Axel Sandin-Pelikka each scored their first of the post-season to help power the lopsided win. Special teams played a huge role as the Griffins killed off both Moose man-advantages, while notching 3 powerplay tallies in 4 chances. Surging netminder Michal Postava yielded two goals on 21 shots for his third straight win.
First Period
When the Moose set up for the opening faceoff, it was apparent the landscape had changed. Domenic Divincentiis was on the bench in favor of Thomas Milic. The hero of the first-round win over Milwaukee, who shutout GR in game one of this series, DiVincentiis had done a good job of keeping the scoring down but couldn't stop it. The Griffins put Milic to the test early as Brandsegg-Nygard in deep had several pops at the puck, touching off a scrum in front. Just past the four-minute mark, Shaw went off for holding and the Griffins powerplay went to work. It didn't take long for Gustafsson to find Tralmaks in the circle calling for the puck. He one-timed a bullet of a shot past Milic for a 1-0 lead. Shots on goal: GR 7 - Man 6.
Second Period
The Moose wasted little time in tying things up early in the second, taking advantage of a defensive breakdown in front of Postava. The puck was loose in front of the crease and everyone collapsed down in front except for Anhorn, who slid back out from the pile and when the puck squirted free, he was all alone to snipe it back into the net. Sheldon Dries with a partial break, made a sick spin-o-rama move to peel away from the defender angling him off. The Griffins had a series of odd man rushes as the Moose were back on their heels a bit. Dom Shine in all alone had all the time in the world but fired a shot right off Milic's chest. MBN on his way through the crease, made contact with Milic and laid him out. This of course drew a scrum and a penalty as the Griffins were down a man. Shorthanded 2-on-1 with Dries and Shine, Dries passed across but it was just deflected. MBN came out of the box, picked up the puck and had a great scoring chance.
The Griffins had another powerplay chance with Sautner off for high-sticking Carter Mazur. With time running out on the PP, Axel Sandin-Pelikka accelerated to warp speed, went end to end, gained the zone, surprised the Moose D as he shot between them and then right in on Milic where he flicked the puck between his legs before he could react. It was a goal that brought everyone out of their seats, and I looked behind me to see the Red Wings Braintrust all on their feet and clearly excited. Jakub Rycholvsky to the box for tripping putting the Griffins back on the penalty kill. Postava came way out of the net and cleared the puck over the heads of the forecheckers and all the way down the ice. Di Giuseppe hit John Leonard from behind and knocked him to the ice earning a penalty for interference. Anton Johnansson was right there sticking up for Leonard and Di Giuseppe was melting down trying to get away from the official to get at him. GR had several great chances on the powerplay including a slick passing play in front between three Griffins batting the puck out of the air in front. Shots on goal: GR 10 - Man 6.
Third Period
Amadeus Lombardi and MBN had a two-on-one that ended with MBN going bar down to snipe a shot in for a 3-1 lead. Wojciech Stachowiak putting on a clinic in the Moose zone and eventually drew a penalty as they got frustrated and knocked him down after a scoring chance at the edge of the paint. Grand Rapids made it 4-1 on the ensuing powerplay, as Amadeus Lombardi put a shot on Milic from the circle and Carter Mazur walked out from the side of the net to bury the rebound top shelf. MBN got tangled up with Moose defender while trying to go to the net and threw him off right into Milic, sending them both to the ice. Milic to the bench for the extra attacker with just under 5 minutes left. John Leonard turned over the puck in the slot and Di Giuseppe pounced on it to cut the lead to two. Milic spent most of the period on the bench as the Moose tried in vain to score again. Eventually the Griffins were able to score an empty netter, with Carter Mazur notching his 2nd of the night with a long shot from the Griffins zone for a 5-2 series clinching win. Shots on Goal: GR 9 - Man 9. For the Game: GR 26 - Man 21.
Starting Lines:
#81 Rychlovsky - #49 Stachowiak - #34 Tralmaks
#19 Leonard - #15 Dries - #65 Shine
#28 Brandsegg-Nygard - #93 Lombardi - #43 Mazur
#47 Doucet - #11 Seger - #77 Angle
Pairs:
#22 Wallinder - #23 Johansson
#56 Gustafsson - #4 Tuomisto
#37 Lagesson - #44 Sandin-Pelikka
Goaltenders:
Starter: #35 Postava
Backup: #33 Cossa
Scratches:
#8 Buium
#12 Draper
#16 Kiiskinen
#25 Becher
#26 James
#29 Danielson (Injured)
#30 Augustine
#38 Dower-Nilsson
#41 Kannok Leipert
#51 Watson
#55 Genborg (injured)
Power Play:
#43 Mazur - #93 Lombardi - #49 Stachowiak
#56 Gustafsson - #34 Tralmaks
#28 Brandsegg-Nygard - #15 Dries - #65 Shine
#44 Sandin-Pelikka - #19 Leonard
Penalty Kill:
#15 Dries - #65 Shine
#37 Lagesson - #4 Tuomisto
#19 Leonard - #11 Seger
#22 Wallinder - #23 Johansson
Observations:
The home team looked like they found another gear tonight, and despite the slower pace of the 1st, clearly carried play most of the game. I was surprised that it wasn't a more physical contest as I expected the Moose to be more intense and play a hitting game.
While there were several greta goals tonight, the ASP goal was a thing of beauty - from his speed, to his heads up play, he surprised everyone on the ice (and in the seats), and the future looks bright for him.
Sheldon Dries had a fantastic game, playing hard minutes, great puck management and was a defensive rock. I am still waiting for his line to get untracked offensively as Leonard is in an uncharacteristic slump and Shine has not locked looked like himself since returning from detroit. If this line can get going in the next round, the offense will be tough to stop on this team.
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