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RWC Archives - April 1 Griffins Monthly
Late-season surge vaults Griffins into playoff contention...
By Jason Kasiorek
www.griffinscentral.com
April 1, 2005
The Grand Rapids Griffins have vaulted into playoff contention.
Thanks to a late-season surge from
Matt Ellis
and the return of injured veteran
Eric Manlow
, the Griffins are fighting the Houston Aeros and the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks for one of the final two playoff spots in the American Hockey League's West Division. Just two points separates the three teams with 10 games remaining.
Manlow, out with a broken foot since the end of January, sparked an 8-2 run with his return, while unhappy prospects
Nathan Robinson
and
Danny Groulx
found new homes in March.
The following is the Griffins' monthly report for March:
OFFENSE
' Forward Kip Miller had a goal and 13 assists this month to pace the offense, while Ellis defenseman
Niklas Kronwall
chipped in with 12 points apiece.
Tomas Kopecky
also surprised this month, firing home five goals in his last nine games, while Manlow had five goals and three assists in 10 games.
DEFENSE
' Team defense has tightened considerably under new head coach Greg Ireland, and Kronwall has benefited from playing with NHLer Mark Eaton. Rookie
Derek Meech
has rebounded from a tough stretch and has gone from minus-11 to plus-1.
Brett Lebda
had a tough month, finishing with a minus-3.
GOALTENDING
'
Joey MacDonald
started every game this month, posting a 9-5-1 record. He went 8-2 with a 1.85 goals against average and a .947 save percentage in his final 10 starts of the month, routinely facing plenty of rubber.
Drew MacIntyre
has seen just 20 minutes of action since returning from the East Coast Hockey League.
POWER PLAY
' The power play has a long way to go at 13.8 percent, 24th among 28 teams. The first unit features
Kevin Miller
, Jeff Panzer and
Eric Himelfarb
up front, with Kronwall and Meech on the blue line. The second unit features Ellis, Manlow and
Darryl Bootland
up front, with
Jiri Hudler
and
Bryan Helmer
manning the point.
PENALTY KILL
' At 85 percent, the Griffins own the 10th-best penalty kill in the league. Long considered a strong point of the team, the penalty killers have also chipped in with 10 shorthanded goals. Miller, Ellis, Manlow and Blake Sloan are staples up front, while Kronwall and Helmer are the most reliable defensemen.
PLAYER OF THE MONTH
' Ellis. For the second straight month, Ellis is the team's top player. He had a team-leading seven goals and posted a solid point-per-game average. Ellis, whose leadership and determination set him apart, thrives in clutch situations. He has seized the lead as the Griffins make one last charge toward the post-season.
LINE OF THE MONTH
' Manlow, Ellis and Bootland. The lines don't stay together very long, but Ellis has been effective centering Bootland at right wing. The left side rotates, but Manlow has the hands and vision to complement the aggressive Ellis and the truculent Bootland. The trio had 14 goals and 11 assists in March.
DEFENSE PAIRING OF THE MONTH
' Helmer and Meech. While it's tough to argue with Kronwall's point totals, Helmer and Meech have played solid hockey and had a better month defensively. Helmer has been a stalward in his own zone, while Meech made huge strides and is now entrenched in the team's top-four rotation.
ROOKIE WATCH
' Meech was the lone bright spot among rookies, with four points and a plus-6 rating, tops among defensemen. MacIntyre saw virtually no action, while Himelfarb has just a goal and an assist in 14 games. Lebda had a rocky month and fell down the depth chart.
INJURIES
' Travis Richards, back, indefinite ... Sloan, upper body, day-to-day ... Ellis, upper-body, day-to-day ...
MOVEMENT
' G
Logan Koopmans
, assigned to Toledo (ECHL) ... MacIntyre recalled from Toledo (ECHL) ... LW Jeff Hutchins released from PTO ... Robinson loaned to Syracuse (AHL) ... Panzer acquired from Syracuse (AHL) ... D Jon Insana recalled from Muskegon ... Manlow returned from injury ... Groulx loaned to Manitoba (AHL) ... C Kory Karlander released from PTO ... C Brent Kelly released from PTO ...
KEY STATS
' Bootland and
Pete Vandermeer
are tied for third in the league with 293 penalty minutes ... MacDonald is 10th in the AHL with a 2.20 GAA ... MacDonald also ranks fourth in the league with 31 wins, first with 1,643 saves and first with 3,431 minutes played ... Kronwall leads all defenseman with 50 points ...
UP NEXT
' The Griffins open up the month at home with a pair of games against the last-place Utah Grizzlies. Then it's off for a five-game road trip against Hamilton and San Antonio, before another weekend series against Utah. The last four games are West Division-rivals Milwaukee, San Antonio and Cincinnati.
Jason Kasiorek contributes monthly Grand Rapids Griffins reports. They appear on RedWingsCentral.com on the first of each month.
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