Hanas continues scoring excellence for Griffins

Cross Hanas continued his terrific rookie season by helping Grand Rapids earn three out of six points last week. On Wednesday, the Griffins opened the week with a 5-2 loss in Cleveland. Donovan Sebrango and Steven Kampfer gave the Griffins a 2-0 lead early in the second period, but the Griffins couldn’t hold on to the lead against the Monsters. Hanas scored the overtime winner in Saturday’s 5-4 win over Toronto. The Marlies had a 3-0 lead until 14:27 of the second period when Joel L’Esperance broke the shutout. Pontus Andreasson started the comeback with his first AHL goal. Jared McIsaac and Andreasson, with his second goal, sent the game to overtime. On Saturday, Givani Smith opened the scoring for the Griffins. The Marlies held a 2-1 lead late into the third period before Hanas scored another heroic goal with ten seconds remaining to send the game into overtime. Toronto scored 3:28 into overtime on the powerplay to claim the two points.

The Griffins slipped to fifth place in the Central Division with a 6-6-1 record.

Player Preview: Cross Hanas

Every day Cross Hanas is proving that he is a top prospect for the Detroit Red Wings. Last week, Hanas played all three games for the Griffins and helped the team earn three points. On Friday, Hanas earned the first star of the game after scoring the overtime winner and picking up two assists. On Saturday, Hanas scored the game-tying goal with ten seconds remaining in regulation time that, sent the game into overtime. Hanas was named the third star of the game for his efforts.

For the week, Hanas scored two goals, two assists, four points, 13 shots on goal, and had an even +/- rating. Hanas leads the Griffins with seven goals and currently sits second in points (11). Hanas is also currently fourth in AHL rookie scoring.

Detroit Red Wings Prospects Update

The Griffins played the week with a depleted roster, as four top players were absent most of the week. Austin Czarnik remains on recall to Detroit. While on recall to the Red Wings, Matt Luff was injured and will likely miss an extended period. Jonatan Berggren was recalled to Detroit and made his NHL debut on Thursday. Simon Edvinsson did not play any games for the Griffins last week.

Taro Hirose played all three games last week. Hirose picked up two assists during the week. Hirose continues to lead the Griffins in scoring. In 13 games, he has two goals, ten assists, 12 points, and a -4 rating.

After a slow start to his AHL career, Pontus Andreasson is heating up. Last week Andreasson picked up two goals, three assists, five points, eight shots on goal, and an even +/- rating. In his previous five games, Andreasson has seven points. In 12 games, Andreasson has two goals, six assists, eight points, and a team-leading +5 rating.

Jared McIsaac played all three games last week. McIsaac scored his first goal of the season and picked up one assist during the week. In 13 games this season, McIsaac has one goal, six assists, seven points, and an even +/- rating.

Steven Kampfer played all three games last week. He scored his first goal of the season and picked up one assist. In 13 games, Kampfer has one goal, five assists, six points, and a -3 rating while leading the Griffins defensemen with 23 shots on goal.

Donovan Sebrango scored one goal in three games last week. Sebrango continued his scoring prowess with his third goal of the season. In ten games, Sebrango has three goals, one assist, four points, a +1 rating, and eight shots on goal.

Givani Smith was returned by the Red Wings and played all three games last week. On Saturday, Smith scored one goal and picked up an assist. Smith has two goals, two assists, four points, and a -8 rating in nine games.

Eemil Viro was held without a point during the two-weekend games. In eight games this season, Viro has one goal and a -4 rating.

Albert Johansson picked up his first AHL point, an assist, in Friday’s overtime win. In 12 games to start his AHL career, Johansson has one assist, an even +/- rating, and nine shots on goal.

Seth Barton was recalled from Toledo (ECHL) and played all three games last week. Although he was held off the scoresheet, Barton had a +1 rating and two shots on goal for the Griffins.

Victor Brattstrom started two games last week. Brattstrom took the regulation loss on Wednesday and the overtime loss on Saturday. Brattstrom made 49 saves on 56 shots during the two games. Brattstrom has a 2-1-1 record in six games this season, a 3.64 GAA, and a .884 SV%.

Jussi Olkinuora earned the overtime win on Friday. He made 20 saves on 24 shots to earn the win. In seven games this season, Olkinuora has a record of 3-4-0, a 4.08 GAA, and a .867 SV%.

Next Week

Grand Rapids play three games this week. They begin the week on Wednesday with a home game against Rockford. Game time is 11:00 AM ET at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, MI. The Griffins will then travel to San Diego to play the Gulls on Friday and Saturday. Game time for both games is 10:00 PM ET at Pechanga Arena in San Diego, CA.