Patrick WilliamsTheAHL.com Features Writer
Last night, the Iowa Wild got their guests right where they wanted them.
Wild forward scores two goals Hunter Hite With less than nine minutes left in the second quarter, the visiting team Grand Rapids Griffins led 2-0. Iowa State is still struggling to find its collective game after a rough start to the season, holding the AHL's top team to just 10 shots on goal in a month and a half.
Incredibly, this was only the third time all season that the Griffins fell behind by two goals.
Then the game turned. While much of the story in Grand Rapids this season has been the team's best offense in the conference, there's more to the Griffins' story. Their ability to overwhelm opponents extends far beyond the top line.
and John Leonard Add to that his league-leading 19 goals since returning to Detroit, and the Griffins' offensive response last night started in the backcourt. Just 1 minute and 40 seconds after Iowa took a 2-0 lead, Alex Cannock Leppert A shot from the left side went past the Iowa goalie. Samuel Hlavage. It was Kannok Leipert's first goal since April 6 and his sixth in 206 career AHL games. Cannock Leppert is a strong defender whose primary role is solid physical defense.
Ian MitchellAnother steady defenseman tied the game 4:36 into the third period when he kept the puck just inside the blue line before taking it into the open space and sneaking a long shot past Hlavaj through traffic.
then captain Dominic Shane At 7 minutes and 23 seconds, the Griffins took the lead for the first time. He added a second period at 17:26, and Gabriel Seager At 19 minutes and 31 seconds, an empty net was scored.
The win was Grand Rapids' 23rd in 25 games this season, the best start in the AHL's 90-year history. It was another team effort — they gave up just one power-play opportunity to the Wild and allowed just one shot in the third period while scoring four times in the final 20 minutes. Sebastian CosaHe only took 18 shots all night, improving his record to 13 wins, 1 draw and 0 losses, winning eight consecutive games. Eleven different skaters recorded a score, with Michael Brandsegg-Nygaard, Sheldon Dries and Eric Gustafson Each contributed two assists.
With their 12th straight win, the Griffins have opened up a 16-point lead in the Central Division. Next up is a rematch at Iowa State on Friday night, then a home game against Cleveland on Sunday. They close out 2025 with home games against Milwaukee on Dec. 27 and Dec. 31.
Can the Griffins make it to April? Until June? It's still early — two-thirds of the regular season remains — but it seems fair to start comparing these Griffins teams to other great teams in AHL history. The 1992-93 Binghamton Rangers posted a .775 scoring average (57-13-10), the best mark in league history. The Norfolk Admirals won 28 consecutive games during the 2011-12 season. The Hershey Bears won a record 60 games in 2009-10 (in an 80-game season). Just two years ago, Hershey set the standard for a 72-game season with 53 wins and 111 points.
Grand Rapids still faces many obstacles. They have 19 games remaining against their closest rivals, Chicago and Milwaukee. February will be a trip to Charlotte, the only team to beat the Griffins in the regular season this season, a 2-1 decision on Nov. 21. Eleven of their final 14 games will be played on the road. Of course, there are the usual potential pitfalls like recalls, injuries and bad luck that can put any team in trouble.
But 25 games later, the Griffins appear to have something special here.
About two decades in the American Hockey League, TheAHL.com feature writer Patrick Williams also currently covers the league for NHL.com and FloSports and is a regular contributor to SiriusXM NHL Network Radio. In 2016, he received the AHL's James H. Ellery Memorial Award for outstanding coverage of the league.
