The Grand Rapids Griffins scored three second-period goals and held on for a 3-1 win over the Chicago Wolves on Friday night at Van Andel Arena.
Right wing Jordan Caron gave the Wolves a 1-0 lead with his fourth goal of the year. Goaltender Pheonix Copley made several spectacular stops as part of his 30-save effort for Chicago (10-7-1-1).
Caron opened the scoring for the Wolves at 12:42 of the first period. Defenseman Andre Benoit snapped a shot from the left point as Caron skated just outside the crease. He raised his stick to tip the puck past Griffins goaltender Jared Coreau. Benoit and Justin Hodgman earned assists.
Grand Rapids (9-8-0-1), which extended its winning streak to seven games, made it 1-1 at 3:11 of the second when Mark Zengerle set up in the slot and redirected Xavier Ouellet’s blast from the point. Zengerle’s goal technically came at full-strength, though it was three seconds after a Griffins power play expired and the Wolves never got their fifth skater into the zone.
Grand Rapids took a 2-1 lead at 15:21 of the second on Tomas Nosek’s snapper from the top of the right circle. The Wolves couldn’t get the puck out of their zone and Nosek’s top-shelf shot beat screened Wolves goaltender Pheonix Copley.
The Griffins pushed the margin to 3-1 with 55 seconds left in the second as Andreas Athanasiou carried the puck into the Wolves zone, juked past a Wolves defenseman and lifted a backhand top-shelf from close range.
Wolves head coach John Anderson removed Copley with 2:39 left in an effort to erase the deficit, but Coreau (6-2-1) made four sprawling saves to preserve the lead. He finished with 31 saves.
The Wolves host Milwaukee at 7 p.m. Saturday in an Amtrak Rivalry battle. To purchase holiday flex packs that include two bonus ticket vouchers and a skate-full of holiday gifts, visit ChicagoWolves.com or call 1-800-THE-WOLVES.
GRIFFINS 3, WOLVES 1
Chicago 1 0 0 — 1
Grand Rapids 0 3 0 — 3
First Period—1, Chicago, Caron 4 (Benoit, Hodgman), 12:42. Penalties—Hayes, Chicago (cross-checking), 3:47; Aubry, Grand Rapids (holding), 18:43.
Second Period—2, Grand Rapids, Zengerle 2 (Ouellet, Miele), 3:11; 3, Grand Rapids, Nosek 1 (Bertuzzi, Ouellet), 15:21; 3, Grand Rapids, Athanasiou 5 (Tangradi, Paetsch), 19:05. Penalties—Welsh, Chicago (tripping), 1:08; Miele, Grand Rapids (slashing), 6:25; Callahan, Grand Rapids (interference), 9:45; Campbell, Grand Rapids (holding), 15:51; Beach, Chicago (roughing), 20:00; Bertuzzi, Grand Rapids (roughing), 20:00.
Third Period—None. Penalties—Welsh, Chicago (slashing), 0:51; Lindbohm, Chicago (boarding), 3:41; Hayes, Chicago (tripping), 6:35; Hodgman, Chicago (cross-checking), 12:24.
Shots on goal—Chicago 7-13-12—32; Grand Rapids 11-11-11—33. Power plays—Chicago 0-4; Grand Rapids 0-6. Goalies—Chicago, Copley (30-33); Grand Rapids, Coreau (31-32). Referee—Jake Brenk. Linesmen—John Grandt and Jim Scarpace.
