Detroit Red Wings AHL Hockey Team GRAND RAPIDS GRIFFINS Official 2013 Game Puck

Description

Selling an excellent condition Detroit Red Wings AHL Hockey Team GRAND RAPIDS GRIFFINS Official 2013 Game Puck NICE!  GO GRIFFINS!!!!
This would be a great addition to any Detroit Red Wings fan GRAND RAPIDS GRIFFINS fan and would look great in a man cave, den, office or garage.
This puck has awesome graphics is a very nice unique item that would make a great addition to any Hockey/Sports Collection.
This item will be a great addition to Detroit Red Wings, Hockey collectors, AHL and Puck collectors, GRAND RAPIDS GRIFFINS Collectors and sports fans in general.
GREAT GIFT IDEA!!! This awesome puck from the Griffins AHL Championship Season will ship in the Puck Holder displayed in photos and will ship Fast and Safe.
True Hockey fans/collectors will love the detail. Great item for capturing autographs.
This puck would look sweet displayed with a collection.
Bid confident that we will ship this Griffins Official Game Puck Fast and Safe.
High resolution photos convey condition and details.
If there are any questions, please contact us. Offers considered.
Payment method is PayPal.
Shipping & Handling costs are .95 for Priority Domestic.  Will ship Fast and Safe.
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Grand Rapids Griffins
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Grand Rapids Griffins
City
Grand Rapids, Michigan
League
American Hockey League
Conference
Western Conference
Division
Midwest Division
Founded
1996 (In the
IHL
)
Home arena
Van Andel Arena
Colors
Navy blue
, red, gold, silver
Owner(s)
Dan DeVos
Head coach
Jeff Blashill
Media
WOOD AM 1300
WOOD FM 106.9
Affiliates
Detroit Red Wings
(
NHL
)
Toledo Walleye
(
ECHL
)
Franchise history
1996–2001 (
IHL
)
Grand Rapids Griffins
2001–present (
AHL
)
Grand Rapids Griffins
Championships
Regular season titles
1 IHL
(2000–01)
1 AHL
(
2005–06
)
Division Championships
2 IHL
(1999–00, 2000–01)
4 AHL
(
2001–02
,
2002–03
,
2005–06
,
2012–13
)
Conference Championships
1 IHL
(1999–00)
The
Grand Rapids Griffins
are a professional
hockey
team in the
American Hockey League
(AHL). They play in
Grand Rapids, Michigan
at the
Van Andel Arena
. They are the AHL affiliate to the
Detroit Red Wings
of the
National Hockey League
.
The franchise began in the now-defunct
International Hockey League
in 1996 and merged into the AHL in 2001. The only player to have his number retired in team history is
Travis Richards
.
[
citation needed
]
On June 26, 2011, GM Bob McNamara retired and is no longer with the team. The Griffins have forgone a GM and rely instead on the Red Wings for support.
[
1
]
Franchise history
Returning professional hockey to Grand Rapids
The beginnings of the third
International Hockey League
(IHL) franchise in Grand Rapids, following the
Grand Rapids Rockets
and
Grand Rapids Owls
– teams that existed in the 1950s and late 1970s, respectively – lie in the construction of a 10,000-plus capacity arena in the downtown area. Following the project's authorization,
Amway
executives Dave Van Andel and Dan DeVos formed West Michigan Hockey, Inc., in January 1995 with the intent of securing a minor league hockey franchise. The group promptly began discussions with the IHL,
American Hockey League
(AHL) and
East Coast Hockey League
(ECHL) to gauge interest in the Grand Rapids market.
[
2
]
Also that month, Bruce Saurs, owner of the IHL's
Peoria Rivermen
, visited Grand Rapids to discuss with the group potential relocation of his team.
[
3
]
In April, however, the IHL's board of directors voted to waive one of its expansion criteria – that the city's metropolitan area comprise at least one million people – and grant West Michigan Hockey a franchise for US million. The league ultimately was swayed by the community's response, which included over 8,000 season ticket requests, and the new, fully financed arena.
[
4
]
The construction of
Van Andel Arena
paved the way for professional hockey's return to Grand Rapids.
A "name the team" contest was held in June 1995; at the announcement, DeVos hinted that the group was looking for something "with a face ... with a personality, that we can translate into a mascot of some sort".
[
5
]
"Grand Rapids Griffins" was chosen as the winning entry, and the logo and colors of the hockey club were unveiled in November. The logo was designed by Sean Michael Edwards Design, Inc., a New York firm whose portfolio includes logos for the
Florida Panthers
and
Seattle Mariners
. In keeping with the traditional theme desired by the club, navy blue and gold were chosen as the primary colors, along with hunter green, red and silver accents. "We didn't want to be trendy in any way", DeVos said.
[
6
]
Former IHL goaltender and
Cleveland Lumberjacks
assistant general manager
Bob McNamara
was hired in January 1996 as general manager.
[
7
]
His first move was to hire
Dave Allison
, who had briefly coached the
Ottawa Senators
that season, as head coach.
[
8
]
Among the first players to join the team were defensemen
Todd Nelson
and
Travis Richards
and goaltender
Pokey Reddick
, all of whom brought
National Hockey League
(NHL) experience.
[
9
]
[
10
]
On the business side, the Griffins secured a deal with
WOOD-AM
to broadcast all regular season and playoff games in their inaugural season.
[
11
]
Rich Kincaide then left his sportscaster position at
WJR
in Detroit to become the Griffins' play-by-play announcer and director of communications.
[
12
]
The team also signed agreements with
WZZM
and
WWMT
to televise a handful of games each.
[
13
]
Following lengthy negotiations with the City of Grand Rapids,
[
14
]
[
15
]
[
16
]
[
17
]
a DeVos-owned company took over operations of Belknap Ice Arena, which was then renovated for use as the Griffins' practice facility.
[
18
]
Independent years (1996–99)
Grand Rapids was
Pavol Demitra
's last minor league stop before establishing himself in the NHL.
McNamara filled the Griffins' 1996–97 inaugural season roster with IHL and AHL veterans (notably
Michel Picard
,
Jeff Nelson
and
Don McSween
) and a handful of prospects. He also signed affiliation agreements with the
Muskegon Fury
of the
Colonial Hockey League
(CHL) and the
Mississippi Sea Wolves
of the ECHL.
[
19
]
[
20
]
The Griffins won their inaugural game on the road against the
Indianapolis Ice
,
[
21
]
but lost the home opener to the
Orlando Solar Bears
six days later.
[
22
]
An early-season record of 9–10–2 improved after the addition of
Pavol Demitra
, who was acquired in a trade with the
Las Vegas Thunder
in late November, and NHL veteran
Danton Cole
, who signed with the team after a stint in the
German Ice Hockey League
(DEL).
[
23
]
[
24
]
[
25
]
The Griffins were paced by the top forward line of Picard, Jeff Nelson and Demitra;
[
26
]
all three averaged over one point per game during the regular season.
[
27
]
Demitra left the Griffins in March 1997 after signing a contract with the
St. Louis Blues
,
[
28
]
and scored over 300 goals in sixteen NHL seasons.
[
29
]
He was replaced on the first line by rookie
Kevyn Adams
,
[
30
]
who went on to play in ten NHL seasons.
[
31
]
Grand Rapids finished in last place in a strong Northeast Division with a record of 40–30–12;
[
32
]
the team's opening round playoff series with Orlando ended in a 3–2 loss.
[
33
]
Picard was voted a first-team all star by the league's coaches after finishing fourth in league scoring with 46 goals and 55 assists in 82 games.
[
34
]
[
35
]
The franchise's first season was considered a success by the IHL,
[
36
]
which held its 1997 All-Star Game in front of a capacity crowd at the 10,834-seat
Van Andel Arena
. Thirty-nine of forty-one home games were also sellouts, and the Griffins set an IHL record with season ticket sales capped at 7,000.
[
37
]
Before the 1997–98 season, the Griffins selected
Glen Metropolit
and two other players in the IHL expansion draft – postponed a year due to extended labor negotiations between the league and its players – signed NHL journeymen forwards
Mark Greig
and
Ed Patterson
,
[
38
]
[
39
]
and re-signed Michel Picard. Most of the previous season's defensive core also returned,
[
40
]
though Don McSween was traded following
Kerry Huffman
's signing early in the season.
[
41
]
[
42
]
Goaltender Pokey Reddick requested and was granted a trade after splitting playing time with
Ian Gordon
early in the season;
Patrick Lalime
signed with the team shortly thereafter.
[
43
]
By December, the Griffins were contending for first place in the Northeast Division, largely on the strength of their goaltending and the top forward line of Picard, Metropolit and Greig.
[
44
]
Picard was recalled by the St. Louis Blues in January for fifteen games;
[
45
]
Chris Lindberg
signed with the team shorty after Picard's recall, but was later suspended by the IHL after bolting to play for Swiss team
EV Zug
.
[
46
]
The Griffins' record fell to 30–25–7 by March, and disagreements over what changes needed to be made prompted McNamara to fire head coach Dave Allison.
[
47
]
McNamara assumed the coaching duties for the final twenty games of the regular season, as well as the playoffs, in which the Griffins were swept in the first round by the
Cincinnati Cyclones
.
[
48
]
Picard, with 28 goals and 41 assists in 58 games, again led the team in scoring,
[
49
]
though another recall to the Blues left him unavailable for the playoffs.
[
50
]
Glen Metropolit
led the Griffins in scoring for the 1998–1999 IHL season. He has gone on to play in over 400 NHL games with seven teams.
In July 1998,
Guy Charron
was introduced as the Griffins' new head coach; his previous seventeen years of coaching experience included five years as an assistant coach with the
Calgary Flames
of the NHL.
[
51
]
His new team endured a flurry of roster moves following the departure of Mark Greig, Patrick Lalime and
Shane Hnidy
, all of whom signed NHL contracts.
[
52
]
Kip Miller
signed with the Griffins in August but left the team before playing in a regular season game, instead earning an NHL roster spot after his rights were traded to the
Pittsburgh Penguins
.
[
53
]
Key additions who stuck with the team included forward
Robert Petrovicky
and
Darren Rumble
. Early-season signees Joe Frederick and
Andrei Vasilyev
provided an offensive boost,
[
54
]
[
55
]
but injuries on the defensive side preceded a franchise-record seven game losing streak in November, leaving the Griffins with the worst record in the IHL at that point.
[
56
]
[
57
]
Among the few bright spots for the team was the play of linemates Metropolit, who scored the franchise's first ever natural
hat trick
that season,
[
58
]
and Petrovicky, who was named the IHL's Player of the Month for November after scoring five goals and 12 assists in 12 games.
[
59
]
Petrovicky signed an NHL contract with the
Tampa Bay Lightning
in February, and the Griffins made numerous roster moves in the following weeks in an effort to qualify for the playoffs.
[
60
]
[
61
]
[
62
]
[
63
]
The team finished with the second worst record in the 1998–99 IHL season, and failed to earn a playoff spot. (The IHL, down to 16 teams that year, had adopted a 12-team playoff format.)
[
64
]
Metropolit's 81 points led the team and placed him ninth in league scoring;
[
65
]
[
66
]
he went on to play in eight NHL seasons.
[
67
]
Ottawa Senators affiliation and joining the AHL (1999–2002)
This section requires
expansion
.
(October 2010)
Late in the 1998–99 season, general manager Bob McNamara on numerous occasions discussed an affiliation agreement with
Rick Dudley
, the first-year general manager of the Ottawa Senators. Dudley considered other franchises,
[
68
]
and left the Senators before a deal was in place, but his replacement,
Marshall Johnston
, ultimately chose Grand Rapids. The two-year agreement called for the assignment of twelve Senators prospects to the Griffins each year. "[T]he most significant reason we've pursued this is because we want to win a championship", said McNamara.
[
69
]
Griffins co-owner Dan DeVos echoed that sentiment: "This decision was not based on a financial analysis. Our intent was to improve our record."
[
69
]
Detroit Red Wings affiliation (2002–present)
Located in-state only three hours from Detroit, the Grand Rapids Griffins have given the Detroit Red Wings what they had sought after for years - a local AHL affiliate. The previous affiliate the Adirondack Red Wings was considered too far away for the preferences of Red Wings management (and back-and-forth player assignments) and so the franchise was suspended with the intention of relocation to Toledo, Ohio, just a short distance from Detroit. These plans never materialized (probably due to Toledo being a market considered too small to financially support an AHL team after all) and so that AHL franchise stayed dormant for years until being reactivated as the San Antonio Rampage.
Season-by-season results
This is a partial list of the last five seasons completed by the Griffins. For the full season-by-season history, see
List of Grand Rapids Griffins seasons
Regular Season
Playoffs
Season
Games
Won
Lost
OTL
SOL
Points
PCT
Goals
for
Goals
against
Standing
Year
1st
round
2nd
round
3rd
round
Finals
2008–09
80
43
25
6
6
98
.613
255
226
3rd, North
2009
W, 4-2,
HAM
L, 4-0,
MTB
—
—
2009–10
80
34
39
3
4
75
.469
244
265
7th, North
2010
Out of playoffs
2010–11
80
36
34
2
8
82
.513
227
254
6th, North
2011
Out of playoffs
2011–12
76
33
32
7
4
77
.507
245
249
4th, North
2012
Out of playoffs
2012–13
76
42
26
4
4
92
.605
234
205
1st, Midwest
2013
W, 3-2,
HOU
—
—
—
Players
Main article:
List of Grand Rapids Griffins players
Current roster
view
talk
edit
Updated February 24, 2013
[
70
]
[
71
]
#
Nat
Player
Pos
S
/
G
Age
Acquired
Birthplace
Contract
5
Sweden !
Almqvist, Adam
Adam Almqvist
2.0 !
D
L
22
2012
Jonkoping, Sweden
Red Wings
18
Sweden !
Andersson, Joakim
Joakim Andersson
4.0 !
C
L
24
2009
Munkedal, Sweden
Red Wings
22
Canada !
Aubry, Louis-Marc
Louis-Marc Aubry
4.0 !
C
L
21
2011
Arthabaska, Quebec
Red Wings
14
United States !
Billins, Chad
Chad Billins
2.0 !
D
L
23
2012
Marysville, Michigan
Griffins
15
United States !
Callahan, Mitch
Mitch Callahan
7.0 !
RW
R
21
2011
Whittier, California
Red Wings
44
Canada !
Evans, Brennan
Brennan Evans
(
A
)
2.0 !
D
L
31
2012
North Battleford, Saskatchewan
Griffins
29
Canada !
Ferraro, Landon
Landon Ferraro
4.0 !
C
R
21
2010
Trail, British Columbia
Red Wings
20
Canada !
Fournier, Gleason
Gleason Fournier
2.0 !
D
L
21
2011
Saint-Fabien, Quebec
Red Wings
33
United States !
Glendening, Luke
Luke Glendening
7.0 !
RW
R
24
2012
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Griffins
23
Canada !
Grant, Triston
Triston Grant
6.0 !
LW
L
29
2010
Neepawa, Manitoba
Griffins
10
Canada !
Hoggan, Jeff
Jeff Hoggan
(
C
)
6.0 !
LW
L
35
2011
Hope, British Columbia
Griffins
28
Slovakia !
Jurco, Tomas
Tomas Jurco
7.0 !
RW
R
20
2012
Kosice, Czechoslovakia
Red Wings
32
United States !
Lashoff, Brian
Brian Lashoff
(
A
)
2.0 !
D
L
22
2010
Albany, New York
Red Wings
34
Czech Republic !
Mrazek, Petr
Petr Mrazek
1.0 !
G
L
21
2012
Ostrava, Czechoslovakia
Red Wings
11
Czech Republic !
Nestrasil, Andrej
Andrej Nestrasil
7.0 !
RW
L
22
2011
Prague, Czechoslovakia
Red Wings
17
United States !
Nicastro, Max
Max Nicastro
2.0 !
D
R
23
2012
Thousand Oaks, California
Red Wings
13
Sweden !
Nyquist, Gustav
Gustav Nyquist
7.0 !
RW
L
23
2011
Halmstad, Sweden
Red Wings
4
Canada !
Paetsch, Nathan
Nathan Paetsch
2.0 !
D
L
30
2012
LeRoy, Saskatchewan
Griffins
9
Canada !
Pare, Francis
Francis Pare
7.0 !
RW
R
25
2008
LeMoyne, Quebec
Red Wings
21
Canada !
Parkes, Trevor
Trevor Parkes
6.0 !
LW
R
21
2011
Fort Erie, Ontario
Red Wings
1
United States !
Pearce, Jordan
Jordan Pearce
1.0 !
G
L
26
2009
Anchorage, Alaska
Red Wings
12
Canada !
Raedeke, Brent
Brent Raedeke
4.0 !
C
L
22
2010
Regina, Saskatchewan
Red Wings
19
Canada !
Sheahan, Riley
Riley Sheahan
4.0 !
C
L
21
2012
St. Catharines, Ontario
Red Wings
27
Slovakia !
Tatar, Tomas
Tomas Tatar
6.0 !
LW
L
22
2009
Ilava, Czechoslovakia
Red Wings
39
Slovenia !
Mursak, Jan
Jan Mursak
7.0 !
RW
R
25
2013
Maribor, Slovenia
Red Wings
Retired numbers
24
:
Travis Richards
, D, 1996–2006
Club records
Single season
Most
goals
:
Donald MacLean
, 56, 2005–06
Most
assists
:
Jiri Hudler
, 60, 2005–06
Most
points
:
Michel Picard
, 101, 1996–97
Most
penalty minutes
:
Darryl Bootland
, 390, 2005–06
Most wins:
Mike Fountain
, 2000–01, and
Joey MacDonald
, 2004–05, 34
Best
goals against average
:
Martin Prusek
, 1.83, 2001–02
Best
save percentage
: Joey MacDonald, .936, 2003–04
Career
Most goals: Michel Picard, 158
Most assists: Michel Picard, 222
Most points: Michel Picard, 380
Most penalty minutes: Darryl Bootland, 1,164
Most wins:
Jimmy Howard
, 90
Most
shutouts
: Joey MacDonald, 16
Most games:
Travis Richards
, 655