Home Ice Highlights: Griffins Dramatically Sweep San Antonio Rampage

There was no shortage of drama at the Van Andel Arena this weekend – home of the Grand Rapids Griffins. In the midst of a seven-game homestand, the Griffins have had an incredible stretch of games to extend their lead in the Central Division. Facing former Griffins goaltender, Jared Coreau, on Friday and Evan Fitzpatrick on Saturday, Grand Rapids was aiming to capitalize on their extended home ice advantage. The Griffins have the best home-ice record in the league at 20-5-1-3 – which proved to be their best weapon.

Earning four points this weekend with consecutive defeats against the San Antonio Rampage, Grand Rapids has pushed their lead in the Central to 67 points – five ahead of the second place Iowa Wild. While Friday was a decisive victory, Saturday held a fair amount of drama for both teams.

Wade Megan has made a dramatic impact on Grand Rapids and continued to solidify is worth on Friday and throughout the weekend. Intentionally being paired with Martin Frk due to his “Nosek-style” of play, Megan was a dynamite playmaker and goal scorer. He tallied his first hat trick of the season on Friday – and there’s bound to be more.

Flip-flopping between Grand Rapids and Detroit, Megan has earned the veteran status and trust of every coach he plays under. Megan’s offensive edge and well-rounded aggressive style are exactly what the Griffins need to drive the rushes and create opportunities. He didn’t earn any points on Saturday but his presence alone opened up chances for Grand Rapids in their dramatic comeback with two minutes remaining in regulation.

Undoubtedly, Filip Zadina has been making progress in the AHL. His overtime winner on Saturday has already made highlight reels across the league. Grand Rapids trailed San Antonio 2-0 until the final two minutes of the third period. With Griffins goalie, Patrik Rybar, on the bench, Grand Rapids mounted an astounding effort which resulted in tying it at 2. In the final seconds of the third period, Martin Frk’s laser of a shot stunned Evan Fitzpatrick causing him to strain his groin and be removed from the game with just seconds to go.

Jared Coreau assumed the tendy position for the final seconds and was to remain for overtime. Filip Zadina sealed the deal on the glove side of Coreau after a decisive face-off win and a well-placed shot eight seconds into overtime.

Yes, eight seconds.

Grand Rapids is becoming notorious for astounding plays – like Chris Terry’s faceoff goal seven seconds into regulation a few weeks back – to Zadina’s game-winner. Though Zadina isn’t quite to the NHL caliber yet, he’s making a strong case for himself in the last few games in Grand Rapids.

The Griffins have made good use of their time at home. They’ve tightened up the defense quite a bit and have edged away from the third-period slump that has been a common theme throughout the season. Coach Ben Simon has been, of course, addressing the ever concerning special teams struggles, but even that is starting to take shape.

March is going to be a very hard month for Grand Rapids, whose road record is less than impressive. They will spend the vast majority of March traveling on the road – with a six consecutive away game block. The Griffins have a good lead in their division and are at the top of the Western Conference, but as the playoffs get closer, those gaps could narrow if they’re not careful.

If they can figure the power play out, they will be in good shape to duplicate the run of 2016-17.