What Offensive Slump? Griffins’ Score 15 Goals in Two Games

For almost two months the Grand Rapids Griffins’ efforts to score goals was like trying to wrestle an extra-large sofa up multiple flights and through a narrow doorway of an upstairs flat.

It could be done, with three people working together, but it wasn’t as easy as they wanted it to be.

During a recent four-game losing streak, the Grand Rapids squad netted just five goals.  In one span from Feb. 12 to March 4, the Griffins scored two or fewer goals seven times in 10 games. They lost all seven of those contests. The loss of the scoring touch began in late January and early February when they were shut out in three consecutive games. Opponents out-scored the Griffins 11-0 in those games. The goal drought lasted 189.20 minutes before Gabriel Seger scored Feb. 8 against the Milwaukee Admirals.

The challenges of these many weeks is why the Griffins, with the playoffs not far away, have to be relieved that they managed to score 15 goals this weekend in winning a home-and-home series against the Rockford IceHogs. They won 8-3 in Grand Rapids Friday and 7-5 in Rockford Saturday.

For the Red Wings, the best news was that their prospects led the Griffins out of their scoring black hole. Amadeus Lombardi had two goals and three points in Saturday’s win. He boasted a goal and two points on Friday. The former Ontario Hockey League standout has six goals in his last five games.

Lombardi now has 18 goals, giving him a shot at being a 20-goals scorer. It’s an impressive total for a player who was sidelined Dec. 2-Feb.20 with an injury. He’s a player who has enhanced his prospect status with his play this season.

Johansson’s First AHL Points

Nate Danielson, a 2023 first-round pick, had been in a mini-slump, with no points in four games. But he had three assists Saturday to go with two goals and one assist on Friday. His six points give him 38 for the season.

EMMITT FINNIE FIRST PRO GOAL🚨 #LGRW #GoGRG pic.twitter.com/ajFIbJqUYb

— Red Wings Prospects (@LGRWProspects) April 6, 2025

Defenseman Anton Johansson, who joined the Griffins after his Swedish Hockey League season, also had three assists on Saturday. Emmitt Finnie picked up his first professional assist in Friday’s game and added his first pro goal in Saturday’s contest. He joined the team recently after scoring 37 goals for the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League.

The cause of the Griffins goal-scoring struggles was injuries and the Red Wings needing to call up multiple players from Grand Rapids.

This week, the Red Wings returned Austin Watson and Dominik Shine. It’s not a coincidence that the team began scoring again. Playing on Danielson’s wing, Watson boasted two goals Saturday to give him three goals and two assists on the weekend. Playing alongside Lombardi, Shine’s weekend total was two goals and three assists.