Grand Rapids and Manitoba square off at Van Andel Arena tonight in Game 4 of a hard-fought defensive Central Division semifinal series (7 ET, 
).
The Griffins, looking to celebrate their first win streak on the ice since the 2017 Calder Cup Finals, take a 2-1 series lead despite their second-ranked offense being limited to six goals in the first three games.
This is because their defense is the best in the league – supported by the goalkeeper Michal Postava (2-1, 1.01, .957) – allowed just three goals, and only one of those came on five-on-five.
Griffins protector Erik Gustafssonwho had a goal and an assist in Game 3 on Wednesday, is a veteran of nine NHL seasons, including a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals with Montreal in 2021.
“He’s a special kid,” Gustafsson said of Postava. “He is a very good goalkeeper. He makes it very easy for us to play in front of him.”
“Everyone has complete confidence and trust in him,” the head coach Dan Watson said. “Last season, he saw the puck very well, he was extremely confident, and it was followed in these play-offs.
“We have two boys (Postava no Sebastian Cossa) we can go anytime, and Michali was the guy we went to first. We’re going to keep throwing it in the net… It’s an easy decision right now.”
Manitoba faces the prospect of a second consecutive series elimination. The Moose dropped Game 1 to Milwaukee in the first round before coming back to win the last two.
“We have been in this place before where we should have won two games,” said the captain Mason Shawwho has scored two goals in the series against Grand Rapids. “You use that experience to build on it. But we haven’t taken things easy all year. So why don’t we go five games to try to beat these guys?”
Manitoba has scored a special goal in the series, with Domenic DiVincentiis (3-2, 1.43, .955) stopped 99 of 104 shots.
“I have a lot of faith in our team,” added Shaw. “Our backs are against the wall here so we will give them everything we have.”
The Springfield Thunderbirds rewrote the AHL record books last night with their dramatic 1-0 overtime victory over the Providence Bruins.
The win completed what must statistically be the biggest upset in Calder Cup Playoff history, as the Thunderbirds knocked off a Providence team that had finished 38 points ahead of them in the regular season standings. Dillon Dube scored the go-ahead goal 4:01 into overtime of Game 4.
Providence entered the final weekend of the regular season one win shy of the best regular season record in the league’s 90-year history. Instead, they lost both home-and-home ends to Utica, then dropped three of four to Springfield to see their season cut short in the Calder Cup.
“We have been talking about this plan for a long time, we are playing the game the right way,” said the Thunderbirds coach. Steve Ott. “The boys have been bought for a long time now and we know we have a really good team.”
George Romanov made 37 saves in Game 4 and stopped 123 of 129 shots in the series (1.47, .953), surpassing AHL MVP Michael DiPietro (1.96, .931).
When Ott stepped behind the Springfield bench for the first time on Jan. 23, his team was last in the Atlantic Division. They finished the regular season 19-13-2-0 under his direction and now upset Charlotte and Springfield to reach the division finals, where they will face Wilkes-Barre/Scranton starting Tuesday.
