Manitoba Moose at Grand Rapids Griffins

The Manitoba Moose find themselves in familiar territory as they fight for their playoff lives tonight in Grand Rapids.

Can they make it three-for-three in elimination games this spring?

“As a group, we really believe in ourselves,” defenceman Dylan Anhorn told reporters. “We’re right there against a team that most (observers) believe is the best team in the league, so we feel like we can take them in these tight games and we have the ability to. We’ve got a lot of confidence and we’re just excited to get the puck dropped.”

Manitoba rattled off two straight wins over the Milwaukee Admirals to keep their pursuit of the Calder Cup alive in their opening round best-of-three series. Now, they’ll need to do the same against the Griffins, who dropped the best-of-five opener 1-0 last Saturday in Winnipeg before responding with 2-0 and 4-2 victories.

“We’ve been a resilient team the whole year, especially in that first round, coming back and winning the series,” Moose centre Danny Zhilkin told the team website on Friday morning. “We have full confidence in each other. I think we’re a great team, with a lot of great tools and we’re going to use those tonight.”

It sounds like some changes may be coming to Manitoba’s lineup, but we won’t know the specifics until just before puck drop.

Although goalie Domenic DiVincentiis has been terrific, might they go back to regular-season MVP Thomas Milic?

You also wonder if some changes up front could be coming – perhaps a Kevin He professional debut? – for a group that has only managed to score three times over the first three games – and just one at even strength.

“It doesn’t change too much. We’ve got to do more of the same,” Moose defenceman Garrett Brown said in an interview posted to the team’s website.

“We’ve got to get find ways to get to the front of the net and keep finding ways to get pucks through a little better and create a few more opportunities for our guys down low. The game plan hasn’t changed too much. We’ve just got to commit to it a little more.”

Head coach Mark Morrison told reporters earlier this week he needs to see more production against a stingy Griffins squad.

“They’ve got a real solid D corps back there and we’ve got a couple of lines that are forcing them into turnovers and we need the other two lines to do the same thing,” Morrison said.

“If we can have four lines forcing them, obviously we can tire them out. But we need a couple of lines with a little bit heavier forecheck.”

—Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe

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FROM THE PRESS BOX

MIKE SAYS: You often learn a lot about a person when they are backed into a corner. The same can be true of a hockey team, I suppose.

Do they wilt? Or rise to the occasion? So far, so good for the Moose, who have handled adversity the way you’d hope.

But the Griffins are a different beast than the Admirals, and they have the benefit of home ice to provide a boost as well.

I’ve never been to Van Andel Arena, but from everything I’ve heard, it’s one of the liveliest barns in the AHL.

This will be the seventh playoff game for the affiliate of the Winnipeg Jets, and I suspect GM Kevin Cheveldayoff has learned a lot about where various prospects are when it comes to development.

Obviously, an even longer runway here to evaluate these players in high-stakes hockey would be a welcome development, so we’ll see if the Moose can find another level tonight. They’re going to need it.

I continue to be puzzled at this team’s lack of offensive finish, especially with so many players who, on paper, shouldn’t have problems in that department.

Is too much priority being placed on defensive awareness and acumen with systems that are stifling offensive creativity? That’s one of the questions that probably should be addressed in the off-season.

I get the idea of trying to make sure prospects are as well-rounded as possible, with the hope of them eventually becoming full-time NHLers. But maybe the focus has shifted a wee bit too far in that direction for some of these skilled kids.

I’d love to see Kevin He get in a game. I think he can bring the type of energy and excitement to a lineup that could use a bit of a jolt right now.

KEN SAYS: Moose captain Mason Shaw said it best on a Zoom call following the Game 3 defeat, noting that it’s not like his team needs to give the game plan a 180 to turn the tables in this series with the Griffins.

The flip side is that the Moose have been executing the game plan pretty well through the first three games of this series with the powerhouse Griffins and that resulted in a 39-save shutout from DiVincentiis in Game 1, followed by a pair of two-goal defeats (one of which came after a rally from 3-0 down and a late empty-netter).

If someone had told Morrison they would hold the Griffins and their high-powered attack to six goals through three games, he would have probably guessed that they might have a chance to win the series in Game 4 instead of having to post a victory to extend this Calder Cup playoff run.

But, as has been the case throughout the season and these playoffs, the goals haven’t come easily for a Moose team that isn’t lacking talent but rather finishing ability.

Facing elimination, the Moose are going to need a collective effort, but now is the time for veterans and youngsters alike to come through with their best games of these playoffs.

Whether that’s Parker Ford providing energy on the forecheck and getting to the net or Jaret Anderson-Dolan coming through with an important contribution like he produced when he was injected into the Winnipeg Jets lineup last spring in the opening round of the Stanley Cup playoffs against the St. Louis Blues.

Anderson-Dolan (no points in six games) has yet to get himself going offensively in this series, but he’s got some company on that front.

As for the forward prospects, Brad Lambert (no points in six games), Danny Zhilkin (no points in six games), Colby Barlow (one assist in six games) and Brayden Yager (three assists in six games) are all looking for their first professional playoff goals.

Nobody is asking that group to single-handedly carry the offensive load, but they’ve got the ability to deliver in a series where the margins are razor-thin, that’s why it says here that each of those players has a little more to give in this latest elimination game.

The Griffins depth has been evident in this series and they’ve spread the load offensively, but the play of longtime NHL blue-liner Erik Gustafsson has been noteworthy, and not just for his goal and assist in Game 3.

Defenceman partner Antti Tuomisto has also caught my attention with his strong two-way play and he looks like someone that is ready to graduate to the NHL this fall, especially when you consider he’s no longer exempt from waivers.

PROJECTED LINES

MANITOBA MOOSE

Lineup changes are anticipated closer to puck drop.

FORWARDS:

Mason Shaw–David Gustafsson–Walker Duehr
Jaret Anderson-Dolan–Danny Zhilkin–Sam Fagemo
Brad Lambert–Brayden Yager–Lucas Wahlin
Colby Barlow–Parker Ford–Phi Di Giuseppe

DEFENCE:

Isaak Phillips–Garrett Brown
Ashton Sautner–Tyrel Bauer
Dylan Anhorn–Kale Clague

GOAL:

Dom DiVincentiis
Thomas Milic

Injured: D Elias Salomonsson (shoulder surgery), D Ethan Frisch (lower body), F Davis Burnside (lower body)

Healthy scratches: F Tyson Empey, F Kevin He, F Jacob Julien, F Fabian Wagner, F Jayden Dureau, F Chase Yoder, D Dawson Barteaux, D Lukas Gustafsson, D Alfons Freij, D Ben Zloty, G Isaac Poulter, G Alex Worthington

GRAND RAPIDS GRIFFINS

FORWARDS:

John Leonard-Sheldon Dries-Dominik Shine
Carter Mazur-Amadeus Lombardi-Michael Brandsegg-Nygard
Eduards Tralmaks-Wojciech Stachowiak-Jakub Rychlovsky
Tyler Angle-Gabriel Seger-Alex Doucet

DEFENCE:

Erik Gustafsson-Antti Tuomisto
William Lagesson-Axel Sandin-Pellikka
William Wallinder-Anton Johansson

GOAL:

Michal Postava
Sebastian Cossa

NOTABLE QUOTABLE

Moose centre Danny Zhilkin on facing elimination for the third time:

“I don’t think anybody wants the season to be over. We love each other and as a team, we love to come to the rink every day and play for each other and have fun around. It’s going to be a good battle and we’re not going down.”