As promised, I attended the Griffins home opener against Abbotsford. Very entertaining game -- Grand Rapids fell down early, but played a strong final two periods (Detroit could learn something). They finally took a 4-3 lead with 1:19 left off of a Kris Chucko 5-minute boarding major, and hit an empty net goal later.

I was really impressed overall, the team has a lot of skill. Abbotsford is bigger and grittier, so they gave the Griffins some trouble, but it was a great game. I'm gonna try to write a bit on everyone, but I was certainly watching some players more than others.

Here were the lines, though they changed early and often. I cannot place Mursak at all, I'm not sure where he started. I know Tatar was with Williams, but I can't remember who centered that line and I don't think Mursak did. But I know the other three are right. They rolled four lines, even on the powerplay:

Dick Axelsson | Michael Nylander | Jamie Tardif
Tomas Tatar | Jan Mursak | Jeremy Williams
Patrick Rissmiller | Kris Newbury | Mattias Ritola
Cory Emmerton | Evan McGrath | John Vigilante

Jakub Kindl | Andy Delmore
Sergei Kolosov | Doug Janik
Logan Pyett | Paul Crosty

Daniel Larsson

Here are the individual reports. It's long, so I don't expect anyone to read them all. I just know some people like to keep tabs on certain players, so I wanted to get as many preliminary impressions as I could.

Logan Pyett: He looked a lot more confident than last year, at least offensively. He joined the rush a lot and handled the puck a bit more, but he's still a little rough on the defensive end. He was on the ice for the first two goals against. He just looked really overmatched against some of the bigger Griffins.

Jakub Kindl: Good news and bad news: I didn't notice him. That means, he didn't make any terrible mistakes defensively, but he was invisible offensively. Part of that had to do with Michael Nylander playing the point over him on the top powerplay, but he definitely had some significant powerplay time. He's a great skater and he threw his weight around when he could. Looks good for a guy on a one-way contract for next year, could easily step into the 6th spot and work his way up.

Cory Emmerton: He was really invisible tonight, a little bit on the disappointing size, though he did start on what I would call the 4th line. Honestly, he had two big hits, and not much else, which isn't really his game, but it shows that he's gotten stronger. He should be making more of his powerplay time, because he's got the playmaking skills to be more than a grinder, which is what he was tonight. However, he and Tatar rotated in on the top line in the 3rd period, so he wasn't bad by any stretch.

Evan McGrath: Looked good in the first, but faded away like Emmerton after the first period. Scored the Griffins first goal on a nice snipe from the slot. Had a couple more good chances, but didn't see much powerplay time. He's definitely at his best with Francis Lemieux and Francis Pare, but both of them were out today. Lemieux was hurt, I thought I heard Pare was sick, but I'm not sure.

John Vigilante: He's not under contract with the Wings, but as I thought, he's an effective AHL player. He used to play for the Plymouth Whalers, so I'm really familiar with him (great hockey name, no?). He was a scorer in the OHL, but he's more of a grinder and energy guy now. He looked good, good addition for the Griffins.

Kris Newbury: Looked a lot more in his element than he did in the pre-season -- looked like a solid two-way player. Picked up the game winning goal on the powerplay on a mad scramble in front. Wouldn't be the worst thing in the world if he came up, but he's not really a Detroit-style player. Dished out some big hits, but was the victim of Abbotsford's (that feels so strange to write) two biggest. Was the first star for the winning goal, but he didn't really deliver a knock out performance.

Dick Axelsson: I'm not sure what happened. I thought he looked awesome. Scary good. Opened the game with Nylander and Tardif and that was the only line that remained unchanged through two period. But I'm not sure if he took a shift in the third. Not sure if he got hurt (had a knee injury that kept him out of the pre-season) or Curt Fraser just kept him on the bench. But he was involved in the play, had four shots (three solid chances), really not afraid to get his nose dirty (and I saw the mean streak that got him 157 PIM in 28 games during his draft year). He can keep it under control, but he really gets in people's faces and doesn't take kindly to little things like people leaning on him before faceoffs. He's a guy that I've always ranked higher among prospects than the likes of HF and RWC, and today I feel like he re-assured my belief in him. I really like him as a player on the second or third line that can play right up on the edge of aggressive without racking up too many PIM (he's been better since moving up to higher levels in Sweden) but with the ability to put up some points. Fun player to watch, and he's clearly already won over big minutes as a rookie (provided he was actually hurt and not benched -- no idea why he would be benched though).

Jan Mursak: Like Logan Pyett, he looks like a completely different player than last year. He was always fast, with good hands, but his slow start last year left him between the 4th line and press box. He put on some much needed strength (still needs a little more) and with the Griffins new lineup, he's got offensive players no matter what line he ends up on. I feel like he didn't get a ton of ice time, but he still did well and saw pretty consistent powerplay minutes. He looks like he wants the puck this year, and he has the ability to do something with it. He was rewarded with an empty net goal, equaling his entire goal total from last season with two on the season.

Pat Rissmiller: I expected more from a big guy who's seen a lot of NHL time. If you don't know the story, unlike Michael Nylander who is on a tryout, Rissmiller was acquired by the Griffins (no idea what they gave up, if anything. The press release makes it sound like he was just directly loaned from the Rangers just because they don't want him anymore.) from the Hartford Wolf*Pack, though he remains property of the New York Rangers. But for 182 NHL games, most in the past few years, he didn't stand out. He spent last season in Hartford and had 54 points in 64 games, so he can score. Maybe it was his line and just the fact that, as someone acquired in the past two days, he wasn't going to play a huge role, but he didn't meet my expectations. But he is a 6'4 forward who can skate well, so he adds an element the Griffins don't have if the Rangers keep him there all season. Looked good, but needs to make more of an impact.

Mattias Ritola: I tried to look hard at him because I seem to notice him more in pre-season Detroit games than Grand Rapids games. I noticed him a lot more today, though. Saw flashes of the high skill level he was billed with, but his play along the boards as a grinder has come along. He didn't play a ton, but I certainly noticed when he was out there. His goal was great, a perfect display of his patience and skill level as well as his willingness to pay the price to make a play. Outwaited a defenseman and the Heat goalie as he cut across the slot and put a backhander into an open net. Good stuff from Ritola -- probably the top candidate for a callup if Detroit needs it.

Jeremy Williams: Unlike Newbury, he actually looked pretty average in the AHL. He wasn't promised as much else, but he pretty much only is a threat in the offensive zone. He took the only penalty I'd classify as "stupid" with a boarding call. Good around the net though, and useful on the powerplay. Important for the Griffins, though a 90-point Darren Haydar replacement he is not.

Andy Delmore: Actually looked pretty solid, even as I cringed to see him paired with Kindl to open the game. The AHL fits his style of play well, and as of right now, I don't see much that separates he and the struggling Lebda/Meech besides Delmore's huge shot against both of their skating abilities. He never got burned. Lebda was pretty solid the past two games, so we'll see where he goes. But after Detroit dropped the first two games, I saw a few fans call for Delmore to be recalled. I wouldn't be opposed to that if neither Lebda or Meech can get it going. His shot demands respect. However, he was the victim on the dirty boarding call that gave Grand Rapids the 5-minute powerplay which resulted in the GWG. He was down for a while, and his shoulder didn't look quite right as he skated off. As there were only 4 minutes left, he didn't come back, but I would be shocked to see him play tomorrow.

Paul Crosty: Vigilante and Crosty are the only Griffins-contracted players who suited up tonight. Crosty was billed as the heavyweight fighter, and he lived up to that. He had a nice scrap with Abbotsfords' J.D. Watt where he landed about a dozen punches to Watt's pair. He barely played though, as he looks really rough around the puck. He's listed as a forward for Grand Rapids, but he's played defense all his life. Grand Rapids put him on the point tonight instead of Travis Ehrhardt or Sebastien Piche, who had been rotating. Crosty has an element that nobody else does with the way he can throw, but it does limit Grand Rapids to five defensemen and puts a lot of pressure on a #5 like Logan Pyett who hasn't completely adjusted to the AHL yet. To be certain, he's a perfect AHL goon.

Jamie Tardif: He's been strange for me to watch develop. I saw him multiple times while he was in the OHL. He really blossomed into a strong, scoring power forward. Then he signed in Grand Rapids and did nothing but fight when I saw him two years ago. Then Detroit signed him, and he was a 4th liner and/or hurt every time I saw him last year. This year, he's the captain and played the whole game on the top line. Looks like an entirely different player. He's gritty and he'll never cheat you on effort. I'm not sure what kind of numbers he can put up though, and if he's better off on the 3rd or 4th line with big PK minutes, as he didn't do much on the powerplay.

Tomas Tatar: Yep, he's staying in Grand Rapids as far as I'm concerned. Not on the scoresheet, but Tatar was fantastic tonight. I was looking specifically for him, but it wasn't hard to find him as he was constantly around the puck. Not a big guy, but not afraid. He showed a lot of energy tonight and he's a much quicker skater than he looks on TV. When Axelsson was hurt/benched/MIA, Tatar took a lot of the top line minutes and had a few great shifts on the cycle with Nylander. He had a glorious breakaway chance that he just fired high after getting a pass from Doug Janik while stepping out of the box. Three shots total, and at least two more that I saw which were just fired over the crossbar. He loves to score. Of all the Griffins right now, I'd put him as the safest bet to be an NHLer some day. I'd target about two to three years as he adds strength. I don't see much of a point for him in Plymouth, other than adding a hilarious amount of depth.

Sergei Kolosov: He looks like a much better skater than when I saw him last year, but he didn't play a whole lot. Most of that is probably due to Grand Rapids having 12 powerplays, and while Kolosov is solid, he's not a guy I'd trust on the point of a powerplay (pairings were Nylander/Delmore, and then Kindl/Pyett with Janik rotating in). I do trust him though, and I'm going to keep a closer eye on him this season. The fewer mistakes he makes, the more likely he is to become a Red Wing down the line, and he didn't make any glaring ones tonight.

Doug Janik: He was on the ice a lot, but I didn't see him do much. As I always say, that's good for a defensive defenseman, as I noticed him in the pre-season making a lot of mistakes and falling more than Filppula. He's a great addition to Grand Rapids, in my opinion.

Michael Nylander: An interesting performance. It's hard to describe what a 600+ NHL points, 900+ NHL games player looks like against AHL competition. One one hand, he most assuredly had the puck on his stick more than anyone else in this game. So patient and composed, and made so many of the right plays. On the other hand, his legs aren't all back yet and he was just average speed-wise. But he made a lot of nice moves from early on in the game which gave him a lot of room, as no defenders wanted to face him and get burned. However, I had no idea that he had three points and got named second star. This would be an example of a game where you see the boxscore and assume he dominated, but the game told a different story. He was great, his skill level is obvious and he was very controlling of the play, but not exactly dominant. He had one good assist, then a "you score, I don't want to" pass to Mursak on the empty netter, and a second assist on a goal that Ritola really created on his own. So "three assists" is not really how I'd describe his game, if you see what I'm saying. Still, he's basically auditioning for European teams to prove that he's in shape and can still play. And I think he accomplished that. He has no business in the AHL.

Daniel Larsson: Not a great start, but a strong finish. Coming into the game with a 6.56 GAA and .795 save percentage, I can't imagine his confidence was that high. The first two goals were on the opposite end of the ice as I was, so I can't say for certain if they were weak. The first was off more of a scramble and I could not see at all where he was in the net. The second I felt he could have had, but I'd like to see it again. After that, he was shaky. He fought a few rebounds and had a really easy shot slide past him and basically sit on the goal line before a defender cleared it away. But he was just perfect in the third period. He faced some difficult shots and his confidence came back -- no strange rebounds. The game wouldn't have been 3-3 going into the 3rd if he played this way the whole game, but he definitely made a few saves that allowed the Griffins to take the eventual lead.

Funny note to the game. For some reason, after Mursak scored the empty netter, fans started throwing the free giveaway mugs onto the ice. There were glow-in-the-dark Griffins mugs (you can kind of make out the glowing effect they had on the darkness here, but I didn't get a shot of the crowd with them) for the first 5,000 fans, which I was not one of. Mursak scored with 4 seconds left, and for some reason as soon as he scored, one of the mugs hit the ice.. and then another.. and then another.. and then about a dozen more, and before you knew it about a hundred mugs were pouring onto the ice.

It was funny, but a little dangerous. Dollar Beer Night doesn't leave people with the most accurate of throwing arms, a few mugs landed pretty close to my section and the way they splashed led me to believe there was still beer in most of them. But I snapped a pretty good picture of the Griffins helping the ice crew clean up all these mugs (though for some reason they're not too visible.. maybe I snapped the picture later than I thought I did).

The best part though, which my cell phone camera (I can't figure out how to zoom in, if you couldn't tell from my pictures) didn't capture, was that most of the mugs shattered when they hit the ice, so the "glowing" lime green material inside the mugs seeped out, and there was just a bunch of highlighter-colored stains on the ice as they finished the last 4.8 seconds. I have no idea how that stuff will come out, I think it would add some serious class to the team if they just left those stains on for the whole season.. but I think the Zambonis will shave it off, unfortunately.

Anyway.. hope you got what you were looking for out of this recap. The Griffins play at home again tomorrow versus the Toronto Marlies, but I think I'll skip that to watch college football and the Wings/Avs. But I might have to hit up Van Andel again on Sunday to catch Abbotsford again. I'll make that decision tomorrow, and will ideally have another (but likely shorter) recap on that Sunday night. Stay tuned.