Marco Kasper broke a tie with 10:03 left in regulation, sending Grand Rapids to a 4-2 victory at Milwaukee in Game 1 of the best-of-five Central Division series on Wednesday night.
The series resumes Monday in Milwaukee.
Brogan Rafferty he made a backhand pass to Kasper, who shot close to the beat Troy Grosenick. It was the third goal in as many games for Kasper, the eighth pick in the 2022 NHL Draft by the Detroit Red Wings.
Carter Mazur opened the scoring for the Griffins 4:48 into the contest, giving the rookie a point in each of his first five games this postseason.
Zach L'Heureux scored against the Admirals, his league-leading sixth goal in the playoffs — all in the last four games.
The teams again exchanged goals in the second half, with Zach Aston-Reese giving Grand Rapids a 2-1 lead again Phil Tomasino pulling Milwaukee again.
Joel L'Esperance closed out the scoring on an empty net with 33.5 seconds left. Kasper added two assists on a three-point play to lead the Griffins to their third straight win to start the season.
Sebastian Cossa (4-1) made 25 saves, improving to 4-0-1 against Milwaukee this season. Grand Rapids finished with a 27-14 advantage in shots on goal, including 23-8 over the last two seasons.
C1-Milwaukee Admirals vs. C2-Grand Rapids Griffins
Game 1 – Wed., May 15 – Grand Rapids 4, MILWAUKEE 2
Game 2 – Mon., May 20 – Grand Rapids at Milwaukee, 8:00
Game 3 – Wed., May 22 – Milwaukee at Grand Rapids, 7:00
*Game 4 – Friday, May 24 – Milwaukee at Grand Rapids, 7:00
*Game 5 – Sun., May 26 – Grand Rapids at Milwaukee, 6:00
*if necessary… All times in Mpumalanga
Source link
