Grand Rapids Griffins meet Rockford twice this weekend, finishing Sunday at Van Andel Arena

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The Grand Rapids Griffins meet the Rockford IceHogs for the first time this American Hockey League season in a weekend home-and-home series, starting Saturday night in Illinois and ending Sunday afternoon at Van Andel Arena.

Grand Rapids (3-1-1-0, 7 points) plays at Rockford’s BMO Center at 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 17, then hosts the IceHogs at 4 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 18, according to the team’s schedule.

The Griffins have not played since going 2-1 over three days last weekend. They beat the Manitoba Moose 2-1 in their home opener Oct. 9 behind 36 saves from goaltender Michal Postava, lost 4-1 at Milwaukee on Oct. 10, and beat the Chicago Wolves 5-1 at home on Oct. 11, according to team game reports.

Rookie forward Jesse Kiiskinen scored three straight goals and added an assist against Chicago, and no Griffins rookie had done that in a regular-season game since 2013, the team said. Kiiskinen led AHL rookies with five goals and seven points after Sunday’s game, the team said. The same game brought Dominik Shine’s 100th professional goal, coach Dan Watson’s 400th professional victory and the season debut of John Leonard, the team’s leading scorer last season, who had been rehabbing an injury, according to the Griffins.

Postava is 3-0-0. Carter Bear got his first pro goal in the loss at Milwaukee, the team said.

Rockford (1-2-0-0) has the heavier weekend. The IceHogs host the Iowa Wild at 7 p.m. Friday, so Sunday’s game in Grand Rapids will be their third in three days, according to the IceHogs. Rockford lost its home opener 3-1 to Milwaukee on Oct. 3 before 6,466 fans, then split a pair at Iowa, winning 2-1 on Oct. 9 and losing 4-3 on Oct. 10, according to team results.

Sunday is Crayola Family Night at Van Andel Arena, presented by the Grand Rapids Public Museum. Children 12 and under get a Crayola tumbler while 2,500 last, and doors open at 3 p.m., according to a Griffins release. Ice cream cups and small sodas are $1 from 3 to 5 p.m. Fans who bring a Grand Rapids Public Library or Kent District Library card to the arena box office or the team store can buy discounted upper- and lower-level tickets, up to four per card, the team said.

After the weekend, the Griffins stay home to face Manitoba at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 21, and Cleveland on Oct. 23 and 24.

Sources:
Grand Rapids Griffins, “Kiis and Tell,” game report, Griffins 5, Chicago 1, Oct. 11, 2026, https://griffinshockey.com/news/oct-11-2026-griffins-5-vs-wolves-1
Grand Rapids Griffins, “Walk the Plank,” game report, Milwaukee 4, Griffins 1, Oct. 10, 2026, https://griffinshockey.com/news/oct-10-2026-griffins-1-at-admirals-4
Grand Rapids Griffins, “Stealing the Spotlight,” game report, Griffins 2, Manitoba 1, Oct. 9, 2026, https://griffinshockey.com/news/oct-9-2026-griffins-2-vs-moose-1
Grand Rapids Griffins, 2026-27 schedule, https://griffinshockey.com/schedule
Grand Rapids Griffins, “Griffins to Host Crayola Family Night,” news release via OurSports Central, Oct. 8, 2026, https://www.oursportscentral.com/services/releases/griffins-to-host-crayola-family-night/n-6419724
Rockford IceHogs, “IceHogs Start Slow, Fall to Milwaukee 3-1 at Home,” Oct. 3, 2026, https://icehogs.com/news/icehogs-start-slow-fall-to-milwaukee-3-1-at-home
Rockford IceHogs, “Iowa Thwarts Rockford’s Comeback Attempt, IceHogs Fall to Wild 4-3,” Oct. 10, 2026, https://icehogs.com/news/game-recap-headline-10-10
Rockford IceHogs, 2026-27 results, https://icehogs.com/schedule/results
Photo: Michael Barera, “Grand Rapids Griffins vs. Milwaukee Admirals November 2023 14 (face-off).jpg,” Nov. 4, 2023, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/), cropped and color-adjusted; derivative under the same ShareAlike license, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Grand_Rapids_Griffins_vs._Milwaukee_Admirals_November_2023_14_(face-off).jpg

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