The Manitoba Moose and Grand Rapids Griffins meet for Game 3 of their best-of-five Central Division Semifinals series this evening at Van Andel Arena. The series sits tied 1-1 after the teams split the Winnipeg-based portion of the set. Both squads grabbed their wins in shutout fashion, with the Moose taking Game 1 by a 1-0 count and Grand Rapids claiming Game 2 with a 2-0 scoreline. 

Coverage of today’s matchup gets going at 5:45 p.m. CT on CJOB.com, the Winnipeg Jets App and AHLTV on FloHockey. Puck drop is slated for 6 p.m. CT. 

Hit the Road

The Moose hit the road for the first time in the 2026 Calder Cup Playoffs after opening the post-season with five straight home games. Manitoba tallied a 17-14-3-2 record on the road throughout the AHL’s regular season. Mason Shaw (9G, 14A) and Phil Di Giuseppe (10G, 13A) led the Moose with 23 points each in 36 road games. Di Giuseppe scored 10 of his 15 goals on the road this season, while Walker Duehr tallied 11 of his 17 goals in enemy territory. Specifically in Grand Rapids, Di Giuseppe paced the Moose with three points (2G, 1A) in four games. His goals included a shorthanded overtime-winner on Feb. 25. 

Goalie Duel

Domenic DiVincentiis and Michal Postava put on a show at Canada Life Centre in Game 1 and Game 2. The opposing goaltenders combined to stop 123 of 126 shots that came their way over the first two games of the series. DiVincentiis stopped 71 of 73, while Postava turned away 52 of 53. DiVincentiis hasn’t allowed more than two goals in a start over his past five games, going back to the regular season, allowing one or fewer in four of those games. Meanwhile, Postava hasn’t allowed more than two goals in six consecutive starts, tallying three shutouts in that span. Both goalies are getting their first taste of Calder Cup Playoffs action this year. 

Defending Like Demons

Manitoba has allowed just eight goals over five playoff games, averaging 1.60 goals-against per contest. Half of those eight goals came in the antlered ones’ first game of the post-season in a 4-1 loss to the Milwaukee Admirals on April 22. Since then, the Moose have allowed four goals over four outings. Manitoba held the opposition off the scoreboard in nine of its first 15 periods of the playoffs. Manitoba finished the regular season allowing 3.00 goals against per game, ninth in the AHL. 

Mid-Week Moosin’ 

The Moose posted a 5-5-0-1 record on Wednesdays throughout the regular season, including a 3-2 win over the Griffins on Feb. 25. Samuel Fagemo (5G, 2A), Mason Shaw (3G, 4A) and Phil Di Giuseppe (3G, 4A) led the Moose with seven points each in Wednesday games. Fagemo’s five goals led the Moose. Goaltender Domenic DiVincentiis posted a 3-1-0 record on the middle day of the week, supported by a 2.31 goals-against average and a .915 save percentage. 

Who’s Trending?

Moose captain Mason Shaw led the team with five shots on goal in Manitoba’s Game 2 loss to the Griffins. Shaw scored the winner in Game 1, marking his first career Calder Cup Playoffs game-winning tally. The Wainwright, Alta. product posted two game-winners during the regular season and holds 15 career winning tallies between regular season and playoffs.