Beauty Play of the Week (10.08 -10.14.2025) : Austin Watson’s First Goal of the 2025-26 Season
Photo Credit: Nicolas Carrillo/Grand Rapids Griffins
*The”Beauty Play of the Week” was created to highlight some of the plays which showcase the beauty of the Griffins on-ice play during their 30th anniversary season.
The Grand Rapids Griffins kicked off their 30th anniversary season with a weekend sweep of their Central Division foe, the Texas Stars, 4-3 and 3-2..
Forward Carter Mazur shone in game one, scoring his first professional hat trick. He was named “First Star of the Game” by Texas media and “First Star of the Night” by the American Hockey League (AHL).
In game two, rookie goaltender Michal Postava stood tall, stopping 27 of 29 shots to earn his first professional victory between the pipes. At the end of the weekend, Mazur, Alex Kannok-Leipert, and Amadeus Lombardi finished the weekend with one multi-point game each.
The first weekend of the season provided many thrilling and exciting moments, but there was one play that stuck out the most: Austin Watson’s first goal of the season.
This play earned “Beauty Play of the Week” honors due to a full team effort and amazing chemistry, which moved the play up ice.
Postava set everything into motion by holding the puck behind the net until Antti Tuomisto could retrieve it. A cross-ice pass from Tuomisto to Lombardi was perfectly timed and allowed Lombardi to speed up his skating with ease.
Between Lombardi and Justin Holl’s motors and no-look passes, the Stars were unable to keep their heads on straight and lost track of Watson. So, he was able to speed towards the net unattended, ready to score once he received the puck.
Last season, a play like this would have been foiled by half of the teams the Griffins played. To see this level of chemistry, communication, and skill in the second game of the season was beautiful.
Grand Rapids is clearly starting things in the right direction.
—-----------
Related Beauty Content:
