Griffins win in OT after Luke Witkowski ties it with goal

DES MOINES, Iowa – Jonatan Berggren netted the game-winner 16 seconds into overtime, as the Grand Rapids Griffins began their four-game road trip with a 4-3 victory over the Iowa Wild on Thursday at Wells Fargo Arena.

Holland native Luke Witkowski scored a goal in consecutive contests when he tied the game at three apiece on a controversial call with 15:12 remaining. Off a feed from Tyler Spezia, Witkowski managed to get a skate on the puck and deflect it into the net. After a lengthy review of the play by the officials, it was a deemed a good goal and the game headed into overtime.

Berggren led the way for the Griffins with two goals in the contest while Taro Hirose (1-1—2) joined him with a multi-point outing. Calvin Pickard collected his first Griffins win since Jan. 18, mostly due to being recalled to the Detroit Red Wings. Head coach Ben Simon picked up his 100th win (100-83-18-11, 0.540) with Grand Rapids, becoming the sixth head coach in franchise history to reach the 100-win plateau.