SUNDAY FEATURE: 1-on-1 With Seth Griffith, The Underrated Role AHL Veterans Play

WINNIPEG, Manitoba - When Seth Griffith saw the Arizona Coyotes claim his pal Eric Comrie off waivers back on October 1st, he knew all about the nomadic lifestyle the 24-year-old goaltender was set to undertake.

“The day I got picked up [off of waivers by Arizona], he said you’re in for a year,” chuckled Comrie, who after playing for Arizona and Tuscon was traded to Detroit, where he played for the Red Wings and Grand Rapids before returning to Winnipeg in late December.

Griffith, who leads Manitoba in scoring this season with 32 points in in 38 games, once lived out of a suitcase, too.

During his 2016-2017 campaign, Griffith, now 27, split his time between the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers, before eventually returning to the Leafs organization at the end of the year to finish his season with the Toronto Marlies.

“I don’t know if my experience was as bad as Griff’s,” Comrie admitted. “ He was bounced around a lot.”

Griffith’s experience as a consistent presence on the waiver-wire three years ago changed his outlook on his professional career. His girlfriend at the time, and now fiancée, Sarah Noyle, was by his side during that season of constant uncertainty. It wasn’t easy on her, either.

Griffith, long regarded as a ‘AAAA player’ or ‘tweener,’ could not solely focus on what avenue would provide him the best shot of becoming an NHL regular. He had to take his other half into consideration, too.

After playing out the 2017-2018 season with the Buffalo Sabres organization, Griffith signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Winnipeg Jets the following offseason. With the Jets and Moose residing in the same city, Winnipeg offered the veteran forward some stability.

“I think it’s a bigger [factor] as you become older and you kinda start to realize that you don't feel like traveling as much as you did when you were younger and moving around,” said defenceman Cameron Schilling, 31, at the Moose’s practice last week. “I have a wife here. I think that’s the biggest factor, just having to deal with the other half of you. It’s not necessarily just me.”

Griffith’s 2018-2019 campaign was unique for him, as the 5’9 crafty winger spent the entirety of that season in the AHL, playing in no NHL games, for the first time since his rookie pro season (2013-2014). Griffith, who lead the Moose in scoring that year with 57 points in 69 games, was a driving force behind the Moose’s resilient second half run last year that saw them miss the playoffs by just a hair.

When the season was over, with no playoff hockey for him to play, a bitter taste lingered in his mouth. He felt like there was unfinished business. Off-the-ice, Seth started to feel comfortable in Winnipeg and around the organization. Sarah, too, liked it in Winnipeg.

She grew close with the other players’ wives and girlfriends and started to feel at home in Manitoba’s capital. Seth and Sarah did not need to look very far when it came time for them to review their options for the 2019-2020 season.

“I didn't even want to go to free agency,” Griffith told InsideAHLHockey.com after being asked, in a one-on-one interview, about re-signing in Winnipeg this past summer. “I just wanted to sign back here and my fiancée loves it here. She loves the people here. It’s a great organization, they treat you great. That was a big reason why we wanted to come back here.”

The Moose are just as thrilled that Griffith decided to sign another one-year, two-way contract with the organization this summer. That’s because Griffith is the Moose’s unsung hero. While he’s seldom mentioned as a player that’s on the cusp of an NHL recall, Griffith—a nearly point- per game player (0.92 p/pg) over 357 career AHL games—provides Manitoba with a great deal of stability at even-strength and on the man advantage.

“He’s a guy that can change the game just by making a good play,” Vincent said back in November.

For a Jets organization that prides itself on the drafting and development of their prospects, there is legitimate value to guys like Griffith.

“Seth’s always going to get his points and he’s always going to create offense, so I think having him in the lineup gives guys a little bit less of a burden on themselves,” said Moose defenceman Cameron Schilling back in November.

Any effective development program strives to have borderline NHL-talents that can help accelerate the development of prospects by not only being a good player, but a strong leader, too. The Seth Griffith’s of pro hockey don’t get the credit they deserve, but their presence is invaluable to an organization’s ability to develop their draft picks.

“A lot of players look up to him in the sense that he’s always trying to make plays and trying to get offense, but at the same time [he is] not trying to give up too much [defensively],” Schilling told reporters at practice last week. “It’s a tough position for a guy like that because he’s a point [producing] player and he’s always been in the top-10 in the league scoring and stuff, but he’s also pretty good defensively.”

Griffith’s arrival to Winnipeg has been a win-win for all involved.

For the Jets, they’ve got themselves a solid role model for their prospects to look up to. A role model that is also good at putting the puck in the net.

“Seth is not only a great person - he’s fun to be around - but he does his job,” Vincent said. “His job is to create offense. His job is to score big goals when we need them. He’s fulfilling his responsibility.”

Seth and Sarah, on the other hand, found themselves a bit of stability in a line of work that has very little of it. They feel like part of a family in Winnipeg.

“This is just such a great organization,” Griffith insists. “The people treat you great here. That was the biggest thing in coming back here.”