Crystal Desert and Ranger Spirits

Hi all! Does anyone know if a Winter Spirit will negate some of the damage caused by Crystal Desert elementals, Hydras, and Griffons?

Whenever I take henchies, the fool enemies keep knocking us down, interrupting, blinding, etc.

We can generally take them out but no more than 4 at a time which can get tricky as the elementals especially get lumped together. As these enemies seems to do fire damage, I was wondering if Winter would be a good counter to them. Thanks!

I think it's the Winter/Mantra of Frost combo you're thinking of: winter turns elemental damage to cold, and mantra of frost reduces the amount of cold damage you take. No reason why it wouldn't work, but you may as well take Mantra of Fire and open up a skill slot.