Category: NHL

Utah Hockey Club Douses Flames 5-1

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Utah Hockey Club center Nick Schmaltz (8) controls the puck against the Calgary Flames center Justin Kirkland (58) in the first period at Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Wed Oct 30, 2024 (AP News photo)

Utah HC Bounces Back Big From Monday Loss With Commanding Win Over Calgary

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–In the aftermath of Utah Hockey Club’s third period collapse and overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks on Monday, the team dealt a 2025 third-round draft pick to the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday to acquire veteran defenseman Olli Määttä. The Finnish 30-year-old brings much-needed depth to a defense reeling from long-term injuries to John Marino and Sean Durzi.

Määttä joined the lineup on Wednesday night as Utah HC played host to the Calgary Flames. Määttä is reunited with former teammate Ian Cole, both of whom won back-to-back Stanley Cup championships with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2016 and 2017. He entered tonight’s game with 177 points (40g, 137a) in 691 career NHL contests with PIT, CHI, LAK and DET.

Alex Kerfoot gave Utah an early lead at 4:41 of the first period with his first goal of the season, assisted by Michael Kesselring and Mikhail Sergachev. With 61 seconds remaining in the opening frame, Martin Pospisil and Mikhail Sergachev both went to the box for roughing penalties. Utah controlled the puck for much of the final minute, but seemed as if they would run out the clock in their own defensive zone.

As the final seconds counted down on the scoreboard, Utah rushed up the ice and Barrett Hayton found the back of the net with slightly less than two seconds remaining, his fifth of the season, assisted by Nick Schmaltz and Ian Cole. This was the latest goal Utah has scored in any period so far this season.

Calgary cut their deficit in half at 3:53 of the second period on a goal by Anthony Mantha, assisted by Justin Kirkland and MacKenzie Weegar. Utah answered just 17 seconds later when rookie Maveric Lamoureux scored his first NHL goal from near the blue line in his fourth game since being called up from Tucson, assisted by Kevin Stenlund and Jack McBain.

Late in the period, Utah went on the power play as Calgary’s Anthony Mantha went to the box for roughing. He was joined forty seconds later in the sin bin by Blake Coleman who committed a boarding penalty against Clayton Keller, giving Utah a 5-on-3 advantage.

With five seconds remaining on the first penalty, defenseman Mikhail Sergachev netted his second goal of the season, assisted by Dylan Guenther and Nick Schmaltz, giving the home team a 4-1 lead heading into the locker room.

Utah also had a 4-1 lead entering the third period on Monday night, only to squander it in the final five minutes of the game, so nothing would be taken for granted. Dylan Guenther gave the Flames a chance to get back into the game, committing a holding penalty against Andrei Kuzmenko which Utah was able to kill. At 4:53 of the third, Calgary’s Nazem Kadri gave Utah another power play opportunity, going to the box for cross-checking against Juuso Valimaki.

That was all captain Clayton Keller needed to increase Utah’s lead to 5-1 on his sixth goal of the season, assisted by Dylan Guenther and Mikhail Sergachev. This time the defense held on to deny Calgary a comeback, with goaltender Connor Ingram stopping 30 of 31 shots for the win.

Following the game, Utah HC head coach André Tourigny commented on the team’s response to Monday’s game. “Really (satisfying). I was confident that would happen. There’s a lot of factors that can happen in the game. (If) they get a great scoring chance and score right away at the beginning or whatever, it can shake you a little bit. But I was confident we’d play solid.”

Tourigny had praise for 20-year-old defenseman Maveric Lamoureux who scored his first career NHL goal and point. “Great for Mav; I’m really happy for him. That was great–but the timing of it, it could have been anybody. I was really happy (with the timing). But I’m really happy for Mav. That was great. But the timing of it; (Calgary) got close at 2-1 and we scored on the next shift. That was solid…All of the shift was solid. I liked the reaction after (we gave up) that goal. You needed a solid shift and we had one.”

Lamoureux weighed in on his first goal after the game. “It was amazing. It just felt like it was going in slowly. Then I saw the light go on. I was really happy when I saw it go in.” When asked how many texts he received after his first goal, he responded, “No idea. It’s probably going to be blowing up like it was when I got called up to play my first game. So it’s probably going to take me a few days to answer everyone.”

Newly acquired defenseman Olli Määttä spoke in the locker room about the last 24 hours since being traded from Detroit. “I don’t think you ever get used to it. It was quite the night and quite the morning. But I think the moment I came in here, guys welcomed me really good. I can see this organization is a great one. There’s a great thing going on here, a great group of guys we got. It just feels right.” With regard to his expectations going into Wednesday night’s game, and his first impressions of Salt Lake City and the Delta Center, Määttä commented, “I didn’t know what to expect, to be honest. I just wanted to go out there and play. It wasn’t really a routine game day. But it was fun. … I played here in (the Frozen Fury exhibition) with the Kings against Vegas. But I liked it. The rink’s awesome. The city’s awesome. When you land, you see the mountains and everything. It looks so cool.”

Speaking of the win, captain Clayton Keller said, “It feels good. Obviously, we had a good first two periods. We wanted to learn from our last couple games and our mistakes. I thought we did a good job.” What changed over the last few games? “I thought we were simple. We kept the pucks going North. Before, we kind of backed off and gave (opponents) some space. Tonight, I thought we did a good job staying above (Calgary), not giving them much space and letting them get in the game. I’m proud of the way we responded. … This is the best league in the world. It’s hard to do it consistently and every single night. That’s something that we’re striving for. Even nights when you don’t have your best (night), there’s still ways you can find a way to win or get a point or two.”

Calgary Flames captain Mikael Backlund commented afterward about playing in his 1000th career game, all in a Flames jersey. “That was great. It was an awesome feeling skating out and doing a solo lap. It’s been a long time since I did that last, that was a special feeling for sure. It sucks that it didn’t carry over into the game.”

According to NHL Stats, Backlund is the second player to skate in 1,000 NHL contests with the Flames, Hockey Hall of Fame inductee Jarome Iginla having been the first. Jarome’s son, Tij Iginla, was selected sixth overall by Utah in the 2024 NHL Draft and is currently playing for the Kelowna Rockets in the WHL.

Utah now hits the road for a 4-game swing beginning on Saturday in Las Vegas and continuing to Winnipeg, St. Louis, and Nashville before returning home on November 13 to face the Carolina Hurricanes.

Two in a Row First Victory at Home For Sharks Against the Kings 4-2

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Jake Walman (96) being cheered by his teammates after scoring the first goal of the night in the 2nd Period at SAP Center tonight in San Jose on Tues Oct 29, 2024 (San Jose Sharks Public Relations)

Nothing better than a victory at home as the Sharks won 4-2 against Los Angeles at SAP Center

By Fernando Abarca

After an almost winless road trip for the Sharks, they found a way to win it all in overtime on Monday night against Utah. They replicated the same success against the Kings tonight, finding revenge from last week’s game at Crypto Arena.

After the first win for the Sharks in Utah, the task was straightforward, to repeat the same. The setting was very familiar: empty seats, little or no atmosphere, feelings of disappointment, and the gut feeling that the cycle was repeating itself.

The victory at home not only boosts the team’s confidence but is also a statement of hope and belief.

The first period passed without much of an action or relevance, which seemed to be unique, knowing the locals were facing the second-best team in the Pacific.

The action started to take place past the first 20 minutes of Hockey. Jake Walman added the first one of the night with a powerful slap shot for the locals, assisted by N. Sturm C. Grundstrom in the Kings’ zone st the 2.20 of the game.

The lead did not last that long, and the Kings netted to tie things up. Akil Thomas, with a wrist shot, made it 1-1 after a poor defensive labor by the Sharks.

Hockey was getting Red Hot after the conclusion of the second period.

Fabian Zetterland opened up the scoring of the third and his sixth goal of the season and a three-game point streak elevating the vibe at SAP Center with a 2-1 score at the 06:25 in the third.

Then, LA, once again, comes back with an assist by W. Foegele from the back of the net and Alex Laferriere making it 2-2.

It was time to set the tone, and that is exactly what the Sharks did towards the conclusion of the period.

Tyler Toffoli, the former LA King, made it 3-2 and put another number in his personal stats with six goals so far in the season.

With the score at 3-2, the home team knew how to take advantage of the moment. The Kings opted to use an empty net to play with a 6-5 William Eklund, with an empty netter sealed the victory of the night for the Sharks. A much-needed victory to start climbing in the standings and compete.

With ambition and desire, the Sharks will now have the opportunity to make it three consecutive victories this coming Thursday night, and they will do so against the last team in the Central Division, Connor Bedard’s Chicago Blackhawks.

Struggling Sharks Stun Utah HC in OT For First Win 5-4 at Delta Center

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San Jose Sharks left wing William Eklund (72) skates around the corner with Utah Hockey Club’s defenseman Mikhail Sergachev (98) in the first period at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Mon Oct 28, 2024 (AP News photo)

San Jose Mounts Epic 3rd Period Comeback To End 9-Game Losing Streak

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–Monday night’s faceoff at Delta Center in Salt Lake City featured two teams badly in need of a victory. The Utah Hockey Club came into the match having lost five of their previous six games, and the visiting San Jose Sharks had lost all nine of their contests so far this season.

The Sharks snapped their nine game losing streak with a 5-4 overtime win at the Delta Center on Monday against the Utah Hockey Club. Utah has now lost six of it’s last seven games.

Inside the arena there were a fair number of teal jerseys adorned with names like Marleau, Thornton, Pavelski, Burns, and Clowe. The fans wearing them, however, might not have recognized too many of the names on the backs of the Sharks players on the ice.

Exactly 11 minutes into the opening frame, Utah forward Dylan Guenther opened the scoring with a blistering shot past San Jose goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood, assisted by captain Clayton Keller. The goal was Guenther’s sixth of the season, ending a multiple game drought for the Utah sniper.

At 16:24 of the first, Utah forward Matias Maccelli netted his first goal of the season, assisted by Ian Cole and Nick Schmaltz, extending the lead to 2-0 going into the period break.

About halfway into the second period, San Jose forward Fabian Zetterlund found the back of the net to get the Sharks onto the scoreboard and cut the deficit in half, assisted by Danil Gushchin and Henry Thrun.

Moments later, Utah regained their two-goal lead as Matias Maccelli netted his second of the game, assisted by Ian Cole and Vladislav Kolyachonok. With 24 seconds left in the period, Utah defenseman Mikhail Sergachev found a hole through traffic and increased Utah’s lead to 4-1 with his first goal of the season, assisted by Vladislav Kolyachonok and Logan Cooley.

For most of the 3rd period, the two squads exchanged chances as both goaltenders kept opposing offenses at bay. With five minutes remaining in regulation, headlines had already been written about San Jose’s ten game losing streak and how long the agony might continue. On the ice, however, there was time still left on the clock and the Sharks feverishly went to work closing the gap.

Fabian Zetterlund began the comeback at 15:28, narrowing Utah’s lead to 4-2 with his second goal of the night, assisted by Mikael Granlund and Jake Walman. Just 25 seconds later, Mikael Granlund cut the deficit to 4-3, assisted by Jake Walman and William Eklund.

Finally, a minute and twenty five seconds later, Tyler Toffoli tied things up with his fifth goal of the season, assisted by Jake Walman and Alex Wennberg. Altogether the three-goal surge took just one minute and fifty seconds overall, and the 3rd period came to a close with the score tied 4-4.

At 1:19 of the overtime period, Utah’s Michael Kesselring committed a hooking penalty against William Eklund, giving the Sharks a 4-on-3 advantage. Just seven seconds later, Alex Wennberg capitalized on the power play, stunning the Utah crowd and giving San Jose its first victory of the season while Utah has now lost six of their past seven contests.

Utah Hockey Club head coach André Tourigny was asked how to explain the last five minutes of the game. “I can’t. Let’s give them credit, they put pucks in the net, they got their bones. The way we played in the third period, it’s tough to explain. We stopped putting pressure. We let them play with the puck. We let them make plays. We stopped defending like we can do, and the puck ended up in the back of our net.”

When asked whether the breakdown was mental or physical, Tourigny responded, ”No, it’s mental. It’s 100% mental. It started with a turnover in the neutral zone, then they got two scoring chances out of it, and then the faceoff in our zone, they pulled their goalie, they scored off that play, and it’s a snowball effect from there.” So how does Utah HC move on? ”I think first before moving on, I think we need to, we need to unpack that. That’s not who we are. That’s not who we want to be. It’s [not how we want to play] in front of our fans. Give credit to San Jose, but like I said, that’s not who we want to be. You have that kind of a lead, it’s not the way we want to play, it’s not who we want to be.”

In the visitors’ locker room, San Jose Sharks head coach Ryan Warsofsky described his his first NHL win. “Relief, I think, was the biggest thing. Look, I didn’t really do much. The players–credit to them. They stuck with it. There were times we did some really, really good things and just didn’t get rewarded for it. But we stuck with it. We just kept playing. That’s got to be our mindset; we’re never going to give up.”

Speaking of Fabian Zetterlund’s impact in the game, Warsofsky commented, “He does that a lot of the time; he’s vocal on the bench, he’s keeping our guys engaged, he works extremely hard. For him to get rewarded with that goal was nice. That’s how he needs to play every single night. I think he had one of his best games tonight.”

Continuing to comment about Zetterlund’s productivity, Warsofsky added, “He hasn’t complained once. Just puts his head down and goes to work. That’s what we need. He’s done some really good things. I think there’s a whole other level he can get to. And we’re going to keep pushing him. We’re challenging him to get there. He’s been good for us.”

San Jose’s head coach spoke of the team having its faith rewarded. “That’s what we said after the second period: whoever plays the simplest is going to have the most success in the third period. I can’t tell you if we’re going to win or lose the game, but I think we’ll have the most success. I think we kept our game extremely simple, North-South, hard puck plays, we got pucks to the net. We just stuck with it. Credit to the guys.”

Does winning feel good? “(There’s) relief and belief. We got a group of guys (in the locker room) that are going to believe a lot more now. That’s what this is all about. When you go into sporting events, you’ve got to believe that you can win a hockey game. No matter what the situation is, you can believe. And…it’s not just a feeling. It’s in your mind, it’s in your heart, it’s in your soul…We can get that going here.”

Sharks forward Alexander Wennberg also spoke with media after the game. “Obviously, you can’t go too long without winning. It’s been tough for sure. But at the end of the day, this is what we’ve been talking about–show character. We were down 4-1 and found a way to win the game. It was a really great effort. At the end of the day, you don’t say how you win, you’ve just got to win the game. Obviously right now, it’s a good feeling. Amazing. But here’s the thing: there’s a game tomorrow as well. Obviously, we’re going to enjoy this. It’s a lot of good things. But we’re back at it again tomorrow. For the (win-loss) record, you’ve got to win games. But for us, there’s a lot of good things. Obviously, we’re shooting a lot more pucks, creating chances and (won) the game. But there’s a lot of good things, goaltending and everything. A lot of good things to build on. This is what we’ve been talking about. We just have to stay consistent and do that every game.”

Tyler Toffoli, who scored the game-tying goal, commented, “I think that we played a really good game overall. I think we had really good opportunities. Just a couple unfortunate bounces and we were down. I don’t think we needed to, technically, score those goals and the end of the game with how we played. I think we just have to keep building off it. Obviously, it feels great. It’s one of those things that we talk about, even when we weren’t winning games, to be consistent with our game. We play tomorrow.” With regard to his goal, Toffoli added, “Like the other ones, just getting shots through. We have plays drawn up and spots to be. That’s where I was supposed to be and (the puck) came right to me.”

Fabian Zetterlund was asked when he started to believe in the comeback. “Probably after I scored my second goal. We saw a chance. I don’t know how much time was left…We saw an opportunity and we just believed. We went out there, stuck to our plan and had fun. It went real well.”

The Sharks hope to build upon Monday night’s win as they return home to face the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday.

Utah will attempt to get back on track with a home game against the Calgary Flames on Wednesday.

Sharks Lose 7-3 to Golden Knights, Losing Streak at 9

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Vegas Golden Knights celebrate a first period goal as the San Jose Sharks Mikael Granlund (64) foreground skates off. The Sharks once again surrender three goals in the first period this time at T Mobile Center in Las Vegas at Sat Oct 26, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks lost 7-3 to the Vegas Golden Knights, bringing their season-opening losing streak to nine. Tanner Pearson, Jack Eichel, Brett Howden, Pavel Dorofayev and Mark Stone scored for Vegas. Ilya Samsonov made 23 saves for the win. Mikael Granlund, Nico Sturm and Luke Kunin scored for San Jose. Vitek Vanacek made 35 saves in the loss.

After the game, Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro talked about the team’s slow starts:

“We gotta find a way to weather the storm in energetic buildings. LA, it’s their home opener, same thing kinda happened. We’re chasing the game far too much right now. I think there’s a lot more areas that are not good enough but that’s definitely something that’s not helping our case.”

Sharks Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky described the team’s state of mind: “I don’t think anyone’s happy by any means. There’s a lot of emotion in that locker room. Frustration, anger. It’s tough. It’s tough right now.”

Tanner Pearson scored the first goal of the night with the first shot of the game at 1:54. William Karlsson set up the slap shot with a quick backhand pass off the boards. A secondary assist went to Alexander Holtz.

Jack Eichel made it 2-0 less than two minutes later. Mark Stone moved up to the right point before passing the puck to Eichel in the left faceoff circle. Alex Pietrangelo also got an assist.

Brett Howden made it 3-0 late in the period. Tomas Hertl carried the puck in and then made a pass to Howden who was skating to the net. Howden scored with a wrist shot on Vanacek’s stick side. Pavel Dorofeyev got the secondary assist.

The Sharks were outshot 22-4 in the first period.

Mikael Granlund got one back for the Sharks midway through the second period. Granlund tried a wrap-around and when that did not work he got the puck right back and pushed it over the line. William Eklund and Mario Ferraro got the assists.

William Karlsson scored short-handed less than a minute later. Vanacek took a chance and came well out of the net to poke the puck away but Karlsson got it back and evaded the discombobulated Sharks defense. Pietrangelo got an assist.

Pavel Dorofeyev made it 5-1 with a power play goal in the last minute of the second period. Assists went to Shea Theodore and Mark Stone.

Nico Sturm scored the Sharks’ second goal a few seconds later with a wrist shot into the top corner from the faceoff circle.

The Sharks came closer in shots during the second period, mustering 11 to Vegas’ 15.

Mark Stone made it 6-2 at 11:10 of the third period. Eichel carried the puck towards the net and then found Stone with a drop pass. Assists went to Eichel and Barbashev.

Luke Kunin scored the Sharks’ third goal from a scrum in front of the net at 13:29. An assist went to Fabian Zetterlund.

Brett Howden scored his second of the night at 17:07. Assists went to Dorofeyev and Hertl.

The Sharks only allowed five shots in the third period and got credit for 11.

The Sharks next play on Monday at 6:00 PM PT in Salt Lake City against the Utah Hockey Club.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa: Sharks coughing up too many goals in first periods 12-4; SJ back to drawing board in Vegas on Saturday

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San Jose Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro (38) moves the puck past the Los Angeles Kings left wing Trevor Moore (12) in the first period at Crypto.com Arena on Thu Oct 24, 2024 (AP News photo)

On San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa:

#1 The San Jose Sharks made history going winless with their eighth loss in a row they accomplished this last season as well and later losing ten straight last season. The Sharks tied the eight loss record for a team who had done it two straight years with the 1960-61 and 1961-62 Boston Bruins.

#2 San Jose head coach Ryan Warsofsky said that this is the NHL the best league in the world and that if guys don’t enjoy playing this game then their in the wrong business and that their on the wrong team and that Warsofsky said “we’ll weed those guys right out.”

#3 The Sharks in the first period have been outscored 12-4. The Sharks have a major concern on defense in the early stages of games. The Sharks were clobbered by the Winnipeg Jets in on lopsided game back on Friday Oct 18th in Winnipeg 8-3. That’s a lot of goals to give up for one game.

#4 Another good example of what Warsofsky is talking about is Thursday night’s game where the Los Angeles Kings dominated the first period opening up the game with three goals taking a 3-0 lead. The Sharks had to play defense and try and make up the difference but in the end they lost by a goal 3-2.

#5 The Sharks are back at the drawing board once more as they meet the Vegas Golden Knights. The Knights are another first period scoring team they scored three unanswered goals against the Kings in Vegas on Tuesday night for a loaded 6-1 win. The Knights are 4-2-1 going up against a Shark team that is 0-6-2. What are San Jose chances as they face off against the Knights at T Mobile Center on Saturday night?

Join Mary Lisa for the Sharks podcasts each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

NHL podcast with Len Shapiro: Isles Duclair out with lower body injury; Huges and Pesce return to New Jersey after injuries; plus more NHL news

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New York Islanders forward Anthony Duclair (11) is assisted off the ice with Nick Suzuki (14) and trainer after suffering a lower body injury on Sat Oct 19, 2024 at Belmont NY (Getty)

On the NHL podcast with Len Shapiro:

#1 Former San Jose Shark and New York Islanders forward Anthony Duclair suffered a lower body injury was injured during Saturday’s game against the Montreal Canadiens. The Isles ended up defeating the Habs 4-3. Islanders head coach Patrick Roy said of the Duclair injury, “We don’t like to lose players, first of all,” Roy said. “And secondly, I mean, all I care right now is to see him be back 100 percent and feeling good when he’s back. That’s where the focus is.”

#2 Luke Hughes and Brett Pesce made their New Jersey Devils appearances on Thursday night against the Detroit Red Wings. Hughes suffered from left shoulder injury. Hughes said it’s been a long time coming and he was excited to be able to play in his first game. Pesce who signed a six year contract with New Jersey had surgery on his fractured fibula.

#3 Tickets for the Four Nations Face Off that will see NHL games in Canada, Finland, Sweden, and the US Feb 12-20. Tickets for 4 Nations Face Off will go on sale next week. The tournament will feature NHL players who will be representing Canada, Finland, Sweden and the US. It will be seven games over nine days and four games at the Belle Centre in Montreal and three games which includes the championship to be played at TD Garden in Boston.

#4 The St Louis Blues forward Robert Thomas will be out at least six weeks due to a right ankle fracture he incurred Tuesday in a game against the Winnipeg Jets. Thomas had two assists against the Jets but missed the final 11:58 and had an x-ray done that revealed the fracture.

#5 Len, have to ask you how surprised are you that San Jose Sharks remain winless through eight games. The Sharks in their last three games have lost by at least two goals or more. They face off against the Vegas Golden Knights in Vegas this Saturday how difficult will it be for the Sharks to get in win column against the Knights in Vegas?

Len Shapiro podcasts the NHL podcast each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Utah Buried By Avalanche 5-1 Defensive woes continue for struggling Utah Hockey Club

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Utah Hockey Club forward Josh Doan (91) shoots the puck against the Colorado Avalanche defensemen Calvin de Haan (44) in the second period at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Thu Oct 24, 2024 (AP News photo)

Utah Buried By Avalanche 5-1 Defensive woes continue for struggling Utah Hockey Club

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–On the heels of a perfect 3-0 start to the 2024-2025 NHL season, the Utah Hockey Club has come back down to earth losing four of the next five games including Thursday night’s 5-1 home loss to the visiting Colorado Avalanche, bringing their record to 4-3-1.

Netminder Karel Vejmelka got the start following his two shoutout periods of relief in Tuesday night’s loss to the Ottawa Senators.

Halfway through the first period the Avs took advantage of a tripping penalty against Ian Cole as forward Ross Colton scored his seventh goal on the season, assisted by Mikko Rantanen and Casey Mittelstadt.

Before Utah had a hockey team, many of its residents were followers of the Avalanche which was evidenced by the loud cheers for the power play goal. Colorado defenseman Cale Makar made it 2-0 near the end of the first period, assisted by Mikko Rantanen, his second of the game, and Nikolai Kovalenko.

Utah HC fared no better in the second period of play. At 14:25 of the middle frame, Avs center Casey Mittelstadt put the puck past Vejmelka to make it 3-0, assisted by Sam Malinski and Nikolai Kovalenko, his second of the evening.

Late in the period, Makar drew a hooking penalty from Dylan Guenther which resulted in another Colorado power play goal by Ivan Ivan (yes, that’s his real name), the first goal of his NHL career, assisted by Nathan MacKinnon and Casey Mittelstadt, the third Avs player to record a second assist, to send Utah to the locker room facing a 4-0 deficit for the second time in two games.

With 4:32 remaining in the third period, Utah forward Lawson Crouse netted his 3rd goal of the season to put an end to his team’s scoring drought, assisted by Matias Maccelli and Ian Cole. Whatever hopes the hometown fans may have had for a late comeback, however, were dashed just 39 seconds later as Avs forward Joel Kiviranta put the game permanently out of reach with an unassisted shot which got past Vejmelka. Colorado goaltender Justus Annunen stopped 25 of 26 shots for the win.

Utah’s defense has struggled all season, surrendering four or more goals in five of their eight games thus far. Two key defensemen, John Marino and Sean Durzi, have undergone surgeries which will keep them out of the lineup until sometime next year.

Rookie defenseman Maveric Lamoureux, a 2022 first round draft pick by the then-Arizona Coyotes, made his NHL debut and was +1 for the night. In four games with the Tucson Roadrunners this season, Lamoureux notched two goals and one assist.

After the game, Lamoureux commented on making his NHL Debut: “Playing in my first NHL game is special. Even though we didn’t win, I’m always going to remember that game, that’s for sure.” On playing his first shift, Lamoureux said “I was kind of stressed.

I didn’t want to fall. But (it) was amazing going out there.” Making his NHL debut extra meaningful, his parents flew in for the game. “I had no idea. That was a big surprise. After morning skate, they were in Ryan Smith’s suite waiting for me. That was a surprise. They landed last night and I had no idea. I was really happy to see them.”

Speaking of the back-to back losses, Utah Hockey Club Head Coach André Tourigny commented, “They were just two different games. Like I said against Ottawa, it wasn’t our game at all. We worked hard, and we had a lot of good opportunities but we lacked execution. Tonight, the lack of execution kept going, but I did not like our effort, our emotion, our physicality, and our battle level. It’s disappointing.” Speaking of the team’s offensive, Tourigny added, “We tried to switch lines and do different things, but at the end of the day, we have to simplify…If you look at every game, our possession and offensive zones are great, but we don’t have enough volume. At some point, when we have an opportunity to take a shot, we cannot pass on it. We need to be more selfish in those situations and put more pucks on the net that create habits for the non-carrier to go the net…The way we’re playing right now, we’re doing the reverse. We build the habits of our non-carrier to look for the passing option, and then now you don’t have traffic.”

Lawson Crouse, when asked what the team needs to change in order to shift the momentum, responded “We just have to get back to it…I think today was an example of us getting frustrated and trying to make up for it. We just have to get back to simple hockey, playing the right way, covering for each other. The goals will come. Obviously, we’ve got to keep them out of our net and that’s the biggest thing right now. You can’t win hockey games when we keep going down three, four nothing. It’s a tough league to come back in. Like I said, when that happens you feel like you have to make up for a play and it goes sideways quick. Obviously, we’ve got to stop it here, stop it tonight, learn from it, move on and get back to winning hockey.”

Following practice on Friday, Utah HC will fly to Los Angeles for a road game against the Kings on Saturday before returning home again on Monday to face the San Jose Sharks.

Still Winless, Sharks Fall 3-2 to Kings; Foegele scores twice for LA

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San Jose Sharks center Luke Kunin (11) fights Los Angeles Kings left wing Andre Lee (47) with Kings defenseman Joel Edmundson (6) behind and holding Kunin in the first period Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Thu Oct 24, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks fell 3-2 to the Los Angeles Kings on Thursday. Jordan Spence and Warren Foegele scored for the Kings and Mikael Granlund scored for the Sharks. David Rittich made 24 saves for the win. Mackenzie Blackwood made 27 saves in the loss. The loss gave the Sharks the dubious honor of being the second team in NHL history to lose the first eight games of the season in consecutive seasons.

All three of the Kings’ goals were scored in just over seven minutes during the first period. After the game, Sharks Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky said: “Just can’t do that in the first period in this league. We did some good things in the second and third. We’re still giving up too many chances.”

Sharks forward Fabian Zetterlund talked about how the team played better in the second and third periods: “When we move the puck and we actually make plays and have fun, you know, that’s part of [hockey]. When we do [that] kind of stuff we look like a really good hockey team.”

Jordan Spence gave the Kings the lead at 4:31. After some back and forth in the neutral zone, Trevor Moore got control of the puck and the Kings skated up ice at speed. Just inside the zone, Moore passed the puck to Spence for a snap shot. Phillip Danault also got an assist.

Warren Foegele made it 2-0 at 8:47, poking the puck past Blackwood and Henry Thrun in a net-front battle. An assist went to Alex Laferriere.

Foegele scored his second at 11:36, tipping a shot from Brandt Clarke just below the blue line. Laferriere also got an assist.

At the end of the first period, the Sharks had been outshot 17-7, but they had not been short-hamded yet. They did get two power plays.

Mikael Granlund got the Sharks on the board with a power play goal at 10:05 of the second period. Catching a pass from Jack Thompson, Granlund put the puck in the top corner with a wrist shot. Alexander Wennberg also got an assist.

In the second period, the Sharks took two penalties and had two power plays. The shots were even at seven each.

Granlund scored a second power play goal in the final minute of the game with a wrist shot from above the faceoff circle. Assists went to Thompson and Wennberg.

The Sharks next play on Saturday against the Golden Knights in Las Vegas at 7:00 PM PT.

Ducks keep Sharks winless with 3-1 victory; SJ drops to 0-7

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Anaheim Ducks right wing Troy Terry (19) and the San Jose Sharks William Eklund (72) battle for the puck in first period action at the Honda Center in Anaheim on Tue Oct 22, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Daniel Dullum

Tuesday, October 22, 2024

The San Jose Sharks remain the NHL’s only winless team after losing to the Anaheim Ducks 3-1 Tuesday in Anaheim.

Troy Terry and Leo Carlsson tallied the Ducks’ first power play goals of the season, and Alex Killorn tacked on an empty-net goal. Cutter Gauthier picked up a pair of assists, and goaltender Lukas Dostal made 27 saves.

Terry’s goal extended his point streak to five games. It was his fourth goal of the season.

Mikael Granlund scored the Sharks’ lone goal as San Jose dropped to 0-5-2, 2 points. Sharks goalie Mackenzie Blackwood made 37 saves, while William Eklund and Jack Thompson each assisted on Granlund’s goal.

Anaheim started the season 0-for-20 on the power play before Terry’a goal at 6:56 of the second period. Granlund’s goal tied the game early in the third period, but with the Ducks on the power play, Carlsson scored 41 seconds later. San Jose center Will Smith was whistled for a tripping penalty 10 seconds after Granlund’s goal.

San Jose’s bad luck continues along with its seven-game winless streak. Danil Gushchin’s first-period shot hit the crossbar, hit near the goal line, and redirected off a post, avoiding the net. And Barclay Goodroow hit the post after redirecting a shot from the point in the second period.

The Sharks’ road trip continues at Los Angeles against the Kings on Thursday night.

Utah goes O 4 Canada, gets blanked by Ottawa 4-0, First Utah home loss and first Ottawa road win for season

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Ottawa Senators defenseman Thomas Chabot (72) winds up to shoot the puck against forward Alexander Kerfoot (15) and the Utah Hockey Club at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Tue Oct 22, 2024 (AP News photo)

Coming into Tuesday night’s contest between the Ottawa Senators and Utah Hockey Club, fans of the NHL’s newest franchise had every reason for optimism with the team sporting a 4-1-1 record to start the season, just one point out of a tie for first place in the Central Division and undefeated on home ice.

Local recording artist Krispin Banks performed the first-ever rendition of O Canada for an NHL game at Delta Center, followed by a stirring rendition of the American national anthem, and everyone was ready for another great night of hockey. Unfortunately the Utah Hockey Club couldn’t seal the deal and not only that couldn’t score a goal on home ice getting shutout 4-0 at the Delta Center. Utah now with a 4-2-1 record.

The two teams traded chances to no avail throughout the first half of the first period until Noah Gregor and Jack McBain were each sent to the box for roughing penalties. That’s when it all went downhill for Utah HC. During the two-minutes of 4-on-4 play, Ottawa’s Drake Batherson and Claude Giroux each found the back of the Utah net to quickly put the Senators up 2-0.

Five minutes later, with Robert Bortuzzo serving a minor penalty for holding against Tim Stützle, Ridley Greig scored a power play goal to put the Senators up 3-0. Adding insult to injury, Brady Tkachuck made it 4-0 with eight seconds remaining in the opening frame.

Goaltender Karel Vejmelka replaced Connor Ingram to start the second period of play. Vejmelka had appeared in only one previous game so far this season, Utah’s only regulation loss to the New Jersey Devils. He turned away all 5 shots he faced in the second period, but Utah still faced a 4-0 deficit heading into the third period.

Utah HC has scored 5 or more goals in a game three times already this season, but they needed to pull it off all in one period if they were to mount a comeback against Ottawa, but this was not to be their night. Vejmelka stopped all 14 shots he faced in the third period, but the offense was unable to push the puck past Anton Forsberg of the Senators who was perfect against 31 shot attempts to record his first shutout of the season.

Following the game, Utah Hockey Club Head Coach André Tourigny spoke of a drop-off in his team’s focus. “I think we obviously came out strong, playing well, but we didn’t stay in the moment. We got carried away, a little bit soft, defensively, forced a play turnover, you know, and just we had them where we wanted. We played well. We just need to stay patient, stay humble, go one shift at a time, and we got ahead of ourselves and we paid for it.”

With regard to pulling goalie Connor Ingram after the first period, Tourigny added, “Everybody in life has bad days at the office sometimes. And I think when you’re a goaltender, you’re exposed more than anybody else. So I think you need to make the right decision for the team. It’s nothing personal.”

Karel Vejmelka addressed his mindset entering the game in a relief role. “Obviously it’s not easy, but I try to be prepared to play. Like any other game, just be ready anytime. So just try to focus for the first shot and get into it.”

Team captain Clayton Keller commented on the inevitability of games such as this one. “You know it’s going to happen. It’s a long season. You can’t get frustrated, you got to stay patient. Get better every day and good things happen.”

In the other locker room, winning netminder Anton Forsberg commented on his first visit to Salt Lake City as an NHL city. “It was a nice arena. We had a good day yesterday and went to some nice coffee shops. So I didn’t see a lot but it seems like a good city. I’m happy to be able to come out here. It’s been one of the cities I haven’t visited yet, so that’s great.”

Moving forward, Utah HC hopes that visiting teams enjoy the city while finding Delta Center itself far less hospitable on the ice.

Having lost for the first time at home, Utah now gears up to face division rival Colorado Avalanche on Thursday at the Delta Center.