Category: Utah Hockey Club

Utah HC Concludes Inaugural Season Home Schedule With 4-3 Shootout Loss To Nashville

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Utah Hockey Fans show their appreciation on the final home game of the 2024-25 first season for the franchise as they played the Nashville Predators (Utah Hockey Club X photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–Dylan Guenther scored the new franchise’s first and final home goals this season, but Utah falls to the Nashville Predators 4-3 in a shootout.

The Minnesota Wild ended Utah Hockey Club’s Wild Card pursuit on Wednesday night when they defeated the San Jose Sharks in Minneapolis. On Thursday, Utah HC returned to the Delta Center ice following their franchise record 7-1 thrashing of the Seattle Kraken two nights earlier to wrap up their 2024-2025 inaugural season home schedule against the Nashville Predators. It was exactly one year ago that Phoenix Coyotes players were informed that they were moving to Utah.

The first period turned into a battle of defenses as Nashville netminder Juuse Saros turned away 11 Utah shots while Karel Vejmelka, making his 22nd consecutive start in goal, turned away all five shots from the Predators.

Utah forward Nick Bjugstad kicked off the scoring at 4:49 of the second period with a steep angle snap shot which found the hole between the left shoulder of Saros and the upper corner of the net for his seventh goal of the season, assisted by Alexander Kerfoot.

At 13:54, Jack McBain hit the center of the crossbar with a shot which rebounded to Josh Doan in front of the net who wristed it past Saros for his sixth goal of the season to make it 2-0 Utah. With 3 1/2 minutes remaining in the frame, Logan Cooley was whistled for tripping against Zachary L’Heureux. On the power play, Nashville defenseman Nick Blankenburg cut Utah’s lead in half with his 4th goal of the season, assisted by Jonathan Marchessault and Ryan O’Reilly.

The Predators began the third period on the power play again thanks to a Sean Durzi hooking penalty committed against Filip Forsberg with less than a second remaining in the previous period. At 1:19, Forsberg cashed in the man-advantage with his 31st goal of the season, assisted by Brady Skjei and Steven Stamkos, tying the score at 2-2. Two minutes later the Delta Center crowd was stunned as Ryan O’Reilly gave Nashville their first lead of the night with his 19th goal, assisted by Michael Bunting. That lead would last less than three minutes as Dylan Guenther knocked a rebound on a shot from Logan Cooley into a wide open net for his 27th of the season with the additional assist to captain Clayton Keller. The two goaltenders locked things down for the rest of regulation and the overtime period.

The final home game of the inaugural season would go all the way to a shootout. Juuse Saros was perfect in shutting down Nick Schmaltz, Clayton Keller, and Dylan Guenther. Karel Vejmelka was able to stop Ryan O’Reilly and Steven Stamkos, but surrendered the final shot to Filip Forsberg on a backhand to give Nashville the shootout win. Utah went 3-1-1 in their final homestand, finishing the regular season with a 18-15-8 home record. Guenther ended up recording the franchise’s first goal on opening night against the Chicago Blackhawks, and scored the team’s final home goal of the season on Thursday night, which also happened to be the sniper’s 22nd birthday.

At the conclusion of the game, all of the Utah players came out on the ice to acknowledge fans, and a number of awards were presented. Barrett Hayton received the “All-In” award which was voted by the fans. Alexander Kerfoot received the “Community Obsessed” award for his involvement in the community. The “Three Stars” award was given to Dylan Guenther for having been selected as one of the Three Stars 16 times this season, including nine First Star recognitions. Captain Clayton Keller received the “Leading Scorer” award, having scored 27 goals and 58 assists for 85 total points in 78 games. Finally, the “Team MVP” was awarded to netminder Karel Vejmelka, whose 22 consecutive starts is the most in the NHL since Darcy Kuemper of the Arizona Coyotes started 22 six years ago. He has gone 12-6-4 during the streak. Team owner Ryan Smith thanked the fans for their support throughout the year, and told everyone that this was just the beginning.

In the locker room Vejmelka talked about what winning MVP means to him. “It’s a great feeling, especially (the) first year. But I would say it’s a team trophy and a team award. I couldn’t get a trophy without the guys, without (my) teammates. They’re a big part of it and I really appreciate it.” Utah’s fans have serenaded Vejmelka with chants of VEG-GIE and recently began throwing broccoli onto the ice to acknowledge his play. When asked about it, Vejmelka responded, “Yeah, it’s getting crazy. I like to see that, and I can’t wait to see that again next season. It’s a really cool feeling, especially on the ice, and I really feel that support. So like I said, I really appreciate it.” With regard to his mental and physical preparation during his streak, he added, “It’s about consistency and just playing the right way. I don’t want to really complicate things, I just want to play simple, and just enjoy the game as well. It’s a big part of it, and it’s still the game. It was a really great feeling to be (on the) hunt and play for something, (and not) just play the last couple of games for nothing. It’s a good feeling for next season, and hopefully we’re going to be even better.”

Utah captain Clayton Keller talked about the fan reaction to the award ceremony. “It was awesome. It’s been a whirlwind since the end of last season, from top to bottom. Ryan and Ashley (Smith), Chris Armstrong, all the sacrifices that they made to make this transition easy, (and) giving us every source. The fans as well; since day one, you could tell the excitement. We’re super hungry for next year, and this is just the beginning. There’s lots to look forward to.” What was it like playing in front of the home crowd for the last time this season? “Just a special moment. First season here in NHL history. Sometimes it’s crazy to think about that, how quickly it happened and how great of a move it’s been. So just super thankful. So many people gave us a great position to be successful and I couldn’t be more excited for next year.” With regard to Vejmelka’s MVP, Keller added, “Well deserved. He’s been unbelievable. I don’t know how many starts in a row that is, but he’s been unbelievable all year long, making saves when we needed it, giving us lots of confidence. Great teammate, great guy. Signed a nice deal and you couldn’t ask for a better guy and goalie as well. Super excited to have him locked up for a long time and like I said, well deserved.”

Head coach André Tourigny began his media session talking about the final home game in Utah’s inaugural season. “It was special for us. It was the team’s first year and there were a lot of emotions. There were a lot of connections with the crowd and the way they supported us, we wanted to play for them and play in front of them. It’s just tough right now to comprehend that there’s no more this year. We’re addicted now. We’re looking forward to the next one, but we’ll have to wait a little bit.” When asked how players around the league might perceive Utah as a desirable destination for free agents, Bear responded, “You do things right or everybody will know. Here, we do things right and the players are happy. The way the people of Utah, not just our fans, have been with our players off the ice and on the ice and the pour of love and all, everything’s been so positive. I think that word will go around and go into the NHL player community, and that will help our recruiting. No doubt about it.” When asked about the player awards, Tourigny said, “A coach is like a father and you want everybody to be recognized. Those five players have been recognized and they all deserve it, no doubt about it. But there’s a lot of guys, unsung heroes, on our team that I would have loved to see them be rewarded as well. I understand we need to have limits, but I think there are a lot of guys who put their heart into the job this year, and they helped us make this year a special year.”

Utah now hits the road for the final three games of the season against Dallas, Nashville, and St. Louis. The next time fans pour into Delta Center for hockey, their team will have a new identity, whether Mammoth, Outlaws, or a surprise announcement. Stay tuned.

Utah Hockey Club game wrap: Utah HC Offense Unleashes On Kraken In 7-1 Rout

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Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck (37) makes a save with his skate against Utah Hockey Club center Nick Schmaltz (8) in the first period at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City Sat Apr 5, 2025. Utah clobbered the Seattle Kraken at the Delta Center on Tue Apr 8, 2025. (AP News photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–Seven different players lit the lamp for Utah HC in a lopsided 7-1 victory over Seattle.

Nearing the end of their inaugural season in Salt Lake City, Utah Hockey Club entered Tuesday night’s showdown with the Seattle Kraken still mathematically surviving in the Wild Card race with five games remaining on the schedule.

Utah wasted no time opening up a first period lead when defenseman Mikhail Sergachev increased his career high in goals with his 15th of the season, assisted by Kevin Stenlund and Sean Durzi. At 12:54 of the first period, with Seattle’s Jamie Oleksiak and Brandon Montour in the penalty box, captain Clayton Keller recorded his 27th goal of the year with a wicked wrist shot which whizzed past Kraken netminder Joey Daccord on the 5-on-3 power play, assisted by Sergachev and Dylan Guenther.

With Oleksiak remaining in the sin bin due to a high-sticking double minor against Kailer Yamamoto, Yamamoto cashed it in with a slap shot with six seconds remaining on the power play to make it 3-0, his second goal of the season, assisted by Josh Doan and Logan Cooley. For his part, Karel Vejmelka stopped all four shots he faced in his 21st consecutive start in goal for Utah.

The second period began much as the first period ended. Just 16 seconds after the puck drop, Lawson Crouse fired the puck from almost the identical spot as Sergachev’s first period goal, the middle of the ice at the distance of the top of the faceoff circle, to beat Joey Daccord unassisted for his 12th goal of the season.

Before the period was halfway over, Logan Cooley harpooned the Kraken with his 23rd goal of the season, assisted by Guenther and Keller. If Ron Popeil were at Delta Center, one might hear him exclaim, “But wait, there’s more!” With Ryker Evans committing Seattle’s sixth penalty of the evening for holding against Lawson Crouse, the Utah power play scored for the third time in the game, on this occasion with Nick Schmaltz poking in a smooth pass from Guenther at the side of the net for his 18th of the season, with the additional assist going to Sergachev.

But Utah still wasn’t done slaying the Kraken. With less than two minutes remaining in the frame, Michael Carcone launched a shot at the hapless Seattle netminder which made its way into the back of the net for his seventh of the season, assisted by Michael Kesselring and Kevin Stenlund, sending both teams to the locker room with the scoreboard showing Utah up by a touchdown over sleepless Seattle. Vejmelka turned away all seven shots faced in the period.

The Kraken opened the third period on the power play due to an interference penalty against Ian Cole as time expired in the second. Seattle forward Jared McCann ended the shutout 23 seconds into the man advantage to make the score 7 -1, which was the final tally as the horn sounded at the end of the game. Vejmelka saved 18 of 19 shots overall.

In the Utah locker room, Mikhail Sergachev addressed his squad’s defense which held the Kraken to a single goal. “I think we defended well, at least in the first two periods. Everybody came back, we didn’t turn the puck over on the lines, and we just got it deep and always got it back, so that’s an improvement.” When asked whether they talked about continuing to hit the gas after taking a 3-0 lead in the first, Sergachev responded, “Yeah, whenever you have a three-nothing lead after the first, you still have 40 minutes to play. Especially if they’re going in, you want to go and pressure and try to get more shots and more pulls, but obviously, looking back, and not giving up goals. So I think that’s what guys did in the second.”

Forward Kailer Yamamoto was asked about scoring against his former teammates. “It’s awesome. Obviously, I owe them one. They didn’t want me, so I came in with a little bit of a vengeance, but it’s a good one for us, for sure.” When asked what he adds to the lineup looking toward his next contract, Yamamoto commented, “Just work ethic and trying to make plays. Obviously, my linemates are phenomenal players, so fitting in with them has been very easy. I’m just trying to work hard and make some plays.”

Head coach André Tourigny was so pleased with the team’s performance that he simply smiled at reporters and dispensed with his usual opening statement to take questions. The first had to do with seven different skaters registering a goal. “If you remember in training camp, we talked about our depth. A season has a lot of chapters, and we were in the trenches in January. It was a really tough situation, and we didn’t have that depth scoring and we knew our team was depending on that. Since then, we have had that depth scoring and you can see the result. In every game our offense can come from everywhere, like tonight. The power play was really good, but we also had scoring from other lines. That made a difference.” Tourigny praised Yamamoto who has split his season between Utah HC and the Tucson Roadrunners of the AHL. “He’s a really good player. His hockey IQ, his give-and-go game, and his experience as well, you can see the NHL is not new for him. It’s not like he’s a guy who is trying to break into the NHL, he’s already been here. His playmaking defensively and under pressure are really good.”

With four games remaining on the schedule, Utah is still mathematically in contention for the final Wild Card spot, albeit it would require a perfect storm of failure by Minnesota, Calgary, and Vancouver to pull off the miracle comeback. On Thursday the Nashville Predators which close out the final regular season homestand at Delta Center, after which Utah will finish out the season on the road in Dallas, Nashville, and St. Louis.

Utah HC Shoots Down NHL Leading Jets 4-1 Keeping Wild Card Hopes Alive

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Utah Hockey Club center Clayton Keller (9) shoots and scores on the Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck (37) in the first period at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Sat Apr 5, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–Utah took a 3-0 lead into the 3rd period and held off the league’s #1 team to remain mathematically in the hunt for the final Wild Card spot for a 4-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets.

If you ask Utah head coach André Tourigny or any of the players, they will emphatically tell you that every game is a playoff game and that there is no quit in this team. Saturday afternoon they had a chance to prove it against the top squad in hockey, the Winnipeg Jets.

Utah grabbed an early power play opportunity just a few minutes into the game when Winnipeg defenseman Dylan Samberg went to the box for tripping against Dylan Guenther. Just 7 seconds later, the Jets turned over the puck behind their own net and Barrett Hayton fed it to captain Clayton Keller who cashed it in for his 26th goal of the season. With 11 seconds remaining in the frame, Winnipeg forward Mark Scheifele went to the sin bin for holding against Sean Durzi which set Utah up with another power play to begin the second period.

Less than a minute into the middle period, Keller fired off a cross-ice pass to linemate Dylan Guenther who immediately found the stick of Hayton in front of the net who knocked the puck in for his 19th of the season. At 16:57 of the second period, Utah defenseman Mikhail Sergachev sent a pass from the defensive blue line to Kevin Stenlund who received it at the offensive blue line and smashed a shot over the shoulder of Jets netminder Connor Hellebuyck from the top of the faceoff circle for his 13th goal of the season to make it 3-0 for the home team heading into the final frame.

Nearly two minutes into the third period, Utah cracked open the door for a Winnipeg comeback when Olli Määttä was whistled for hooking against Nino Niederreiter. On the ensuing power play, Utah goalie Karel Vejmelka turned away two rapid fire shots from Kyle Connor and Cole Perfetti, but was out of position when Mark Scheifele drove home the final rebound for his 38th goal of the season, closing the gap to 3-1. Vejmelka, playing his career high 20th consecutive start, closed the barn door the rest of the way, saving 32 of 33 shots overall for his 23rd win of the season. At 17:19 of the third, Nick Bjugstad would put the game away for good collecting his 6th goal of the season into an empty net, assisted by Stenlund and Määttä.

In the locker room, Stenlund talked about defeating his former club, the top-ranked team in the NHL. “It shows how good of a team we are when we play the right way, play our way. It was a good game.” With regard to the third period, Stenlund said, “[Winnipeg] pushed a bit into us early, but I think we controlled it pretty well. We got one goal and I think they had some chances, but not many.”

Captain Clayton Keller was asked about scoring his 500th career NHL point during the game. “It’s cool. I honestly had no idea coming into the game, so I was a bit surprised. Lots of hard work and sacrifice. So many people in my life sacrificed for me to get to this level so I’m just super thankful for everything that they’ve done for me, my teammates, and my coaches. There are so many people that have helped me get to where I am. I still feel like I have a lot more to give, and I’m just getting started.” About playing the NHL’s top team, Clayton said, “We had a good start and we played with a lot of speed. They’re a great team, tough to play against, and they have great players. The third maybe got away from us a little bit, but [Vejmelka] was unreal as usual, kept us in the game, and made key saves at the right times. It’s a good feeling to win at home.”

Head coach André Tourigny opened his post-game media session by saying, “We played rock solid. (Karel Vejmelka) again was really solid. But I think as a team, we played really solid. I think in the third (period), we got on our heels a little bit. But I won’t let that reflect on our game because we played against a really good team and we played a hell of a game. I’m really proud of the guys.” He offered particular praise for special teams. “Both were really good. (Winnipeg’s) power play is excellent, so the way our PK played (was good). Our power play produced; but more than that, they gave us momentum. They played, they attacked, they were under their toes. They played really solid. I think (Clayton Keller’s) play, not just on the power play but 5-on-5 play; he had a rock solid game. Captain; showed up; huge in a big game.” When asked about what he learns when playing a team like Winnipeg, Bear continued, “I like the fact that we’re not scared. We’re taking it the right way: ‘OK, let’s get at it.’ We want that and we believe in ourselves. We have no complex against those teams. We beat Winnipeg twice this year; how we played against Dallas, how we played against L.A., how we played against Colorado. All those games were hard-fought games. I think that showed the character of our team and the leadership of our team. That’s why we love our team.”

About those playoff chances, Tourigny said of his team, “They don’t want to hear anything. They just want to play, and play good. They are locked in. They’re straight on in what we have to do and play and win games. That’s it. They’re the easiest team to coach in the league right now. They’re tuned in, they’re locked in. We just need to lead a plan and they’re tuned in. They’re great.”

Next up for Utah is a visit from the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday night at 7:00pm.

Utah Hockey Club game wrap: Los Angeles Kings Rule 4-2 Over Utah HC With Wild Card Slipping Away

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Los Angeles Kings right winger Adrian Kempe (9) fights with Utah Hockey Club’s center Logan Cooley (92) in the second period at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Thu Apr 3, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–The Kings scored twice in a 44-second span in the third period to take control of a tight game which they would go on to win 4-2.

Utah HC entered Thursday night’s tilt against the Los Angeles Kings nine points out of the final Western Conference Wild Card slot with seven games to go in the regular season. Mathematically it isn’t impossible for Utah to make the playoffs, but they are running out of race track. The Kings had all but officially punched their ticket to the postseason, entering the matchup in second place in the Pacific Division behind the Vegas Golden Knights.

The two squads kept each other off the scoresheet in the first period, with Karel Vejmelka turning away all three shots which got past his defensemen, and Darcy Kuemper fending off 16 shots from the Utah offense. Vejmelka made his 19th consecutive start in front of the net for Utah, extending his career high.

At 6:56 of the second period, Los Angeles forward Andrei Kuzmenko shot the puck at the Utah net as Logan Cooley pushed Adrian Kempe into Vejmelka, deflecting the puck over the goal line to give L.A. a 1-0 lead.

At 12:21 of the frame, Utah forward Lawson Crouse found an impossibly small gap between Kuemper’s shoulder and the upper corner of the net for his 11th goal of the season, assisted by Josh Doan and Jack McBain to even things up at 1-1.

Early in the third period, Utah defenseman John Marino gave the puck away in front of the Utah net to Kevin Fiala who knocked it past Vejmelka unassisted for his 29th of the season. In frustration, Marino swung his stick at the goal post, his stick blade joining the puck in the back of the net.

44 seconds later, Trevor Moore took advantage of a Utah miscue in their offensive zone and raced across the length of the ice to put the Kings up 3-1 with his 18th of the season, assisted by Quinton Byfield. With Vejmelka pulled for an extra attacker, veteran L.A. defenseman Drew Doughty scored into an empty net at 18:10 to put the game out of reach.

As fans headed for the exits, Utah went on the power play when Brandt Clarke was whistled for tripping against Alexander Kerfoot with 27 seconds remaining. Utah controlled the faceoff and Jack McBain cut the deficit in half with 20 seconds left on the clock with his 13th goal of the season, assisted by Kailer Yamamoto and Sean Durzi, but it wouldn’t be enough to change the outcome.

With the loss, Utah remains nine points out of the Wild Card picture with just six games remaining.

In the locker room, Lawson Crouse spoke about his team’s effort. “Yeah, frustrating. … We were in the driver’s seat for the first two periods, and unfortunately, what happened on the four on four and they capitalized on two chances. That’s how quick the game can get away from you, and we were playing catch up from there.”

Forward Dylan Guenther, who played with a transparent cage after breaking his nose in the previous game, commented, “I honestly thought we played pretty well. Maybe get inside a little bit more and try to create more secondary chances. I think we know that they were pretty good in the neutral zone. They had more speed, but we just need to find a way to score more goals.” When asked what the team is learning at this point of the season, Guenther added, “I think how every play matters. Every shift, no matter what happens, all you can do is go out there and try to win your shift so just take it a step at a time.”

Head coach André Tourigny said, “I think we played a really solid game, I think there’s a few broken plays which made the difference in the game, but I think the guys were ready and we were really structured. We didn’t give up much. Unfortunately, a few breakdowns made the difference.” With regard to Guenther’s broken nose, Tourigny commented, “there’s not many guys in any locker room in the NHL at this point of the year who don’t have something wrong. You know that’s for sure. When you have a cage and a bubble and you have a broken nose and everybody sees it, but there’s a lot of it… it’s a tough sport, and there are tough players and they go through a lot, and they demand a lot from their bodies. It’s 82 games, and that’s the way it is. And I think I have tons of respect for all of them who battle through and manage their life 24/7 to make sure they’re capable of keeping playing at the elite level. So Gunner and others, tons of respect.”

Utah returns to the ice for the third game of the homestand on Saturday afternoon against the division leading Winnipeg Jets.

Utah HC Ices Flames 3-1 Kicking Off Final Regular Season Homestand Of Inaugural Season

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Utah Hockey Club center Kevin Stenlund (82) shoots and scores past Calgary Flames goalie Dustin Wolf (32) in the first period at the Delta Center on Tue Apr 1, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–Goaltender Karel Vejmelka limited Calgary to one goal in his 18th consecutive start as Utah Hockey Club begins final regular season homestand with a win.

Nearly six months after kicking off their first season in Salt Lake City, the Utah Hockey Club hosted the Calgary Flames on Tuesday for the first of five games in the final regular season homestand of the year. Fans arrived to a Delta Center surrounded by trees popping with white blossoms heralding the arrival of Spring, even as the local mountains received a fresh blanket of April snow earlier in the day. Mathematically still engaged in the Wild Card hunt, Utah continues to treat every game as a playoff game. Tuesday night was no different as the Utah battled and defeated the visiting Flames 3-1.

Late in the first period, Utah forward Kevin Stenlund broke the scoreless tie with a snap shot past Calgary netminder Dustin Wolf, his 12th goal of the season, assisted by Alexander Kerfoot and Ian Cole. Karel Vejmelka, starting his 18th consecutive game in goal, turned away all 12 Flames shots in the frame.

At 2:25 of the second period, Barrett Hayton put Utah up 2-0 with a backhand shot, his 18th of the season, assisted by Sean Durzi and Nick Schmaltz. Later in the period, Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson cut the lead in half with an unassisted goal, his 11th of the season.

Karel Vejmelka stood tall in net, stopping 32 of 33 shots, and his teammates sacrificed their bodies to hold off Calgary’s attempt to send the game into overtime late in the third. With 18 seconds remaining, Utah captain Clayton Keller sealed the victory scoring into an empty net for his 25th of the season, assisted by Logal Cooley and Dylan Guenther who returned to the ice after receiving stitches for a puck to the face.

In the locker room, Forward Barrett Hayton was asked about the most important component of tonight’s game. “I think sticking with it. Obviously this is a playoff game for both teams.. you knew it was gonna be a war till the end. Their last seven games have been unreal… a lot of comeback wins in that so we knew we had to have that urgency the whole time and stick with it.” Talking about Vejmelka, Hayton remarked, “It’s just a lot of fun to play in front of him. He’s a competitor, he loves doing it. It’s a lot of confidence in a guy like that, and you see it every day. We know he kicks, but still, he makes some saves out there that are just crazy.”

Vejmelka also addressed the media. “It’s fun to play every night in front of our home crowd. They give us some special energy and it’s kind of cool to play, especially in those kinds of games where we are still in the hunt, so we need every point. It was fun.” How does he feel physically after starting 18 consecutive games? “Actually, pretty normal. I don’t really feel like I played that long. It’s fun to play and I’m playing better and better, which is great. It’s fun to play those kinds of games. I like to play under pressure, so it’s part of it, and I really enjoyed it.” When asked what he has learned about himself during that stretch, Veggie responded, “I don’t really think about it. I don’t really overthink because it doesn’t help you. I just try to focus on another game, another shift, and another shot. That’s kind of the mindset that I’ve had and we just need to keep going and keep rolling and play a style of hockey where we block shots. Being resilient is huge for us.”

Head coach André Tourigny began his post-game briefing by saying, “First, great game by Vej. I think he was elite with that key moment. I think the first two periods we were really stingy defensively, we had a lot of chances as well offensively. We could have closed the game, separated ourselves. We didn’t, but we stayed with it. In the third, I liked our mindset in terms of urgency defensively… I think we backed up a little bit too much, but other than that, I think we found a way, we had big kills as well, so that’s what I think.” Tourigny elaborated on the play of Vejmelka. “Vej in the past has been known for.. when he gets tired… he had kind of a difficult time, and that was important for us to go through them and learn to battle through. Like I said this morning, at some point, if we’re in a 15, 16, 20, 24 game run in the playoffs, he needs to be able to sustain, and it’s not easy, it’s tough. It’s tough mentally and physically, and what he’s going through now will help when that will happen because he will have been through it. He will have a situation and will say, okay, I’ve been through that and I learned from it, so I think it’s good for him to go through that. As a goalie, there’s a different vibe when, okay, I had a bad game, that’s over, now I need to be good tonight. And that’s exactly what happens when you’re in the playoffs.. you can lose eight nothing yesterday.. doesn’t matter next game. You need to be ready and move on, and so I think that stretch will make him go through it and learn from it, so I think it’s good for him.

With regard to the Wild Card race, Tourigny continued, “The point is, we’ll never quit. That’s what you want to raise, that’s what you want to be as a team… a team who will never quit. There’s no quitting in that room. There’s no quitting in those players. There’s only one thing we want to do, and we want to pursue our objective. We won’t quit until they pull the plug, and if they do, it is what it is… but we won’t give them any reason to do it. We have a bunch of players who are so competitive and they’re so proud to play in that season, the way we’ve been supported by the fans and we’re so fortunate, so I think we want to give it back.”

Utah remains 8 points back of the final Wild Card slot with 7 games to go. The Los Angeles Kings arrive on Thursday night for the second game of the homestand.

Detroit has Utah HC Seeing Red In 5-1 Thrashing

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Utah Hockey Club goaltender Karel Vejmelka (70) had a rough night against the Detroit Red Wings faced 13 shots, saved nine and allowed four goals at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Mon Mar 24, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–Utah finishes homestand on a losing note as Red Wings score five unanswered goals in a 5-1 win at the Delta Center.

Heading into Monday night’s contest against the Detroit Red Wings, the Utah Hockey Club had won seven of their last nine home games in an effort to keep their playoff hopes alive. Each team entered the matchup with 32 wins on the season, with Utah holding an edge in points thanks to 11 overtime or shootout losses versus 6 for the Wings who are also in the Wild Card hunt in the Eastern Conference.

The first period started off bright for the home team when Tyler Motte was whistled for tripping against Kevin Stenlund, giving Utah an early power play opportunity. Captain Clayton Keller fired a perfect pass to Dylan Guenther who one-timed a slap shot past Detroit goaltender Alex Lyon for his 26th goal of the season and a 1-0 Utah lead.

A little more than a minute later, however, Utah defenseman Sean Durzi lost the puck in the offensive zone and Vladimir Tarasenko was off to the races, feeding linemate Elmer Soderblom who put the puck past Karel Vejmelka for his 4th goal of the season to tie things up.

Early in the second period, Red Wings forward Marco Kasper banked the puck off of Utah’s Lawson Crouse in front of the net for a fluke goal, his 14th of the season, giving Detroit a 2-1 lead. The two squads would exchange power play opportunities during the period but the two netminders held off any further scoring.

At 9:51 of the third period, Detroit would collect its second fluke goal of the game when a shot toward the net from the blue line by Simon Edvinsson would deflect off the stick of Austin Watson at the top of the faceoff circle and fly just over the left shoulder of Karel Vejmelka into the top corner of the net to make it 3-1.

For Watson it was his first goal of the season in his fourth game as a Red Wing. With the clock winding down to the final few minutes, Utah pulled Vejmelka for an extra attacker, but Detroit was able to capitalize as Alex DeBrinkat put the game out of reach for good with his 33rd goal of the season into the empty net, assisted by Patrick Kane.

Adding insult to injury, with 88 seconds left on the clock, Tyler Motte picked up a rebound from a shot by Craig Smith to notch his 3rd goal of the season and finish off Utah 5-1.

In the locker room after the game, Utah defenseman Ian Cole weighed in on the game. “I think overall, it was a decent game, but ultimately, regardless of what the balance is, we lost the game. There’s a lot of turning points that we could talk about over the course of that game, but overall, we didn’t get the job done.” With regard to the challenge of making the playoffs, Cole continued, “Nothing’s easy, right? You need a lot of good force on your side. You need calls on your side, you need to take advantage of opportunities, and you need to play really, really good hockey. You need kind of a perfect storm to get into the playoffs and then have success when you’re in the playoffs. You need all those things going for you. Tonight some of those things did not go for us, but we’re right back at it against a great team in Tampa in a couple days. We’ll have to look at the video and figure out what went wrong and what we could have done better, and then fix that and move on.”

Captain Clayton Keller also faced the media. “We had a good start. We had a lot of possessions, some shots early, but I don’t think we did a good enough job of getting to the inside, hitting those rebounds … power plays got to be better. We had a good start there, but we have to find a way to get another one there. So that’s definitely frustrating as well. … There’s never going to be any quit in this room ever. We’re going to fight all the way until the end. We’re going to try to win every single game from here on out. Never know what can happen. We’re going to stay motivated, learn from this game, (and) attack this next road trip. We go 3-0, you never know what will happen.”

Utah Head coach André Tourigny began his media room comments by saying, “I think we got a little bit unlucky on our goal against. The puck was bouncing a lot tonight. It was tough to execute. I would have loved to simplify a little bit, go more at the net, and (be a little) bit more dirty. I thought we had a good start. But we could have simplified a little more in our shooting mentality in trying to make plays. Like I said, at the end of the day we got unlucky.” When asked what adjustments he would have liked to have seen, Tourigny commented, “More (of a) shooting mentality, more shots on net, more broken plays. Give them credit; they played well defensively, which we did as well. We gave up five shots after two (periods). We kept them on the outside pretty good. The way we played defensively was alright. Offensively, I think we could have simplified. … I have no problem with the way we played in terms of intensity, battle, those kinds of (things). I don’t have much to say. I’m trying to be creative here. We didn’t execute right offensively and we tried to do too much. We should have gone to the net and had some scrappy goals and we didn’t.”

Utah now hits the road for a trio of games against Tampa Bay, Florida, and Chicago before returning to Delta Center on April 1 against Calgary for the first of five games on the final homestand of the inaugural season.

Cooley and Kerfoot Strike Lightning Twice In 6-4 Utah HC Win Over Tampa Bay

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Utah Hockey Club’s Logan Cooley (92) scored a goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sat Mar 22, 2025 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City. Here is Cooley getting congratulated by teammates after scoring against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena in Vancouver on Sun Mar 16, 2025. (Canadian Press via AP News photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–Utah forwards explode for six goals while notching the team’s seventh home win over the past 9 games in hard fought victory against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Utah Hockey Club played a rare early afternoon game at Delta Center on Saturday, hosting the Tampa Bay Lightning who have outscored every other team in the league except the Washington Capitals and boasts the highest plus/minus differential in the NHL.

Josh Doan struck first for the home team at 6:42 of the opening frame connecting at the goal crease on a perfect pass from Jack McBain from behind the net for his fifth goal of the season, with the second assist to Lawson Crouse.

With a little more than two minutes remaining in the period, Utah forward Nick Schmaltz fed Michael Kesselring the puck on a breakaway which was stopped by Lightning netminder Brandon Halverson, but Logan Cooley followed the play and punched the rebound into the back of the net for his 20th goal of the season and a 2-0 lead.

Shortly after the ensuing faceoff, Ian Cole was whistled for tripping against Nikita Kucherov, resulting in a power play goal for Brayden Point, his 33rd on the season, assisted by Jake Guentzel and Oliver Bjorkstrand.

At 5:22 of the second period, Tampa Bay forward Anthony Cirelli evened the score on a slap shot for his 24th goal of the season, assisted by Brandon Hagel and Nikita Kucherov. 36 seconds later Utah would regain the lead when forward Kevin Stenlund one-timed a cross ice pass from John Marino to find Alexander Kerfoot in front of the net who knocked it in for his 9th goal of the season.

With 2:37 remaining in the period, Lightning forward Jake Guentzel tied things up once again, tipping in a pass from Nick Perbix for his 34th goal of the season, but 30 seconds later John Marino launched a shot from the blue line which Logan Cooley deflected into the net for his 21st of the season, putting Utah back on top 4-3 as the period closed.

Barely a minute into the third period, Clayton Keller was stopped at close range by Brandon Halverson, who immediately turned away a rebound attempt by Logan Cooley but was unable to stop Nick Schmaltz on a second rebound backhand shot for his 17th goal of the season and a 5-3 lead.

Less than two minutes later Brayen Point could cut the lead to one again with his second goal of the game, assisted by Ryan McDonagh and Jake Guentzel. Earlier in the season Utah struggled to maintain third period leads, but Karel Vejmelka, playing in his career high 13th consecutive game, held the Lightning offense scoreless the rest of the way, fending off a Tampa Bay power play with 2:09 remaining due to a too many men on the ice penalty.

With 57 seconds remaining, Alexander Kerfoot fired the puck into an empty net for his 2nd goal of the night and 10th of the season, giving Utah the 6-4 victory, their seventh at home over their past 9 contests.

In the locker room, Kerfoot talked about Utah’s recent success at home. “I think the crowd’s been unreal. I mean, third period there towards the end of the game—that’s a loud building that’s fun to play in. We’ve obviously placed an emphasis on being at home, I don’t think that our mindset has really changed, but we’ve just dug in here down the stretch and it’s a fun place to play. It feels like we’ve got momentum when we come home and when we’re playing in front of our fans. … I think that this was a great atmosphere for kids to come and watch the game and this is a new market, we’re trying to grow hockey here. SEG’s done an awesome job of growing the game in this community and to have a night like this where we get to bring in some youth hockey players and some kids during an early game on the weekend, it’s really fun and I hope that we can do that again in the future.”

In a game full of momentum swings, Logan Cooley talked about managing emotions. “It was kind of a crazy game, honestly. We were up two but then a goal gets called back, but you know, we just kept going at it and I thought we were playing the right way the whole third [period] there and then we got the outcome with a big two points.” With regard to his personal compete level, Cooley remarked, “I think just for me, I try to be the best version of myself each and every day and just try to get as good as I can to become the player I want to be. Obviously, it comes back to the team and trying to get into the playoffs. Eventually, I want to get a Cup and I think that’s the biggest drive for me right now. Being in Utah, it’s special in front of these fans. There’s no better feeling than coming to the rink every day and working together towards one goal here.”

Head coach André Tourigny was all smiles in the media room. “Really happy about the offense we created tonight, but even more proud of the way we defended the rush and the way we closed the middle of the ice. That was a really tough challenge, tough team to do that against them. Obviously for individual performance, I think Sergey [Mikhail Sergachev] was really good. Cooley and his line, they were something else. They were really, really good. I think it’s a huge character win. … Right from the start of the game, the focus, the execution, the urgency was elite. I think everybody was engaged. Everybody was connected. We’re really disciplined, and in the way we had to play against those guys. Great effort from the boys.” Comparing his club’s protecting the lead in the third period with difficulties earlier in the season, Tourigny said, “It’s day and night. I think that the mindset, the composure, the assertiveness, you cannot even compare. I think our team grew a lot, and I think we have way more maturity now.”

Utah will square off on Monday against the Detroit Red Wings before embarking upon a three game road trip to Tampa Bay, Florida, and Chicago. They will then return for one final homestand of five games before finishing out the regular season on the road.

Dylan Guenther’s 9th Game-Winning Goal Rattles Sabres In 5-2 Utah HC Victory

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Utah Hockey Club’s Dylan Guenther (11) celebrates a third period goal against the Anaheim Ducks on Wed Mar 12, 2025 at the Delta Center. On Thu Mar 20, 2025 Guenther scored the go ahead goal against the Buffalo Sabres at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City (AP file photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–Buffalo unraveled late in the third period, scoring their own goal for Utah on a delayed penalty to seal the Utah Hockey Club’s 5-2 sixth home win in the past eight contests.

The Utah Hockey Club returned to home ice on Thursday night after a three-game road trip where they won against Wild Card contender Vancouver but lost to Seattle and Edmonton.

Logan Cooley gave Utah the first lead of the game at 17:27 of the first period on a snap shot which got past Buffalo netminder James Reimer, his 19th goal of the season, assisted by Nick Schmaltz and Clayton Keller. With 11 seconds remaining in the opening frame, Sabres forward JJ Peterka beat Karel Vejmelka on the power play to tie things up, assisted by Jason Zucker and Tage Thompson.

Utah would regain the lead at 11:50 of the second period as defenseman Mikhail Sergachev fired a shot from the blue line which flew through traffic for his career high 12th goal of the season, assisted by Jack McBain.

Early in the third period Buffalo would tie the score again on an unassisted short-handed breakaway goal by Ryan McLeod. Utah forward Dylan Guenther recovered a rebound in front of the Sabres net at 14:13 of the period and scored his 25th of the season on a wrist shot for what would become his ninth game-winning goal of the season, assisted by Barrett Hayton and Michael Carcone.

With just over a minute remaining in the game, Utah forward Kevin Stenlund was whistled for high-sticking against Bowen Byram. As play continued with Buffalo still controlling the puck, Tage Thompson missed the stick of Rasmus Dahlin on an attempted pass which banked off the dasher boards and straight into the empty Sabres net to give Utah a 4-2 lead.

Stenlund, the last Utah player to touch the puck before the penalty, was credited with his 11th goal of the season. With James Reimer still sitting on the Buffalo bench, Mikhail Sergachev launched a shot the full length of the ice to make what had been a tight game a 5-2 blowout. The goal added to Sergachev’s career high for his 13th of the season, assisted by winning goaltender Karel Vejmelka, his first assist on the year.

In the locker room, Sergachev talked about the final moments of the game. “Obviously, that was lucky. To get those lucky bounces, you gotta work hard, and I think that stretch in the third, we worked hard and had a lot of chances to score. We didn’t score, and we got those two, so I guess we’ll take them.” With regard to Vejmelka making a career high 12th consecutive start, Sergachev added, “He’s our guy. He’s there when we need him. It showed tonight. He’s unbelievable.”

Dylan Guenther talked about the importance of Thursday night’s bounce back win following the previous game’s drubbing against the Oilers. “It gets a little bit of our confidence back. That was a tough ending [in Edmonton], and it’s just one game that’s kind of the beauty of it. We have to play a lot, but we just had to make sure that we got back on track. It was a step in that direction.” With regard to his ninth game-winner, Guenther commented, “That’s pretty cool, maybe a bit of a coincidence too, just getting lucky on some of them. Those are the times of the game that you want to play in. Those are the fun times. So, it’s nice to be recognized.”

Head coach André Tourigny also talked about his team’s response to the loss in Edmonton. “We talked briefly about it as a team. It’s what happened and let’s learn from it. We moved on and I think in our situation, it’s easier because the game tonight was huge. That was a really important game for us with the scores everywhere around the league on top of it. We didn’t know that before, but we know that the team we’re fighting to win, they’re fighting too. They want to win their game, so we need to keep getting points. There are a lot of games left, there’s a lot of hockey left, and we need to be consistent and win on a regular basis.” Speaking of how the club is fighting to make the playoffs, Tourigny said, “There’s no doubt about it. For me, I think we had it all year long, and we had moments where we talked about how much pressure we’re putting on ourselves and how tough it was to manage it. All season long we’re really demanding ourselves, we believe in ourselves, and we know we can achieve great things. We talk about the process of a young team to live with that expectation and that pressure and so on and so forth. It’s a lot of learning. It’s learning on steroids, and we need to keep going and keep doing our job at that point and stay in the hunt. We need to wear opponents down and that’s the way it will be. Every point is important.”

Utah returns to action on Saturday at home for a 3:00pm afternoon game against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Earlier in the day, Utah Hockey Club issued the following press release with the headline, “Smith Entertainment Group Offers $1 Subscription to UtahHC+ as Utah Hockey Club Seeks Inaugural Season Playoff Spot.”

Thursday, Smith Entertainment Group introduced a limited-time, $1 subscription option for UtahHC+ – the official streaming service of Utah Hockey Club – that includes the ability to stream all of the team’s remaining 14 regular season games and any games Utah would play during the first round of the NHL’s Stanley Cup playoffs, if they qualify. The offer is open to fans across Utah, along with six neighboring states, inviting them to tune in and support Utah Hockey Club as they continue their push for the playoffs during a historic inaugural season. Utah is currently four points out from securing a wild card position in the NHL Western Conference and would be the 13th franchise to qualify for the playoffs in their first year in the NHL.

Fans can secure the $1 “Push for the Playoffs” UtahHC+ subscription offer now through March 31 at 11:59 P.M. MT by visiting http://www.segplus.com. In addition to live games, the subscription includes access to video-on-demand (VOD) content, game replays, game-specific alternative broadcasts, and other engaging behind-the-scenes content. Users who take advantage of this limited-time $1 offer will have access to the platform from the date of subscribing until May 14, 2025.

Utah’s remaining regular season NHL games conclude on April 15 against the St. Louis Blues. The NHL’s Stanley Cup playoffs are expected to begin in the second half of April, with a full schedule of games available in the coming weeks. .”

More than 16.8 million plus hockey fans can subscribe to UtahHC+ including all 3.5 million Utahns, as well as those living in Arizona, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Wyoming, and parts of Nevada.

Fans can learn more about subscription availability and sign up for the promotional offering by visiting http://www.segplus.com.

Mikhail Sergachev Scores 300th Career Point in 3-2 Utah HC Victory over Anaheim

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Utah Hockey Club defenseman Mikhail Sergachev (98) and Anaheim Ducks left wing Cutter Gauthier (61) battle for the puck in the first period at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Wed Mar 12, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–Utah Defenseman Mikhail Sergachev fed Dylan Guenther the game-winning goal in the third period for his 300th career point en route to defeating the Ducks on home ice.

The Utah Hockey Club welcomed the Anaheim Ducks to Delta Center on Wednesday night for the third and final meeting between the clubs this season. Anaheim prevailed 5-4 during both previous encounters which ended in overtime and a shootout. Utah entered the game 4 points of Anaheim in the Wild Card hunt.

At 11:03 of the first period, Utah forward Jack McBain tipped in a blast from Ian Cole for his 12th goal of the season with the additional assist by Josh Doan. Anaheim backup goaltender Ville Husso turned away 16 of 17 shots in a lopsided frame wherein the Ducks unsuccessfully challenged Karel Vejmelka with 8 shots on goal.

Alexander Kerfoot put Utah up 2-0 at 14:31 of the second period on a snap shot for his 8th of the season, assisted by Dylan Guenther and Barrett Hayton. Less than two minutes later the Ducks got one back on a goal from forward Alex Killorn, his 14th of the season, assisted by Leo Carlsson and Cutter Gauthier.

Early in the third period, Mikhail Sergachev went to the box for hooking against Mason McTavish who would immediately cash it in and tie the score on the power play for his 18th goal of the season, assisted by Trevor Zegras and Jackson LaCombe. A few minutes later, with Olen Zellweger in the sin bin for hooking against Josh Doan, Sergachev would redeem himself assisting on a slap shot by Dylan Guenther which put Utah up for good 3-2 as Karel Vejmelka locked down the Utah net the rest of the way. Guenther’s goal was his 24th of the season and his 8th game-winner. The assist gave Sergachev 300 points in his NHL career, the last 43 of which coming in his debut season with Utah.

In the locker room, Utah forward Barrett Hayton talked about tonight’s win. “Definitely a huge win, huge home stand. Obviously, it would have been really nice to get all four points, but the way we were able to fight back in that Toronto game and get a point, it’s huge for us. Same thing tonight, it was a grind. They were playing tight, they’re a dangerous team, and it was obviously a fight to the end there. But [Vejmelka] was kicking the guys who were doing a good job in front of them. Great three points.” Utah had 3rd period leads in each of their prior games against Anaheim which were lost in overtime. When asked about maintaining focus to hold on to tonight’s one-goal lead in the third, Hayton said, “It’s just about keeping poise in our game. Obviously, I think probably in the last couple of weeks, we’ve done a pretty good job with that once we’ve gotten a lead and not sitting back. That’s something that can kill you when you’re in these games. If you sit back and let them come and play with pace on you, it’s just not a not a good game plan. So I think we’ve done a good job of playing with poise, making plays, playing smart, but still playing with pace. … It all starts with preparation. I think all the guys in here are professionals and take their preparation really seriously. It’s kind of just a mental thing, knowing you need to start with pace and play direct, especially early on in games as you’re getting into the game, you don’t want to play too fancy or too risky. You want to get into the game, get on them, and allow that flow to build before you make those plays that might be a little more high risk.”

Dylan Guenther also talked about protecting the late lead. “We’re getting a little bit better at those situations every game. I don’t think we played our best game today, but we found a way to win, and we managed the puck pretty well at the end of the game.” On his game-winning power play goal, Guenther remarked, “When I saw [Anaheim] was low, I wanted [Keller] to go up to [Sergachev], and then he gave it over to me. So, it was just good recognition. I feel like we’ve gotten pretty good chemistry as we’ve continued to play together.”

Head coach André Tourigny opened his briefing by saying, “What I take from that game is the way we played in the third, how we protected the lead, the sacrifices our guys (made), the way they were engaged and disciplined, the resilience we had. That was great to see.” Talking about Guenther’s late-game, Tourigny commented, “A lot of confidence (in Guenther)…I’m more happy about the shot he blocked when the game was on the line than his goal–in the sense that that’s a choice you make. Scoring a goal is a pretty easy choice when you have the opportunity. But when you decide to put your body on the line and sacrifice yourself for the team and do that for your brothers, I think that’s huge.” His comment about brothers prompted one reporter to ask about the family mindset on the team, to which Bear responded, “I think it’s a strength of our organization. For a few years now, the togetherness and brotherhood we have; it’s special. I think the guys care so much about each other. Sometimes when you care about someone, you try to do too much. I think, in general, our team is really close. They love each other, they fight for each other, they’re together and everything.”

With Connor Ingram out of the lineup, Tourigny was asked how he plans to manage Vejmelka’s time in net during the final month of the regular season. “We will do one game at a time. For us it’s playoff time. We need to make sure we manage a lot of practice time. You need to practice to keep the skill level at a high level, but you can have shorter practice, you can do half of a practice or not taking shots after the morning skate, those kinds of things to make sure we keep the workload lower so it’s not as much the number of times he will go on the ice, it’s more the length.”

Utah’s win places the club just two points out of a Wild Card spot as they embark upon a 3-game road trip to Seattle, Vancouver, and Edmonton before returning March 20 against the Buffalo Sabres.

Utah HC Fights Back From 3-0 Deficit But Falls To Toronto 4-3 In Shootout

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Toronto Maple Leafs left winger Mitch Marner (16) scores on Utah Hockey Club goaltender Karel Vejmelka (70) during the shootout period at Delta Center in Salt Lake City Mon Mar 10, 2025 (AP News photo)

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY–Carcone, Schmaltz, and Hayton each lit the lamp in the second period to tie the score at 3-3, but Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll outdueled Karel Vejmelka in the shootout to give Toronto the 4-3 win at the Delta Center.

The Utah Hockey Club returned home Monday night after splitting a two-game road trip where they defeated the Detroit Red Wings and lost in overtime to the Chicago Blackhawks. The NHL trade deadline came and went during their absence without any significant trades being made, however several pending free agents signed contract extensions: defenseman Ian Cole and forward Alex Kerfoot for one year, defenseman Olli Määttä for three years, and the current #1 goaltender Karel Vejmelka for five years. On Sunday, Utah announced that Vejmelka’s netminding counterpart, Connor Ingram, had re-entered the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program and will be unavailable for the foreseeable future.

With Josh Doan in the penalty box for tripping against William Nylander, Toronto struck first at 12:42 of the opening frame when a snap shot by Nylander deflected off the stick of Utah defenseman Mikhail Sergachev and into the top right corner of the net.

Nylander’s 36th goal of the season was assisted by Mitch Marner and Matthew Knies. As the period wound down, Ian Cole went to the sin bin for high-sticking against Bobby McMann and with 22 seconds remaining Calle Jarnkrok gave the Maple Leafs a 2-0 lead with their second power play goal of the night, Jarnkrok’s first of the season, assisted by Max Domi and Morgan Rielly.

At 4:48 of the second period, Toronto defenseman Simon Benoit ripped a shot from the blue line which found the back of the net for his first goal of the season, assisted by David Kampf and Pontus Holmberg, to give the Maple Leafs a 3-0 lead.

When play resumed, Benoit and Kesselring dropped the gloves with the Utah defender hoping to fire up his team. It worked. Over the next seven minutes and 23 seconds Utah would come all the way back from their early hole.

Forward Michael Carcone got things going for the home team at 8:14 with his sixth goal of the season, tipping in a sweet pass from Josh Doan in front of the net with the additional assist going to Jack McBain. 49 seconds later, forward Nick Schmaltz would tip in a perfect pass from Olli Määttä for his 15th of the season, with the additional assist by captain Clayton Keller.

Just past the halfway mark of the period, Benoit went to the box again for tripping against McBain, setting the table for Utah forward Barrett Hayton to even the score 3-3 on the power play with his 17th of the season, a deflected shot by Mikhail Sergachev at the blue line, with Dylan Guenther picking up the additional assist.

Joseph Woll and Karel Vejmelka each held their opponents at bay for the remainder of the second period and all of the third period and overtime. Austen Matthews gave Toronto the first lead of the shootout, but Clayton Keller immediately evened things up with a backhand shot. Mitch Marner put the game away for the Maple Leafs with a wrist shot to give his squad the victory.

In the locker room, Utah defenseman Michael Kesselring talked about the second period comeback. “Honestly, we’re a resilient group. We fought back against a really, really good team. I thought we outplayed them. We deserved a little bit better, so it was a good effort, and we should build on that.”

What did the team do differently after the first period? “I think we played low/high more and got more pucks to the net. I know it’s a cliche, but we just kind of grind them down a little bit. Obviously, their top players are really high end, so you have to try to make them defend, so they have to change when they go up the ice. I thought we did a pretty good job of that.”

Captain Clayton Keller also addressed the second period surge. “Even early on in the game, we felt good about our game. They got two power play goals and I think as the game went on, we got better. Our guys stepped up in big moments and [Kesselring] got us going there with the fight which was awesome for us and really elevated us. We scored two quick goals and it sucks to not get the two points tonight, but everyone dug in tonight. We stayed together no matter what was going on. It was a lot of back and forth, just a lot going on. I’m proud of the guys the way we fought until the end.”

Head coach André Tourigny began his post-game comments by remarking, “That was a hell of a character game for us. The way things unfold, I’m really proud of the way the guys fought back, the resiliency, and all of that. I talked this morning about us being hard on the inside and winning battles and I think we were really disciplined in our approach and playing against their tough players. I’m really proud of the efforts.” Tourigny was particularly pleased with the momentum shift from Kesselring’s fight. “Unreal. We talked in the beginning of the season on our team managing the game and learning. That moment of the game, the emotion of the situation, their third goal, the fight, and the way the guys were talking on the bench, they had the right message on discipline and being resilient and staying engaged and staying with it. It was unreal. That’s kudos to the guys. They were unbelievable and we know how important it is. We need points and stuff like that and there’s a level of frustration we didn’t get, but there’s a huge level of pride on the character we showed and how we managed our emotions and how we managed the game in those tough situations. … The whole day for me is positive. We’re missing one point and that’s the only thing we can complain about. The rest is unreal. That’s a good team. On five-on-five, we probably doubled them in scoring chances and we came back from a three goal deficit. We fought, we hit, and we fed on the energy of our crowd. That’s a great day.”

Utah Hockey Club will play host to the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday and then hit the road for three games against Seattle, Vancouver, and Edmonton before returning March 20 against the Buffalo Sabres.