Game Preview: December 14th Newfoundland at Utah

Newfoundland Growlers (18-9) at Utah Grizzlies (10-8-4-1) Saturday December 14, 2019. 7:00 pm MST.  

Classic Country 1370, 104.3 FM HD-2. ECHL.TV.  

It’s the rubber match in the three game series. It’s Star Wars Night at Maverik Center with specialty jersey’s that will be auctioned off after the game with Make A Wish. Grizzlies have a standings point in 9 of their last 11 games.

Last Night: Utah 4 Newfoundland 0

Grizzlies last night shut out an opponent for the second time in their last 3 games. It was the first time Newfoundland was shut out all season. In fact it was the first time Newfoundland scored less than 2 goals in a game all year. In his Grizzlies debut goaltender Martin Ouellette stopped all 19 shots he saw. Griffen Molino had 2 goals and 1 assist. Ty Lewis had 1 goal and 1 assist. Travis Barron also added a goal. Utah outshot Newfoundland 32 to 19. Newfoundland was 0 for 5 on the power play, while Utah was 0 for 2.

Wednesday Night: Newfoundland 4 Utah 3 (Overtime)

Tim McGauley and Griffen Molino each had 1 goal and 1 assist in the Grizzlies 4-3 loss in OT as Joseph Duszak scored the game winner 1:37 into the extra session. Taylor Richart had 2 assists for the Grizz and Joe Wegwerth added a game tying goal 11:12 into the third period to make it a 3-3 game. Brad Barone stopped 21 of 25 in net for Utah.

So Many Close Games

Last game for the Grizzlies was a 1 goal game decided past regulation. 6 of the last 9 games have been decided in either overtime or a shootout. Utah has 9 games decided past regulation. 15 of the 23 games this season have been decided by 1 goal. 8 of the past 11 games have been 1 goal games with 6 of those ending in OT or shootout.

New Goalie Looking Good

Grizzlies acquired goaltender Martin Ouellette in a trade from the Atlanta Gladiators. He made his Grizzlies debut last night and got the shutout. It was his 13th professional shutout. Ouellette has an outstanding track record in this league. This is his 6th year in this league, where he has a career record of 105-51-12 with a .912 save percentage and a 2.58 goals against average. His best year may have been in 2017-18 with the Florida Everblades where he had a record of 33-5-3 with a 2.02 GAA and a .921 save %. In 27 career games in the AHL, Ouellette has a record of 14-5-3 with a 2.15 GAA and a .930 save %. Ouellette got a shutout in his Grizzlies debut on Friday the 13th.

Travis Barron Returns in Style

Barron had a third period goal. He has 7 goals and 7 assists in 12 games for Utah this year.

Who’s Hot….M and M Boys on a Roll

Griffen Molino has 3 goal and 7 assists in his last 4 games. Molino is a +8 the last 4 games and he’s 2nd on the team at +13.

Tim McGauley had 5 goals and 2 assist in the last 4 games. McGauley currently leads the team in assists (12), Points (17) and Plus/Minus (+13).

Joe Wegwerth has 3 goals and 2 assists for 5 points in the last 5 games.

Brandon Saigeon has 4 goals and 1 assist in his last 6 games.

Rio Tinto Kennecott Partners with the Grizzlies

For every goal scored at home this season Rio Tinto Kennecott will donate $100 to UCAIR, the Utah Clean Air Partnership. The Grizzlies have scored 36 goals at home so far this season.

2019-2020 Regular Season Totals

Overall record: 10-8-4-1

Home record: 6-4-2.

Road record: 4-4-2-1.

Last 10 games: Utah is 6-2-2 

Goals per game: 3.26 (11th in the league).

Goals against per game: 3.04 (Tied 9th). 

Shots per game: 30.65 (15th).

Shots against per game: 27.78 (3rd). 

Power play: 18.9 % (10th).  

Penalty Kill: 85.4 % (6th). 

Scoring By Period

First Period: Utah 20 Opponents 20.

Second Period: Utah 29 Opponents 25.

Third Period: Utah 22 Opponents 20.

Total Scoring: Utah 75 Opponents 70.

Team Leaders

Goals: Josh Dickinson (9)

Assists: Tim McGauley/Griffen Molino (11)

Points: Molino (19)

Plus/Minus: McGauley (+15)

PIM: Patrick McGrath (77) – Leads league.

Power Play Points: Travis Barron (8)

Shots on Goal: Taylor Richart (71)

Game Winning Goals: Yuri Terao/Joe Wegwerth (2)

Wins: Jeff Smith (3)

Save %: Hunter Miska (.947) Martin Ouellette (1.000) – 1 game.

Goals Against Average: Miska (1.62) Ouellette (0.00) – 1 game.

Grizzlies Among League Leaders

Defenseman Taylor Richart has 6 goals this season, tied for most among defenseman. Patrick McGrath leads the league in penalty minutes with 77.

Upcoming Promotions

December 27th Tulsa at Utah – AFCU Friday.

December 28th Tulsa at Utah – Lucky’s Family Night.

December 30th Tulsa at Utah – Maverik Monday – Buy one get one free tickets with Maverik Adventure Card.

Grizzlies Player Awards

Josh Dickinson – October 2019 Player of the Month. He also was ECHL Player of the Week from October 14-20, where he had back to back hat tricks.

Hunter Miska – November 18-24 Goaltender of the Week.

Grizzlies Reschedule February game vs KC

The regularly scheduled Friday February 21st game at Maverik Center has been moved to Sunday, February 23rd at 5:00 pm. Tickets that were distributed for the game on the 21st will be good to use for the 23rd.

3 Have Played Them All

3 Players have appeared in all 22 regular season games. Taylor Richart, Eric Williams and Kevin Davis. All 3 are defenseman.

Hat Tricks This Season

Josh Dickinson – 2 (October 16th, 18th).

Tim McGauley – 1 (December 6th).

50 Seasons of Hockey in Utah Fun Fact

Dallas Stars interim head coach Rick Bowness played with the Salt Lake Golden Eagles for 2 seasons. In the 1978-79 season Bowness had 25 goals and 28 assists for 53 points in 48 games. The following season Bowness had 25 goals and 46 assists for 71 points in 71 games. Overall Bowness had 50 goals and 54 assists for 104 points in 99 games.

Last Night’s Teddy Bear Toss

Last night was the annual Teddy Bear Toss Presented by Ford. This year, the Utah Grizzlies and Ford are proud to partner with the Children’s Service Society of Utah. Children's Service Society of Utah empowers families and caregivers through services that support the safety and well-being of children. All donations from Friday night’s game will be collected and delivered to the organization. Griffen Molino scored the Teddy Bear Toss goal 9:19 into the second period to give Utah a 1-0 lead.