Grizzlies Game Preview: Feb. 5, 2021 Utah at Kansas City

Utah Grizzlies (7-4-3-2, 19 points) at Kansas City Mavericks (7-7-2-1, 17 points)February 5, 2021 | 6:05 PM | Game #17 | Cable Dahmer Arena   Referees: Nolan Bloyer (#31)Linesmen: Mitchell Hunt (#84), Dan Kovachik (#61). 

Where to See and Hear the Game  

You can catch every game on Flohockey.TV, the new home for ECHL.TV. The games can also be heard on Mixlr, the new broadcast home for Grizzlies hockey.Watch Live:  https://www.flohockey.tv/Listen Live: https://mixlr.com/utah-grizzlies

West Valley City, Utah – The Match-up

It’s the first game of the 2 game weekend series at Kansas City. Utah picked up 3 of 6 standings points last weekend vs Allen. It’s the first of 3 straight on the road as Utah will be at Allen on Tuesday, February 9th. 

This Week’s Games (All games can be seen on Flohockey.tv and Mixlr)

Friday, February 5, 2021 – Utah at Kansas City. 6:05 pm.

Saturday, February 6, 2021 – Utah at Kansas City. 6:05 pm.

Last Week’s Games

Miles Gendron, Riley Woods, Pat Cannone and Hunter Skinner each had 3 points last weekend to lead the club. Brad Barone started 2 games last weekend. Barone stopped 30 of 32 on January 30th and the next afternoon picked up his 2nd win of the season by saving 25 of 28. In 3 games this season, Barone has a 2-0-0-1 record with a 2.26 Goals Against Average and a .921 save percentage.

January 29th, 2021- Allen 5 Utah 2 – Riley Woods and Ryan Lowney scored power play goals for Utah. Miles Gendron had 2 assists.

January 30th, 2021- Allen 3 Utah 2 (Shootout) – Kris Myllari scored first pro goal. Pat Cannone tallied a power play goal to tie the game with 9:33 left in the third period. Brad Barone saved 30 of 32. Both teams had 1 power play goal.

January 31st, 2021- Allen 3 Utah 4 – Hunter Skinner had 2 goals. Matthew Boucher had 1 goal, 1 assist and Brad Barone saved 25 of 28 in the win.

Pair of Defenseman Scored First Pro Goals Last Weekend

Two defenseman scored their first pro goal in the Allen series. Hunter Skinner got his first 2 professional goals last Sunday. In 5 professional games, Skinner has 2 goals and 4 assists. Hunter is 19 years old and was a part of team USA’s 2021 World Juniors team that won a gold medal. Kris Myllari scored his first professional goal in the second period last Saturday. Myllari is the only Grizzlies player to appear in all 16 games this season.

Lots of Close Games

10 of the 16 games Utah has played this season have been 1 goal contests. 4 of the last 5 games have been decided by 1 goal.

Point Streaks and Trends

Riley Woods has a point in 5 of the 6 games played. Woods has 3 multi-point games in the 6 he’s played. Pat Cannone has a point in 4 straight games. Cannone has a point in 10 of his 14 games. Hunter Skinner has a point in 2 straight games and a point in 4 of his 5 pro games. Ryan Lowney has a point in 4 of his last 5 games. Matthew Boucher has 4 multi point games in his last 8 contests.

Happy Birthday Kris Myllari

The rookie out of Penn State is celebrating his 24th birthday today. Myllari is the only player to have appeared in all 16 games this season.

Power Play Was Good Last Weekend

Utah is 5 for 20 on the power play over the last 5 games. Pat Cannone and Miles Gendron lead the club with 5 power play points.

Grizzlies Among League leaders

The Grizzlies lead the league in the fewest shots allowed per game at 29.13. Matthew Boucher is 3rd among league rookies in assists (8). Miles Gendron is tied for 3rd in power play points by a defenseman with 5.

This Year vs KC

Utah played KC in a 3 game series on January 15th-16th and 18th at Maverik Center.

Utah won 4-1 on January 15th as Pat Cannone had 1 goal and 2 assists.

Kansas City won 5-4 in overtime on January 16th. KC’s Brodie Reid had 2 goals and 2 assists. The Mavericks won 5-2 on January 18th as they led 4-0 after the first period. Reid had 5 goals and 3 assists in the 3 games vs Utah.

Pat Cannone (2 goals, 2 assists) and Matthew Boucher (1 goal, 3 assists) each had 4 points in the 3 games vs KC.  

2021 Kelly Cup Playoff Format

The league announced on Thursday the format for the 2021 Kelly Cup Playoffs.

The top four teams in both the Eastern Conference and Western Conference, based on points percentage at the conclusion of the regular season, will earn postseason berths. All three rounds in the 2021 Kelly Cup Playoffs will be best-of-five series, with the higher-seeded team having the option of playing the first two or the final three games at home, unless a mutual alternative series format is determined.

The Conference Semifinals in both conferences will see the first-place team meet the fourth-place finisher and the second-place team taking on the third-place team. The two winners in each Conference will meet in the Conference Finals, with those winners advancing to the 2021 Kelly Cup Finals. 

The 2020-21 league regular season is scheduled to end on Saturday, June 5, with the 2021 Kelly Cup Playoffs beginning on Monday, June 7. The Kelly Cup Finals are scheduled to end no later than Saturday, July 3.

2020-2021 Regular Season Totals (league rankings)

Overall record: 7-4-3-2

Home record: 5-2-1-1

Road record: 2-2-2-1

Win percentage: .594 (3rd in Western Conference).

Streak: Won 1.

Standings Points: 19

Last 10: 3-3-2-2.

Goals per game: 3.06 (6th in the league).

Goals against per game: 3.19 (9th). 

Shots per game: 32.31 (6th).

Shots against per game: 29.13 (1st). – leads league. 

Power Play: 19.7 % - 12 for 61 (3rd). – Utah scored 4 power play goals last weekend vs Allen.

Penalty Kill: 78.3 % - 47 for 60 (12th).

Shorthanded Goals: 4 (Tied for 1st)

Record When Scoring First: 6-2-1.  Utah has scored first in 9 of the 16 games.

Team Leaders (2020-21 season)

Goals: Charlie Gerard/Pat Cannone (5)

Assists: Diego Cuglietta (8)

Points: Cannone (13)

Plus/Minus: Matt Abt (+8)

PIM: Teigan Zahn (24)

Power Play Points: Cannone/Miles Gendron (5)

Shots on Goal: Charlie Gerard (44) 

Shooting Percentage: Ryan Lowney (20.0 %) Minimum 8 shots.

Game Winning Goals: 7 tied with 1.

Wins: Peyton Jones (4)

Save %: Parker Gahagen (.930)

Goals Against Average: Gahagen (2.12).

2020-21 Roster

Forwards: Matthew Boucher, Trey Bradley, Pat Cannone, Diego Cuglietta, Matt Hoover, Christian Horn, Jack Jenkins, Mitch Maxwell, Cedric Pare, Jared Pike, Yuri Terao, Joe Wegwerth. AJ White, Riley Woods.

Defenseman: Miles Gendron, Garrett Johnston, Ryker Killins, Alex Lepkowski, Ryan Lowney, Kris Myllari, Hunter Skinner, Teigan Zahn.

Goaltenders: Brad Barone, Evan Buitenhuis. 

Coaching Staff

Head Coach: Tim Branham – 256 wins over 7 + seasons. The winningest coach in team history.

Assistant Coach: Ryan Kinasewich – 4th season as assistant coach. He’s the franchises all time leader in goals, assists and points.

Equipment Manager: Matthew Schwegmann – 2nd season in Utah, 3rd in ECHL and 4th professionally.

Athletic Trainer: Collin Lee: First year Grizzlies trainer. Previously worked with the South Carolina Stingrays training staff.