Grizzlies Preview: March 26, 2021 Tulsa at Utah

Tulsa Oilers (18-17-2-1, .513 Win %) at Utah Grizzlies (16-12-4-5 .554 Win%)March 26, 2021 | 7:10 PM | Game #38 | Maverik CenterReferee: Sean MacFarlaneLinesmen: Craig Peterson, James McKenna.  

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

The Match-up

It’s the 2nd game of the big 4 game series vs Tulsa. It’s the Oilers only series in Maverik Center this season. It’s the 4th season meeting between the clubs. They met 3 times at BOK Center in early January and all 3 games were decided by 1 goal. Grizzlies have won 3 of their last 4 games.

Last Game: Boucher, Hoover and Gorsuch Play Key Roles in 4-2 Win

Matthew Boucher scored 3 goals in the third period to turn a 2-1 Tulsa lead into a 4-2 Grizzlies win. Boucher scored the game winning goal with 1:57 left in the third period on a pass from Jack Jenkins. Boucher’s hat trick is the 2nd hat trick by a Grizzlies skater this season. Matt Hoover scored a second period goal. He has 3 goals in his last 5 games. Trevor Gursuch made his home debut and saved 30 of 32. Gorsuch is now 6-1 lifetime in the ECHL.

Skinner Loaned to Hartford

Hunter Skinner was loaned to the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack on March 25th. Skinner leads all rookie defenseman with 7 goals. He scored the only goal in the shootout last Friday night in Utah’s 5-4 win. Skinner leads the league with 3 shootout goals. He is the only defenseman in the league with a shootout game winner.

Matthew Boucher Has Been League’s Top Rookie

Boucher leads all league rookies with 14 goals, 16 assists and 30 points. Boucher is the Grizzlies leading scorer. He has been consistent all year as he has a point in 19 of his last 28 games. Boucher scored 3 goals in the third period on March 24th in a 4-3 win vs Tulsa. Boucher leads the Grizz with 7 multiple point games.

Boucher League Rankings Among Rookies

Points: 30– 1st.

Goals: 14 – 1st

Assists: 16 – 1st.

Shots: 114 – 1st. Next closest rookie has 85.

Grizzlies Among League leaders

Matthew Boucher leads all rookies in goals (14), assists (16), points (30) and shots on goal (114). Pare is 3rd in shots among rookies with 80. Hunter Skinner leads the league with 3 shootout goals. Skinner is 2nd in goals among defenseman with 7. Ryan Lowney leads all league defenseman with 4 power play goals. Cannone is tied for 4th in the league with 11 power play points.

Season Series vs Tulsa

It’s the 5th season meeting between the clubs. Tulsa swept Utah in a 3 game series on January 8th-10th at BOK Center. The Grizzlies originally had Tulsa on the schedule for December 18th and 19th at Maverik Center but the games were postponed due to COVID protocols. The December 18th game will be made up on March 26th and the December 19th game will be made up on March 27th. Charlie Gerard is a name to keep an eye on. He had 2 goals in the 3 game series in January. Brandon Fehd had 2 assists on March 24th. Fehd is playing against Tulsa with his 3rd different team. He appeared in 3 games vs Tulsa as a member of the Indy Fuel and 1 game with Rapid City.

Tulsa 2 @ Utah 4 (Mar 24 2021)

Utah 2 @ Tulsa 3 (Jan 10 2021) SO

Utah 0 @ Tulsa 1 (Jan 9 2021)

Utah 2 @ Tulsa 3 (Jan 8 2021) OT

Matt Hoover is Playing Well

Hoover had 1 goal and 1 assist on Wednesday night vs Tulsa. Hoover has 3 goals and 2 assists in his last 5 games. Matt has a point in 4 of the 6 games he’s played in the month of March.

This Week’s Transactions

Goaltender Brad Barone was traded to the Rapid City Rush on March 24th. Barone in 2 seasons with Utah had a record of 9-5-2-2 with a .903 save percentage and a 2.74 goals against average. Defenseman Garrett Johnston returns to the Grizzlies lineup on March 24th after being returned from a loan with the AHL’s Henderson Silver Knights. Johnston has 3 assists in 31 games for Utah this season. Forward Josh Dickinson was reassigned to the AHL’s Colorado Eagles. Josh has 1 goal and 2 assists in 5 games for Utah.

Local Boy Comes Home

Grizzlies signed goaltender Garrett Metcalf on March 16th. He was born in Salt Lake City on March 5th, 1996. Metcalf was drafted by the Anaheim Ducks in the 6th round, 179th overall in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. He played with Long Island University in the 2020-21 season and had a 2-7 record with a .901 save percentage and a 4.02 GAA. Metcalf also played in 2 seasons at Mercyhurst University in 2019 and 2020. Garrett has good size at 6’4” and 190 pounds.

Many April Road Games

After the 4 game series with Tulsa 12 of the next 15 games will be away from Maverik Center. The only 3 home games for Utah in April will be on the 14th, 16th-17th vs Kansas City.

Prapavessis and Gorsuch

Trevor Gorsuch saved 30 of 32 in his Grizzlies home debut in the 4-2 win over Tulsa. Gorsuch is now 6-1 in the ECHL and 8-1-1 as a professional. Gorsuch previously spent time with the Toledo Walleye and Reading Royals in the ECHL and Fayetteville of the SPHL. Trevor was originally signed by Toledo for the 2020-21 season but they decided not to play. Defenseman Michael Prapavessis had 1 assist and was a +3 in the win Wednesday. Prapavessis was acquired in a trade with the Orlando Solar Bears on March 18th.

Very Competitive Western Conference

All 7 teams in the Western Conference have a .513 winning percentage or better.

2020-2021 Regular Season Totals (league rankings)

Overall record: 16-12-4-5

Home record: 10-4-2-3

Road record: 6-8-2-2

Win percentage: .554 (4th in Western Conference).

Streak: won 1.

Standings Points: 41

Last 10: 3-6-1

Goals per game: 3.00 (5th). Goals for: 111

Goals against per game: 3.41 (13th). Goals against: 126

Shots per game: 32.92 (3rd).

Shots against per game: 29.54 (6th).

Power Play: 20.7 % - 31 for 150 (2nd).

Penalty Kill: 80.2 % - 105 for 131 (12th).

Penalty Minutes: 460 (12.43 per game).

Shorthanded Goals: 5 (3rd) Shorthanded Goals Allowed: 5 (Tied for 10th)

Players Used: 44

Attendance: 30,991 (1,631 per game).

Record When Scoring First: 10-5-1. 

Team Leaders (2020-21 season)

Goals: Matthew Boucher (14)

Assists: Boucher/Trey Bradley (16)

Points: Boucher (30)

Plus/Minus: Matt Abt (+8) Jack Jenkins leads active Grizzlies at +7.

PIM: Teigan Zahn (48)

Power Play Points: Pat Cannone (11)

Shots on Goal: Matthew Boucher (114) 

Shooting Percentage: Nick Henry (20.0%) – Minimum 15 shots.

Game Winning Goals: Pat Cannone/Nick Henry/Matthew Boucher (2)

Wins: Brad Barone (5)

Save %: Parker Gahagen (.930)

Goals Against Average: Gahagen (2.12).

Current Roster

Forwards: Travis Barron, Matthew Boucher, Trey Bradley, Pat Cannone, Charlie Gerard, Matt Hoover, Christian Horn, Jack Jenkins, Ty Lewis, Mitch Maxwell, Cedric Pare, Jared Pike, Joe Wegwerth. AJ White.

Defenseman: Brandon Fehd, Miles Gendron, Garrett Johnston, Alex Lepkowski, Ryan Lowney, Michael Prapavessis, Teigan Zahn.

Goaltenders: Kevin Carr, Trevor Gorsuch, Garrett Metcalf.

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

Friday, March 19th, 2021 – Utah 5 Rapid City 4 (Shootout) – Hunter Skinner scored shootout game winner. Charlie Gerard had 2 goals. Jack Jenkins and Matt Hoover added goals for the Grizz.

Saturday, March 20th, 2021 – Utah 0 Rapid City 7 – Utah had 30 shots on goal.

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

Wednesday, March 24th, 2021 – Tulsa 2 Utah 4. – Matthew Boucher scored 3 goals in the third period, including the game winner with 1:57 left in regulation. Matt Hoover had 1 goal and 1 assist. Trevor Gorsuch saved 30 of 32 in his Maverik Center debut.

Friday, March 26th, 2021 – Tulsa at Utah. 7:10 pm. This is the make-up game for the December 18th postponement.

Saturday, March 27th, 2021 – Tulsa at Utah. 7:10 pm. Make-up game for the December 19th postponement.

Sunday, March 28th, 2021 – Tulsa at Utah. 1:10 pm. Utah is 4-0 on Sundays at home.

Next Week’s Games

Friday, April 1st, 2021 – Utah at Allen. 6:05 pm.

Saturday, April 2nd, 2021 – Utah at Allen. 6:05 pm.

Sunday, April 3rd, 2021 – Utah at Allen. 6:05 pm.

All times Mountain.