Grizzlies Preview: Utah at Kansas City, May 28, 2021

Utah Grizzlies (33-23-5-6, 77 points, .575 win %) @ Kansas City Mavericks(28-29-8-2, 66 points, .493 Win%)

Cable Dahmer Arena. May 28, 2021. 6:05 pm MST. Mixlr/FloSports.

It’s the second game of the 3 game series between the Western Conference rivals. Utah finds themselves in 4th place in the Western Conference with a .575 winning percentage, .060 percentage points ahead of Rapid City, who is in 5th with a win rate of .515. Utah has won 10 of their last 12 games. Utah is 4-5 vs Kansas City this season.

How Can Utah Clinch Playoff Spot Tonight? 

Utah can clinch a playoff spot in the Western Conference if…

1. Utah wins in regulation.
2. Utah loses in overtime/shootout and Rapid City loses 
3. Utah wins and Rapid City wins in overtime/shootout.

Utah has reached the playoffs in 11 of the last 12 seasons where a playoff was held. Utah was in line for a playoff spot last season when it was cancelled on March 14, 2020.

Last Night: KC 5 Utah 2

Kansas City defeated Utah 5-2 on Thursday night at Cable Dahmer Arena. Cedric Pare deflected a Cole Fraser shot 16:46 in for his 17th goal of the season. 5 minutes into the 2nd period Travis Barron intercepted a KC pass, threw it to Sasha Mutala who scored his 3rd goal in 2 games 5:11 into the 2nd period. Willie Corrin and Brodie Reid each scored 1 goal and 1 assist for the Mavericks and Andrew Shortridge saved 24 of 26 as he got his 6th win of the season.

Great 12 Game Stretch

Utah is 10-2 in the last 12 games and their winning percentage jumped from .518 on May 4 to a .575 winning % on May 28. On the flip side the Rapid City Rush had a .553 winning percentage on May 4 and now they are at .515.

Since May 3rd AJ White and Trey Bradley each lead the league with 15 points. White has 6 goals and 9 assists and a +9 rating, while Bradley has 2 goals, 11 assists and a +11 rating. Ty Lewis has 9 points in his last 11 games (4 goals, 5 assists). Ryan Lowney has 8 points in his last 10 games (2 g, 8a). Hayden Hodgson and Travis Barron each has 4 goals in May. Utah has outscored the opposition 41-23 in the last 12 games.

Travis Barron Returns to Club

Barron was instrumental in kickstarting the Grizzlies hot stretch as he set a franchise record with 3 shorthanded goals on May 4 vs Rapid City. Barron scored 4 goals that night as Utah won 5-3. This season the 3rd year pro has 7 goals and 5 assists in 23 games. In 3 seasons with Utah, Barron has 48 points (20 goals, 28 assists) in 70 games. Barron had 1 assist last night in Kansas City.

Trey Bradley Named ECHL Player of the Week for May 17-23

Bradley had 7 assists last week against Allen. Utah went 3-1 on the week. The 2nd year pro leads the Grizz with 33 assists and is 2nd with 43 points. Last season with the Newfoundland Growlers Bradley had 14 goals and 20 assists in 48 games.

Sasha Mutala Has Made a Strong First Impression

Mutala scored a goal 5:11 into the second period last night at Kansas City. Mutala has 3 goals in his first 2 games with Utah. Mutala played in 6 games this season with the AHL’s Colorado Eagles to begin his pro career and had 1 assist. Mutala played with the WHL’s Tri-City Americans from 2017-2021, scoring 65 goals and 89 assists. This season with Tri-City, Mutala had 20 points in 19 games (6 goals, 14 assists). Sasha was drafted by the Colorado Avalanche in the 5th round (140th overall) in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. Mutala was born on May 6, 2021. He’s the 4th player in Grizzlies history to who was born after the turn of the century. On Sunday Mutala scored his first 2 professional goals to lead Utah to a 4-0 win over Allen.

Penalty Kill Has Been Strong

Utah is 22 for 22 on the penalty kill over the last 7 games. The strange stat from Last Night’s game was that there was not a single power play for either team.

Mason Mannek Made Professional Debut on Wednesday

Mannek, 21, made his pro debut with the Grizzlies on May 19 vs Allen. Mannek was born and raised in Herriman, Utah. He played with the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks from 2018-2021 and scored 43 goals and 51 assists. He had a +27 rating in 4 seasons with Portland. Mannek had an assist in his pro debut, wearing number 28. Mannek is the 3rd player in team history who was born in this century, joining defenseman Wyatt McLeod, who scored 2 goals on Wednesday night, and Hunter Skinner, who is now with the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack and next year will begin a 3 year entry level deal with the NHL’s New York Rangers. Mannek has 2 assist and 9 shots on goal in his first 5 games with the Grizz.

2020-2021 Regular Season Totals (league rankings)

Overall record: 33-23-5-6

Home record: 20-7-3-3. Utah has outscored opponents 113 to 90 at home.

Road record: 13-16-2-3

Win percentage: .575 (4th in Western Conference).

Streak: Lost 1

Standings Points: 77

Last 10: 8-2

Goals per game: 2.90 (11th). Goals for: 194

Goals against per game: 3.00 (9th). Goals against: 201

Shots per game: 32.61 (3rd).

Shots against per game: 29.36 (4th).

Power Play: 17.6 % - 46 for 262 (5th).

Penalty Kill: 84.5 % - 207 for 245 (5th). – 22 for 22 in the last 7 games.

Penalty Minutes: 913 (13.63 per game).

Shorthanded Goals: 10 (Tied for 3rd)

Shorthanded Goals Allowed: 8 (9th)

Players Used: 52.

Record When Scoring First: 21-8-2-1

Team Leaders (2020-21 season)

Goals: Matthew Boucher (23)

Assists: Trey Bradley (33) – Bradley has 13 assists in the last 12 games.

Points: Boucher (49)

Plus/Minus: Jack Jenkins (+8)

PIM: Teigan Zahn (86) Cole Fraser leads the league with 144 PIM with 55 of those coming with Utah.

Games Played: Cedric Pare (62)

Power Play Points: Ryan Lowney (17)

Power Play Goals: AJ White (9)

Shots on Goal: Matthew Boucher (201)

Shooting Percentage: AJ White (14.9 %) – Minimum 45 shots.

Game Winning Goals: White (5)

Wins: Parker Gahagen/Peyton Jones (8)

Save %: Gahagen (.933) – Minimum 7 games

Goals Against Average: Gahagen (1.96). – Minimum 7 games

Roster

Forwards: Travis Barron, Matthew Boucher, Trey Bradley, Pat Cannone, Charlie Gerard, Hayden Hodgson, Matt Hoover, Jack Jenkins, Ty Lewis, Mason Mannek, Mitch Maxwell, Cedric Pare, Joe Wegwerth. AJ White.

Defenseman: Luke Bafia, Brandon Fehd, Cole Fraser, Miles Gendron, Garrett Johnston, Alex Lepkowski, Ryan Lowney, Wyatt McLeod, Teigan Zahn.

Goaltenders: Parker Gahagen, Peyton Jones, Garrett Metcalf.

Last Week’s Games

Wednesday, May 19, 2021 – Allen 5 Utah 3 – Charlie Gerard scored his 15th goal of the season, which ranks 2nd on the club. Wyatt McLeod scored his first 2 professional goals. Allen scored 5 unanswered goals. Collin Shirley scored 2 goals 31 seconds apart to turn a 3-1 Utah lead into a 3-3 tie.

Friday, May 21, 2021 – Allen 1 Utah 4 – Ty Lewis had 2 goals and 1 assist. AJ White had 1 goal and 1 assist. Trey Bradley had 3 assists. Ryan Lowney scored a power play goal in the 3rd period. Parker Gahagen saved 33 of 34. 

Saturday, May 22, 2021 – Allen 1 Utah 2 - Utah is now 13-2-0-1 in the 3rd game of a series. Cedric Pare scored 2 goals, including the game winner on the power play 57 seconds into overtime. Utah outshot Allen 26 to 14. Utah went 1 for 5 on the power play, while Allen went 0 for 4.

Sunday, May 23, 2021 – Allen 0 Utah 4 - AJ White scored his 9th Power Play goal of the season. Sasha Mutala scored his first 2 pro goals. Luke Bafia added his first goal in a Utah uniform. Peyton Jones got a 28 save shutout, his first as a professional. Utah went 2 for 6 on the power play.

This Week’s Games

Thursday, May 27, 2021 – Utah 2 Kansas City 5 – Cedric Pare, Sasha Mutala each scored goals. Utah outshot KC 26 to 21. Neither team had a power play in the game.

Friday, May 28, 2021 – Utah at Kansas City. 6:05 pm

Saturday, May 29, 2021 – Utah at Kansas City. 6:05 pm.

All times Mountain

Next Week’s Games

Wednesday, June 2, 2021 – Fort Wayne at Utah. 7:10 pm.

Friday, June 4, 2021 – Fort Wayne at Utah. 7:10 pm. Fan Appreciation Weekend.

Saturday, June 5, 2021 – Fort Wayne at Utah. 7:10 pm. TMNT Night (specialty jerseys) Shoot For Your Shot after the game. Fan Appreciation Weekend.

Active Streaks

Goal Streaks: Sasha Mutala (2), Cedric Pare (1).

Assist Streaks: Charlie Gerard (2), Ryan Lowney, Cole Fraser, Travis Barron (1)

Point Streaks of 2 or more: Pare (3), Mutala, Gerard (2).  

Multiple Point games

12 - Matthew Boucher

11 – Trey Bradley

9 – AJ White

6- Charlie Gerard, Ryan Lowney, Ty Lewis, Cedric Pare.

5 - Riley Woods,  Matt Hoover.

4- Pat Cannone, Hunter Skinner.   

3 - Miles Gendron, Travis Barron.

2 - Diego Cuglietta, Nick Henry, Joe Wegwerth, Mitch Maxwell, Hayden Hodgson, Alex Lepkowski.

1 - Jack Jenkins,  Braylon Shmyr, Ian Scheid, Matt Abt, Ryker Killins, Josh Dickinson, Brayden Gelsinger, Brandon Fehd, Wyatt McLeod, Sasha Mutala.

2020-21 Number of Times Grizzlies Face Different Opponents

Allen – 18 games.

Rapid City – 16 games.

Tulsa – 12 games.

Kansas City – 11 games.

Wichita – 9 games.

Fort Wayne – 3 games at Maverik Center from June 3-5.

Wheeling – 3 games. Only 3 games vs an Eastern Conference opponent.

7 Have Double Digit Goal Seasons

Matthew Boucher (23), Cedric Pare (17) Charlie Gerard, AJ White (15), Ryan Lowney (11) Pat Cannone and Trey Bradley (10) each have a double digit goal season.

Grizzlies Record is Outstanding When Leading After 1st and 2nd

Utah is 12-4-0-1 when leading after 1 period and 20-4-1-1 when leading after 2.

Grizzlies Like Home Cooking

Utah has outscored opponents 112 to 90 at home this season. The Grizz are 20-7-3-3 at Maverik Center, earning 46 standings points in 33 games. Utah ends the regular season by hosting Fort Wayne on June 2, 4-5. 

Many 1 Goal Games

33 of the 67 games Utah has played this season have been 1 goal contests. This season the Grizzlies have played in 18 games past regulation.