Grizzlies Gameday: Friday Night at the Mav

Grizzlies Gameday: Martin, Miner Recalled to Colorado

Wichita Thunder (10-10-1, 21 points, .500 Win %) at Utah Grizzlies (14-8-1, 29 points, .630 Win %)

Friday, December 17, 2021. Maverik Center. 7:10 pm. Broadcast: Mixlr/FloSports

Friday night at the Mav is the 2nd game of a 4 game set and the first game in a 3 in 3. It’s the 3rd of 5 season meetings between the clubs. Utah won 3-0 at Wichita on October 29th. On Wednesday night Trent Miner earned his 4th shutout of the season and 2nd clean sheet vs Wichita as Utah won 3-0. Miner was reassigned to the AHL prior to Friday’s game. Utah is currently tied for the Mountain Division lead with the Idaho Steelheads as both teams have 29 standings points and a .630 points percentage. Watch out for Brandon Cutler, who has a point in 13 of his last 14 games. Wichita’s Jay Dickman had a 13 game point streak end on December 15th. Dickman now has a point in 13 of his last 14.

Transactions

Trent Miner Recalled to Colorado

Trent Miner was called-up to the AHL’s Colorado Eagles on December 17th. Miner earned his league leading 4th shutout of the season in a 3-0 win vs Wichita on December 15th. Miner is a perfect 55 of 55 on saves in 2 games vs Wichita this season. The 20 year old Miner has a shutout in 2 straight home games as he shut out Kalamazoo on December 6th when he saved all 27 shots in a 4-0 win. In only 19 professional games Miner has 5 shutouts. This season with Utah he has a 7-4 record with a .930 save percentage and a 2.13 goals against average.

Martin Leaves for Colorado

Defenseman Luke Martin was called-up to the AHL’s Colorado Eagles on December 16th. Martin has 16 points (4 goals, 12 assists) in 23 games. Martin is 1 of 3 players who have appeared in every game this season. Martin has 4 multiple point games this season. Luke played his college hockey at the University of Michigan from 2016-2020. Last season he appeared in 6 games with the AHL’s Texas Stars and 11 regular season and 8 playoff games with the Greenville Swamp Rabbits.

Matthew Boucher Returns With Authority

Matthew Boucher returned to the Grizzlies lineup on Wednesday night for the first time since October 31st and didn’t skip a beat as he scored 1 goal and 1 assist in Utah’s 3-0 win. Boucher has a point in 5 straight games he’s played in dating back to October 24th. In 7 games this season Boucher has 9 points (3 goals, 6 assists) and has a +8 rating. Last season Boucher won the league’s Rookie of the Year as he led Utah and all league rookies with 25 goals and 52 points.

Grizzlies Are Getting All the Shorties

Utah leads the league with 8 shorthanded goals this season. Mason Mannek scored shorthanded 14:35 into the first period to give Utah a 2-0 lead in a game the Grizz eventually won 3-0. Brandon Cutler has 3 shorthanded goals this season. Tyler Penner, Matthew Boucher, Charle-Edouard D’Astous, Ben Tardif and Mannek have the other shorthanded goals. Utah is also the only team who has not allowed a shorthanded goal this season.

Tons of Shots for Utah

The Grizzlies had 52 shots on goal vs Wichita. It was the most shots by Utah in a single game this season. It’s the 5th time this season Utah has taken 40 or more shots.

Luka Burzan Returns to Utah

Burzan was reassigned to the Grizzlies on December 15th. Burzan has 9 points (4 goals, 5 assists) in 9 games this season. Burzan was the number 1 star on December 6th vs Kalamazoo when he contributed to all 4 of Utah’s goals with 2 goals and 2 assists in a 4-0 win vs Kalamazoo. Luka has played in 10 games with Colorado (AHL) this season. Last year he played in 14 games with Colorado at the end of the 2020-21 campaign. He was picked in the 6th round (171st overall) by the Colorado Avalanche in the 2019 NHL Draft.

Brandon Cutler Leading the Way

Brandon Cutler leads the team with 23 points. That point total leads all league rookies. Cutler missed the first 2 games of the Tulsa series before scoring last Sunday. Cutler has points in 13 of his last 14 games. He leads the team with 83 shots on goal, which also leads all league rookies. It’s been a solid first pro season for Cutler, who won the league’s Rookie of the Month award for November 2021.

Grizzlies Among League Leaders

Charle-Edouard D’Astous (Now with Colorado AHL) – leads all defenseman in goals (12), points (21), power play goals (4) and shots (66). Andrew Nielsen leads the league with 22 minor penalties. Brandon Cutler leads all rookies with 23 points. He’s tied for the lead among rookies with 10 goals. Cutler leads all rookies with 83 shots on goal. Trent Miner leads the league with 4 shutouts.

Welcome to Utah Benjamin Tardif

21 year-old Ben Tardif was reassigned to Utah on December 5th and he made his Utah debut on December 6th vs Kalamazoo. Tardif got his first pro point on an assist of Luka Burzan’s 2nd period goal on Monday night. Ben scored his first 2 pro goals in a 4-3 win at Tulsa on December 9th. In 5 games with Utah, Tardif has 7 points (2 goals, 5 assists) and has a point in 4 of the 5 games. Tardif has appeared in 15 games for the AHL’s Colorado Eagles this season.  

Many Players Playing the Hero Role

In the 14 Grizzlies wins there have been 12 different players who have scored the game winning goal. Charle-Edouard D’Astous and Brian Bowen each have 2 GWG’s and 10 others have 1 GWG including Zac Robbins and Kyle Pouncy netting the game winners last weekend at Tulsa. Andrew Nielsen got the game winner 8:31 into the first period on Wednesday night vs Wichita with a 5 on 3 power play goal.

This Week’s Games

Wednesday, December 15, 2021 – Wichita 0 Utah 3 – Trent Miner 28 save shutout. Matthew Boucher had 1 goal and 1 assist. Ben Tardif had 2 assists. Andrew Nielsen and Mason Mannek each scored a first period goal. Utah outshot Wichita 52 to 28.

Friday, December 17- 2021 – Wichita at Utah. 7:10 pm. AFCU Friday.

Saturday, December 18, 2021 – Wichita at Utah. 7:10 pm. Ugly Sweater Night.

Sunday, December 19, 2021 – Wichita at Utah. 1:10 pm. Final home game of the 2021 calendar year. Fun-Day with a ton of fun things on the Maverik Center concourse. 

All times Mountain. Every game can be seen on FloHockey and heard on Mixlr.

Ironmen: 3 Have Played in all 23

The Grizzlies have played in 23 games this season. Only 3 players have appeared in all 23. Forwards Mason Mannek and Tyler Penner as well as defenseman Luke Martin have played in every game. That number will shrink to 2 as Martin was reassigned to the AHL’s Colorado Eagles. Quinn Ryan and Andrew Nielsen have appeared in 22 of the 23 games. Connor McDonald has played in 21 of the 23 games as he spent a week with the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda.

Grizzlies Roster

Forwards: Matthew Boucher, Brian Bowen, Luka Burzan, Taylor Crunk, Brandon Cutler, Mason Mannek, Tyler Penner, Zac Robbins, Neil Robinson, Quinn Ryan, Gehrett Sargis, Christian Simone, Benjamin Tardif.

Defenseman: Nate Clurman, Joey Colatarci, Austin Crossley, Miles Gendron, Connor McDonald, Andrew Nielsen, Kyle Pouncy, Jordon Stone.

Goaltenders: Peyton Jones, Garrett Metcalf.  

2021-2022 Utah Grizzlies Regular Season Totals (league rankings)

Overall record: 14-8-1

Home record: 7-4.

Road record: 7-4-1.

Win percentage: .630.

Streak: Won 3

Standings Points: 29.

Last 10: 6-3-1.

Goals per game: 3.43 (5th) Goals for: 79.

Goals against per game: 2.91 (Tied 10th) Goals Against: 67.

Shots per game: 32.70 (6th)

Shots against per game: 30.52 (13th)   

Power Play: 14 for 75 – 18.7 % (16th)  

Penalty Kill: 79 for 100- 78.4 % (21st)

Penalty Minutes: 378. 16.43 per game.

Shorthanded Goals: 8 (1st). Brandon Cutler has 3 shorthanded goals.

Shorthanded Goals Allowed: 0. – Utah is the only team in the league who has not allowed a shorthanded goal.

Record When Scoring First: 9-4. Utah has scored first in 13 of 23 games this season.

Team Leaders (2021-22 season)

Goals: Charle-Edouard D’Astous (12)

Assists: Trey Bradley/Brandon Cutler (13)

Points: Cutler (23)

Plus/Minus: D’Astous (+14)

PIM: Andrew Nielsen (69)

Power Play Points: D’Astous (8)

Power Play Goals: D’Astous (4)

Power Play Assists: D’Astous/Luke Martin/Cutler (4).

Shots on Goal: Brandon Cutler (83) – 5th in the league.

Shooting Percentage: Quinn Ryan (6 for 31). 19.4 %. – Minimum 30 shots.

Game Winning Goals: Brian Bowen/D’Astous (2). 12 different players have at least 1 GWG this season.

Wins: Trent Miner (7).

Save %: Miner (.930).

Goals Against Average: Garrett Metcalf (2.10)

Next 5 Games

December 17, 2021 – Wichita at Utah. 7:10 pm – AFCU Friday.

December 18, 2021 – Wichita at Utah. 7:10 pm – Ugly Sweater Night.

December 19, 2021 – Wichita at Utah. 1:10 pm – Sunday Fun Day. Last home game of the 2021 calendar year.

December 27, 2021 – Utah at Rapid City. 7:05 pm.

December 29, 2021 – Utah at Rapid City. 7:05 pm.

All times Mountain

Active Streaks (2021-2022 Season)

Goal Streaks:  Matthew Boucher, Luka Burzan, Zac Robbins (2) Mason Mannek, Andrew Nielsen (1)

Assist Streaks: Boucher (5) Ben Tardif, Brandon Cutler, Luke Martin (1)

Point Streaks of 2 or more: Boucher (5), Cutler (3) Burzan, Mannek, Robbins (2).

Brandon Cutler has a point in 13 of his last 14 games. Matthew Boucher (3 goals, 6 assists) has 9 points in his last 5 games. Boucher has missed 16 games for Utah due to an injury from Nov.5 – Dec. 12. Andrew Nielsen has a point in 8 of his last 11 games. Mason Mannek has a point in 13 of his last 19 games. Ben Tardif has a point in 4 of his 5 games this season, including 3 multiple point games.

Multiple Point games (2021-2022)

6: Charle-Edouard D’Astous,

5: Trey Bradley, Brandon Cutler.

4:  Brian Bowen, Luke Martin.

3: Matthew Boucher, Mason Mannek, Ben Tardif.

2: Luka Burzan. Andrew Nielsen

1: Tyler Penner, Neil Robinson, Gehrett Sargis, Bailey Conger, Christian Simeone, Nate Clurman.  

Grizzlies Holding on to Leads

Utah is 10-0 when leading after 2 periods.

Gotta Get to 3

Utah is 14-4-1 when scoring 3 or more goals. They are 0-4 when scoring less than 3 goals in a game.

Grizzlies Goaltending Shutouts (2021-2022)

Trent Miner – 21 save shutout vs Idaho on October 24, 2021.

Trent Miner – 27 save shutout at Wichita on October 29, 2021.

Trent Miner – 27 save shutout vs Kalamazoo on December 6, 2021.

Trent Miner – 28 save shutout vs Wichita on December 15, 2021.

Last season Utah had 3 shutouts.