D'Astous, Robbins and Company Leads Grizz to Victory

D’Astous, Robbins and Company Leads Grizz to Win

Coralville, Iowa – Charle-Edouard D’Astous and Zac Robbins each had 2 goals and 1 assist and Peyton Jones saved 29 of 31 as the Utah Grizzlies defeated the Iowa Heartlanders 5-2 on Friday night at Xtream Arena.

D’Astous scored 5:33 into the game as he scored on a one-timer from a Quinn Ryan pass. 15 seconds later Brian Bowen redirected a Zac Robbins shot to make it 2-0. Bowen ended the night with 1 goal and 1 assist. Bowen now has 11 goals in his last 12 games.  Utah led 2-0 after 1 period.

D’Astous scored his 2nd of the game 5:57 into the second on a pass from Ben Tardif. Utah went 1 for 3 on the power play. Iowa scored on a 5 on 3 power play 12:27 in as Zach White scored his 8th of the year. Utah led 3-1 after 2 periods. The Grizz are now 20-1 this season when leading after 2.

Iowa’s Luke Nogard cut into Utah’s advantage with his 5th goal of the campaign 7 minutes into the third. It stayed a 3-2 game until Zac Robbins scored a big insurance goal on a centering pass from Brian Bowen with 4:04 left in regulation. Robbins extended the lead with a tap in from in front of the net with 2 minutes left. It was Robbins first 2 goal game in his pro career. He became the 12th different Grizzlies skater to score 2 or more goals in a game this season.

Both teams took 31 shots on goal. Peyton Jones saved 29 of 30 to earn his 10th win of the year. Iowa’s Hunter Jones saved 26 of 31. The Grizz stay in first place in the Mountain Division with a .641 points percentage.

Utah has won each of the first 2 games of the 3 game set. The Grizz look for the series sweep on Saturday night at 6:05 pm. Utah returns home for a 3 game series vs Worcester on February 18-19 at 7:10 pm and February 21st at 1:10 pm. Tickets for every Grizzlies home game are available at utahgrizzlies.com or by calling (801) 988-8000.

3 stars

1. Charle-Edouard D’Astous (Utah) – 2 goals, 1 assist.
2. Peyton Jones (Utah) – 29 of 31 saves.
3. Zac Robbins (Utah) – 2 goals, 1 assist.