Grizzlies Weekly: Utah Heads to Rapid City for 3 Game Set

Grizzlies Weekly: Utah Travels to Rapid City for 3 Game Set

West Valley City, Utah – The Utah Grizzlies are on the road at Rapid City for games on January 5-7. Face-off all 3 nights is at 7:10 pm.

Last Week Andrew Nielsen was named to the 2023 ECHL Western Conference All-Star team. Nielsen leads the Grizzlies with 20 assists and 24 points. Cameron Wright leads all league rookies with 94 shots on goal. Wright leads Utah with 3 game winning goals this season and he also leads all Grizzlies forwards with 19 points (4 goals, 15 assists).

The Grizzlies will have 4 home games in the month of January. Next home game will be on January 16 vs Idaho at 3:10 pm on Martin Luther King Day. The Grizz will host Rapid City for a 3-game series on January 25, 27-28. Face-off all 3 nights in that set will be at 7:10 pm. Tickets are available at utahgrizzlies.com or by calling (801) 988-8000.

Upcoming Home Games at Maverik Center

• Monday, January 16, 2023 – Idaho at Utah. 3:10 pm. Nickelodeon and Sensory Friendly Day. Come out and see our “SpongeBob SquarePants” themed jerseys for Nickelodeon Day!  The sound will also be turned down for Sensory Friendly Day.  Bring the whole family for some Nickelodeon themed hockey action!
• Wednesday, January 25, 2023 – Rapid City at Utah. 7:10 pm. Bud Light College Night.
• Friday, January 27, 2023 – Rapid City at Utah. 7:10 pm. AFCU Friday.
• Saturday, January 28, 2023 – Rapid City at Utah. 7:10 pm. Guns & Hoses Night.

Games This Week

Thursday, January 5, 2023 – Utah at Rapid City. 7:05 pm. The Monument.

Friday, January 6, 2023 – Utah at Rapid City. 7:05 pm. The Monument.

Saturday, January 7, 2023 – Utah at Rapid City. 7:05 pm. The Monument.

You can catch every game on FloHockey and audio on the Grizzlies YouTube channel.

All Times Mountain.

Games Last Week

Wednesday, December 28, 2022 - Idaho 6 Utah 2 – Cam Strong and Jordan Martel each scored for Utah 13 seconds apart in the third period. Martel led Utah with 5 shots on goal. Eric Dop saved 33 of 39 in his Grizzlies debut. Jordan Kawaguchi had 2 goals and 2 assists for Idaho. Matt Register had 1 goal and 3 assists. Idaho won their 9th straight game. Steelheads went 3 for 4 on the power play. Utah was 0 for 6.

Friday, December 30, 2022 - Idaho 4 Utah 1 – Cam Strong scored a power play goal 10:03 into the contest. Idaho got 2 power play goals from Owen Headrick in the first period. Willie Knierim and Jordan Kawaguchi added goals for the Steelheads, who have won 10 in a row. Utah outshot Idaho 22 to 21. Idaho was 2 for 6 on the power play. Utah was 1 for 3.

Saturday, December 31, 2022 - Idaho 3 Utah 0 – Utah outshot Idaho 30 to 27. Utah’s penalty kill was 4 for 4. Keaton Jameson led the Grizz with 6 shots.

Great Crowds at Maverik Center  

A crowd of 6325 was at Maverik Center for the December 28th game. It was the 3rd largest crowd of the season and the best Wednesday night crowd since a crowd of 7186 saw the Grizzlies face the Las Vegas Wranglers on February 15, 2012. Utah won 3-1 as Paul McIlveen scored 2 goals and Andrew Engelage saved 31 of 32.

The December 30th game vs Idaho saw a crowd of 6,927, which is the largest home crowd so far in the 2022-2023 season.

Tyler Penner Played in 100th Consecutive Game

Forward Tyler Penner appeared in his 100th consecutive game for the Grizzlies on December 31st vs Idaho. Penner appeared in all 72 games in the 2021-2022 season, scoring 13 goals and 20 assists. This season Tyler has played in all 28 games, scoring 6 goals and 1 assist.

Utah Grizzlies 2022-2023 Roster

Forwards (12): Dylan Fitze, Tarun Fizer, Keaton Jameson, Jordan Martel, Vladislav Mikhalchuk, Tyler Penner, Dakota Raabe, Christian Simeone, Cam Strong, Zach Tsekos, Johnny Walker, Cameron Wright.

Defenseman (10): Victor Bartley, Joey Colatarci, Brycen Martin, Connor McDonald, Andrew Nielsen, Kyle Pouncy, James Shearer, Jordon Stone, Cory Thomas, Aaron Thow.

Goaltenders (2): Garrett Metcalf, Trent Miner.  

2022-2023 Utah Grizzlies Regular Season Totals (league rankings)

Overall record: 11-17

Home record: 5-8

Road record: 6-9

Win percentage: .393

Streak: Lost 5

Standings Points: 22

Last 10: 2-8

Goals per game: 2.61 (26th)  Goals for: 73

Goals against per game: 3.57 (Tied 21st) Goals Against: 100

Shots per game: 28.50 (26th)  

Shots against per game: 34.00 (24th)

Power Play: 25 for 131 – 19.1 % (17th)

Penalty Kill: 90 for 115- 78.3 % (17th)

Penalty Minutes: 392. 14.00 per game.

Shorthanded Goals: 2. Utah had 2 shorthanded goals on Dec. 17 vs Kansas City.  

Shorthanded Goals Allowed: 4.

Record When Scoring First: 8-3.

Opposition Scores First: 3-14.  

Record in One Goal Games: 5-3. 

Team Leaders (2022-23 Regular season)

Goals: Johnny Walker (9). 

Assists: Andrew Nielsen (20). 

Points: Nielsen (24).

Plus/Minus: Zach Tsekos (+3). 

PIM: Walker (85)

Power Play Points: Nielsen (15)

Power Play Goals: Walker (5)

Power Play Assists: Nielsen (13).  

Shots on Goal: Cameron Wright (94).  

Shooting Percentage: Tsekos (21.1 %) 8 for 38.   

Game Winning Goals: Wright (3)

Wins: Garrett Metcalf (5)

Save %: Metcalf (.913).

Goals Against Average: Metcalf (3.16)