Grizzlies Gameday: Playoffs Begin in Boise

Grizzlies Gameday: Playoffs Begin in Boise

#1 Idaho Steelheads (58-11-3) vs. #4 Utah Grizzlies (35-33-4)Game 1 – Wednesday, April 19 at 7:10 p.m. MT at IdahoGame 2 – Friday, April 21 at 7:10 p.m. MT at IdahoGame 3 – Wednesday, April 26 at 7:10 p.m. MT at UtahGame 4 – Friday, April 28 at 7:10 p.m. MT at UtahGame 5 – Saturday, April 29 at 7:10 p.m. MT at Utah (If Necessary)Game 6 – Monday, May 1 at 7:10 p.m. MT at Idaho (If Necessary)Game 7 – Tuesday, May 2 at 7:10 p.m. MT at Idaho (If Necessary)

Utah Grizzlies 2023 Kelly Cup Playoff Roster

Forwards (13): Kyle Betts, Brandon Cutler, Dylan Fitze, Tarun Fizer, Keaton Jameson, Jordan Martel, Mick Messner, Tyler Penner,  Dakota Raabe, Nolan Ritchie, Zach Tsekos, Johnny Walker, Cameron Wright.

Defenseman (8): Brycen Martin, Luke Martin, Kyle Mayhew, Connor McDonald, Kyle Pouncy, James Shearer, Cory Thomas, Aaron Thow.

Goaltenders (3): Garrett Metcalf, Trent Miner, Lukas Parik. 

Staff for 2023 Playoffs

Ryan Kinasewich is in his second season as Grizzlies Head Coach/General Manager. Kinasewich has a record of 77-60-7 in 2 years. Kinasewich led the Grizzlies to the 2022 Mountain Division championship. Ryan is the Grizzlies All-time leader in goals, assists and points. Jared Pike is in his first season as Grizzlies assistant coach. The Sandy, Utah native was a player with Utah in the 2020-2021 season. Mason Weyland is in his second season as the Grizzlies Head Equipment Manager. Collin Lee is in his third year as Grizzlies Athletic Trainer. Broadcaster Tyson Whiting is in his fifth campaign as the “Voice of the Grizzlies”.

Playoff tickets are on sale now. Go to utahgrizzlies.com or call (801) 988-8000 for tickets and more information on the Grizzlies 2023 Kelly Cup Playoff run.

Jordan Martel Named League Player of the Week

“The Rooster” Jordan Martel was named the Inglasco league Player of the Week for April 10-16. Martel had 1 goal and 7 assists in 3 games vs Tulsa. Martel had 1 goal and 1 assist in Utah’s 5-3 win over Tulsa on April 12. Martel had 3 assists in 2 straight games on April 14-15 as the Grizz clinched a spot in the playoffs.

Grizzlies Standouts

Cameron Wright tied for the league lead with 9 game winning goals. Wright led all rookies with 281 shots on goal. Wright was 4th among rookies with 29 goals and was 5th among first year players with 63 points. Wright led Utah this season in goals (29), assists (34), points (63) and shots on goal (281).

Luke Martin tied for the league lead among defenseman with 7 power play goals. 6 of those goals came with the Jacksonville IceMen. Martin had 10 ECHL goals this season, which matched his mark from last season with Utah, where he was named to the league’s All-Rookie team.

Tarun Fizer had an outstanding first full season as a professional. Fizer led Utah with 12 power play goals this season. He finished second on the team in goals (27), points (50) and shots (223). Fizer was 3rd on the team with 20 power play points (12g, 8a). Tarun is doing okay after taking a skate to the face in the final game of the regular season on April 15.

Jordan Martel has been red hot for the Grizzlies to end the season. “The Rooster” has a point in 10 straight games (8 goals, 10 assists). Martel has 18 points in his last 10 games. He finished 2nd on the club with 14 multiple point games. “The Rooster” was just about a point per game for Utah as he scored 44 points (18g, 26a) in 45 games.

Keaton Jameson  has a point in 9 of his last 12 games. Jameson had an 11.6 shooting % this season (15 for 129).

Dylan Fitze has 8 points in his last 9 games (3 goals, 5 assists). Fitze finished 4th on the Grizzlies with 17 goals. 

Aaron Thow had 5 goals and 3 assists and was a +10 in 5 games vs Wichita this season. Thow is a +16 in his last 28 games. 

Brandon Cutler has a point in 19 of his last 29 games. Cutler has 5 goals and 4 assists in his last 10 games.

Connor McDonald is +17 in his last 24 games. McDonald led all Grizzlies defenseman in plus/minus (+11).  

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

Overall record: 35-33-4

Home record: 19-17

Road record: 16-16-4

Win percentage: .514

Streak: Won 3

Standings Points: 74

Last 10: 6-3-1

Goals per game: 3.19 (15th)  Goals for: 230

Goals against per game: 3.59 (21st) Goals Against: 259

Shots per game: 32.04 (11th)

Shots against per game: 34.53 (24th)

Power Play: 64 for 336 – 18.4 % (19th) 

Penalty Kill: 244 for 306 – 79.6 % (17th)

Penalty Minutes: 1316. 18.28 per game. (2nd most in the league)

Shorthanded Goals: 5.

Shorthanded Goals Allowed: 14. 

Record When Scoring First: 24-7-1.

Opposition Scores First: 11-26-3.  

Record in One Goal Games: 13-6-4.

SCORING          1ST       2ND               3RD               OT/Shootout       TOTAL                     

Utah Grizzlies     72         87                   66                   5                               230     

Opposition           84         87                   84                   4                               259

Team Leaders (2022-23 Regular season)

Goals: Cameron Wright (29). 

Assists: Wright (34). 

Points: Wright (63).

Plus/Minus: Jordan Martel (+12)

PIM: Johnny Walker (171)

Power Play Points: Nielsen (26)

Power Play Goals: Tarun Fizer (12)

Power Play Assists: Nielsen (20). 

Shots on Goal: Cameron Wright (281). 

Shooting Percentage: Johnny Walker (18.5 %) 12 for 65.   

Game Winning Goals: Wright (9) – Tied for the league lead.

Wins: Trent Miner (17)

Save %: Miner (.910).

Goals Against Average: Miner (3.04)

Shutouts: Miner (3)

Multiple Point games (2022-2023 Regular Season)

16: Cameron Wright

14: Jordan Martel,

12: Andrew Nielsen

11: Tarun Fizer

7: Dylan Fitze, Dakota Raabe

6: Zach Tsekos

5: Brandon Cutler

4: Keaton Jameson, James Shearer, Cam Strong, Johnny Walker

3: Connor McDonald, Aaron Thow.

2: Victor Bartley, Kyle Betts, Ben Tardif.

1: Luke Martin, Brycen Martin, Kyle Mayhew, Vladislav Mikhalchuk, Jared Power, Cory Thomas.

• Luke Martin had 7 multiple point games with Jacksonville this season.

Grizzlies Winning Weekly/Monthly Awards (2022-2023 season)

Andrew Nielsen – Player of the Week (October 31- November 6, 2022)

Andrew Nielsen – 2023 Western Conference All-Star Team.

Trent Miner – ECHL Goaltender of the Week (Jan. 16-22, 2023).

Brandon Cutler – Player of the Week (January 23-29, 2023).

Jordan Martel – Player of the Week (April 10-16, 2023).

Bear Bites: Grizzlies Team Notes

Utah went 16-16-4 on the road. They picked up 36 of a possible 72 points for an even .500 record on the road. The 16 road wins are the 3rd most in the Mountain Division. Idaho has 23 road wins and Allen has 18. Utah has a point in 9 of their last 12 road games. Last season the Grizzlies had 19 road wins, which was the most of any Mountain division teams. 

Utah has scored 113 goals over their last 28 games. Utah is 24-7-1 when scoring first. The Grizz went 13-6-4 in one goal games. Utah is 22-10-4 in games decided by 1 or 2 goals. Utah is 26-2 when leading after 2 periods. The Grizz have standings points in 19 of their last 28 games. Utah is averaging 37.71 shots per game in their last 28 contests.

Grizzlies First Round Opponent: Idaho Steelheads

The Idaho Steelheads had a record-breaking regular season. They set a new league record with 58 wins and 119 standings points. Idaho went 58-11-1-2 in the regular season. Defenseman Cody Haiskanen and Matt Register tied for the league lead with a +53 rating. The +53 rating is tied for the second highest in a season in ECHL history. Register and fellow defenseman Owen Headrick were named first team all ECHL. Headrick was second on the Steelheads with 54 points (15 goals, 39 assists). Ryan Dmowski led Idaho with 30 goals and 67 points. Register led the Steelheads with 43 assists. Idaho’s team save percentage this season was .927. They were led by 2nd team all ECHL goaltender Adam Scheel, who had a 1.97 goals against average and a .932 save percentage. Idaho led the league in goals per game at 4.03 and they also lead the league in fewest goals per game allowed at 2.13. Idaho broke a league record for home wins in a season with 32. 3 of Idaho’s 4 losses at home came to the hands of the Grizzlies. Head Coach Everett Sheen was named the 2022-2023 ECHL Coach of the Year.

Grizzlies With Previous Playoff Experience

15 of the 24 players on Utah’s 2023 playoff roster have appeared in at least 1 postseason game as a professional. The 9 players who are appearing in their first postseason as professionals are Goaltender Garrett Metcalf, Defenseman Aaron Thow, Cory Thomas and Kyle Mayhew, forwards Brandon Cutler, Keaton Jameson, Mick Messner, Nolan Ritchie and Cameron Wright.

Grizzlies with Prior Postseason Experience

Trent Miner appeared in 13 games with Utah in the 2022 Kelly Cup Playoffs. Miner had a 7-6 record with a 2.80 goals against average and a .920 save percentage.

Lukas Parik appeared in 10 playoff games with the Rapid City Rush in 2022. Parik went 6-4 with a .912 save percentage and a 2.88 goals against average.

Kyle Betts played in all 18 playoff games for the Grizzlies in 2022, scoring 10 points (5 goals, 5 assists).

Dylan Fitze played in all 18 playoff games for the Grizzlies in 2022, scoring 6 goals and 3 assists. 5 of his 6 playoff goals came in the third period of games, including 2 big goals in the third period of game 2 vs Rapid City, a game Utah won 5-4. Fitze also played in 9 playoff games with Orlando in 2019.

Tarun Fizer had 15 points (4 goals, 11 assists) in 18 playoff games with Utah in 2022.

Jordan Martel appeared in 2 playoff games with Fort Wayne in 2022.

Brycen Martin played in 2 playoff games with Cincinnati in 2018.

Luke Martin played in 17 playoff games with Utah in 2022 and had 12 points (2 goals, 10 assists). Martin had 2 assists in 8 games for Greenville in the 2021 playoffs.

Connor McDonald played in all 18 playoff games for Utah in 2022 and had 1 goal and 4 assists.

Tyler Penner scored 7 points (3 goals, 4 assists) in 18 playoff games with Utah in 2022.

Kyle Pouncy had 2 points (1 goal, 1 assist) in 8 playoff games with Utah in 2022.

Dakota Raabe had 6 points (2 goals, 4 assists) in 14 playoff games with Utah in 2022.

James Shearer played in 7 postseason games with Utah in 2022.

Zach Tsekos had 12 points (3 goals, 9 assists) in 14 playoff games with Utah in 2022.

Johnny Walker appeared in 1 playoff game with Utah in 2022.

• Kyle Mayhew and Cameron Wright each has championship experience as both were members of the 2022 University of Denver NCAA National Championship squad.

The Shutout King Does It Again

Trent Miner earned his third shutout of the season as he stopped all 31 Tulsa shots on April 15, 2023. It’s Miner’s 10th shutout in a Utah uniform and 11th professional shutout. It was his third shutout vs Tulsa.

Miner Professional Shutouts

20 save shutout for Colorado vs Tucson on February 27, 2021.

21 save shutout vs Idaho on October 24, 2021.

27 save shutout at Wichita on October 29, 2021.

27 save shutout vs Kalamazoo on December 6, 2021.

28 save shutout vs Wichita on December 15, 2021.

30 save shutout at Idaho on March 18, 2022.

33 save shutout vs Tulsa on March 26, 2022.

32 save shutout at Idaho on April 9, 2022.

30 save shutout vs Trois Rivieres on November 27, 2022.

35 save shutout at Tulsa on January 20, 2023.

31 save shutout vs Tulsa on April 15, 2023.

Utah Grizzlies All-time Shutout Leaders

• Trent Miner – 10
• Tommy Salo – 7
• Jason Bacashihua – 6
• Igor Bobkov – 6
• Ryan Faragher – 6

Grizzlies Ironmen

There are 2 players who appeared in all 72 games this season: Dylan Fitze and Tyler Penner. Penner was 1 of 2 Grizzlies along with Mason Mannek, who appeared in all 72 games last season. Fitze has not missed a game for Utah since joining the club via a trade with Orlando on March 24, 2022. Fitze finished 4th on the club with 17 goals and is 5th in points with 38.