Grizzlies Gameday: Last Friday Home Game of 2023

Grizzlies Gameday: Last Friday Night Game of 2023 

Tulsa Oilers (13-10-3, 29 points, .558 Win %) @ Utah Grizzlies (8-17, 16 points, .320 Win %) 

Date: December 29, 2023  Venue: Maverik Center

Game Time: 7:10 pm. 

Streaming/TV: FloHockey - https://www.flohockey.tv/events/11054380-2023-tulsa-oilers-vs-utah-grizzlies 

Audio/Radio: Utah Grizzlies YouTube channel. - https://www.youtube.com/@THEUTAHGRIZZLIES

Friday’s Matchup

The Utah Grizzlies are back at Maverik Center for the opener of a 3 game series against the Tulsa Oilers. Utah is 2-2 vs Tulsa this season. It’s the fifth of 10 regular season meetings between the clubs. The Grizzlies have been good on home ice this season as they are 8-6 and have outscored the opposition 48 to 43 at Maverik Center. Kyle Mayhew has 6 goals this season, which is tied for the league lead among defenseman. Tulsa is led by Kyle Crnkovic, who has 23 points (7 goals, 16 assists) in 22 games this season. Michael Farren and Tyler Poulsen are tied for the Oilers lead with 11 goals. 

Games This Week

Friday, December 29, 2023 – Tulsa at Utah. 7:10 pm. Maverik Center. AFCU Friday. 

Saturday, December 30, 2023 – Tulsa at Utah. 7:10 pm. Maverik Center. 

Sunday, December 31, 2023 – Tulsa at Utah. 7:10 pm. Maverik Center. 

All Times Mountain. 

Tickets for every Grizzlies home game is available at utahgrizzlies.com or by calling (801) 988-8000. 

Games Last Week

Friday, December 22, 2023 – Utah 2 Idaho 3 – Jacob Semik had 1 goal and 1 assist. Dante Giannuzzi stopped 38 of 41. J.C. Campagna scored his first goal in a Utah uniform. Idaho was led by 1 goal and 2 assists from Patrick Kudla and Wade Murphy’s game winning goal 13:39 into the third period. Idaho outshot Utah 41 to 24. 

Saturday, December 23, 2023 – Idaho 6 Utah 1 -  Tyler Penner scored Utah’s lone goal. Idaho was led by 2 goals and 2 assists from Ty Pelton-Byce and 2 goals and 1 assist from Mark Rassell. Idaho outshot Utah 33 to 30. Attendance was 6747 at Maverik Center. 

Jersey Number Switches 

Defenseman Kyle Mayhew has changed his number from 6 to 27. Forward J.C. Campagna changes from number 26 to number 23.

Grizzlies Player Notes

Kyle Mayhew is tied for the league lead for goals among defensemen with 6. 

J.C. Campagna has 1 goal and 3 assists in 4 games with Utah after signing with them on December 16. 

Quinn Wichers has 1 goal and 2 assists as well as a +1 rating in 5 games with Utah. 

Tyler Penner has appeared in 169 straight regular season games for Utah, 193 if you count the playoffs. 

Cole Gallant has 11 points (4g, 7a) in his last 10 games. 

Brandon Cutler has 5 goals and 2 assists in his last 9 games. Cutler has 3 power play goals in his last 7 games. Cutler, Nathan Burke and Brett Stapley are tied for the club lead with 18 points. 

Brett Stapley has 10 assists in 12 games in December. 

Mick Messner has 5 goals in his last 9 games. Messner leads all rookies with 2 shorthanded goals. 

Jacob Semik had 1 goal and 1 assist at Idaho on December 22. 

Bear Bites: Grizzlies Team Notes

Utah is 6-3 when scoring first. Utah is the only team in the league who has not played a game past regulation. Utah is 8-6 at home this season, outscoring opponents 48 to 43. Utah has 4 shorthanded goals this season. Utah has outshot opponents 277 to 245 in the third period. Utah is 5-2 when leading after 1 period and 7-2 when leading after 2 periods. Utah had a crowd of 6,747 on December 23. 

Recent Transactions

December 28 – Josh Wesley recalled to Colorado (AHL). 

December 27 – Josh Wesley reassigned to Utah from Colorado (AHL). 

December 27 – Utah released defenseman Anders Johnson. 

December 22 – Utah signed defenseman Anders Johnson. 

December 21 – Defenseman Josh Wesley recalled to Colorado (AHL)

December 20 – Defenseman Josh Wesley reassigned to Utah from Colorado (AHL). 

December 20 – Utah releases Patriks Marcinkevics.

December 16 – Utah signs forward J.C. Campagna. Campagna played in his 200^th ECHL game on December 16^th at Fort Wayne. Campagna has 1 goal and 3 assists in 4 games with Utah.  

Grizzlies Captain Recalled to Colorado

Defenseman Josh Wesley was recalled to the AHL’s Colorado Eagles. Wesley has 4 goals and 5 assists in 20 games this season. He has 69 shots on goal, which ranks 4^th among all league defensemen. Wesley has appeared in 2 games with Colorado. 

Could We Finally See an Overtime Game? 

The Grizzlies are the only team in the league who have yet to play a game past regulation. The Tulsa Oilers have had 6 games decided past regulation. They have a record of 3-3 in those games. Last season the Grizzlies had 9 games decided past regulation. They were 3-4 when the game ended in OT and 2-0 when it ended in a shootout. 

Penner Played in 169^th  Straight Regular Season Game 

On December 23^rd the Grizzlies Ironman, Tyler Penner, played in his 169^th straight regular season game. Penner has appeared in every regular season and playoff game for Utah since the start of the 2021-22 season. The streak is currently 169 regular season contests and 193 games if you include the postseason. Penner’s consecutive game streak is the longest for the Grizzlies in the 21^st century. Penner has 28 goals and 33 assists in his Grizzlies career. 

2023-2024 Utah Grizzlies Regular Season Totals (league rankings) 

Overall record: 8-17

Home record: 8-6

Road record: 0-11

Win percentage: .320

Streak: Lost 6

Standings Points: 16

Last 10: 2-8

Goals per game: 2.76 (Tied 26^th) Goals for: 69

Goals against per game: 3.52 (20^th) Goals Against: 88

Shots per game: 30.92 (18^th)

Shots against per game: 33.20 (21^st)

Power Play: 12 for 80 – 15.0 % (25^th)

Penalty Kill: 56 for 79 – 70.9 % (28^th)

Penalty Minutes: 269. 10.76 per game. 

Shorthanded Goals: 4 

Shorthanded Goals Allowed: 4.   

Record When Scoring First: 6-3.  

Opposition Scores First: 2-14. 

Record in One Goal Games: 2-6. 

SCORING         1ST       2ND               3RD               OT/Shootout      TOTAL                      

Utah Grizzlies     17         29                   23                   0                               69

Opposition          28         31                   29                   0                               88

Team Leaders 

Goals: Nathan Burke/Brandon Cutler (9) 

Assists: Brett Stapley (15)

Points: Burke/Cutler/Stapley (18)

Plus/Minus: Kyle Mayhew/Mick Messner/Keoni Texeira/Bryan Yoon (+2)

PIM: Burke (39)

Power Play Points: Cutler/Jordan Martel/Stapley (5)

Power Play Goals: Cutler/Martel (3) 

Power Play Assists: Stapley (3) 

Shots on Goal: Brandon Cutler (86) 

Shooting Percentage: Cole Gallant (15.0 %) - Minimum 20 shots.  

Game Winning Goals: Cutler (2) 

Wins: Trent Miner (4)

Save %: Miner (.916) 

Goals Against Average: Miner (2.52) 

Shutouts: Metcalf (1)