Grizzlies Gameday: Teddy Bear Toss/Ugly Sweater Night at Maverik Center

Grizzlies Gameday: Teddy Bear Toss/Ugly Sweater Night at Maverik Center 

Allen Americans (7-12-1, 15 points, .375 Win %) at Utah Grizzlies (7-11, 14 points, .389 Win %) 

Date: December 9, 2023  Venue: Maverik Center

Game Time: 7:10 pm. 

Streaming/TV: FloHockey - https://www.flohockey.tv/events/11053527-2023-allen-americans-vs-utah-grizzlies 

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

Saturday’s Matchup

The Utah Grizzlies are at Maverik Center as they take on the Allen Americans in the rubber match of a three game series. It’s the annual Teddy Bear Toss game and Ugly Sweater Night. Utah is 7-5 at home this season. Allen is 6-6-1 on the road. It’s the fourth of seven meetings this season between the clubs. Watch out for Cole Gallant, who had 2 goals and 1 assist on Friday night. Gallant has 5 points (3 goals, 2 assists) in his last 3 games. Nathan Burke and Brett Stapley are tied for the club lead with 14 points. Burke has a point in 3 straight games. Stapley has 6 assists in 5 games in December. 

Games This Week

Wednesday, December 6, 2023 – Allen 2 Utah 5 – Nathan Burke had 2 goals and 1 assist. Adam Berg and Mick Messner each had 1 goal and 1 assist. Brandon Cutler added an empty net goal. Dante Giannuzzi got his first pro win as he stopped 34 of 36. 

Friday, December 8, 2023 – Allen 5 Utah 3 – Cole Gallant had 2 goals and 1 assist. Brett Stapley had 2 assists. Allen’s Easton Brodzinski had 3 goals and was a +3. Colby McAuley added 1 goal and 1 assist. Allen goalie Mark Sinclair saved 30 of 33. 

Saturday, December 9, 2023 – Allen at Utah. 7:10 pm. Maverik Center. Teddy Bear Toss & Ugly Sweater Night. 

Games Next Week

Wednesday, December 13, 2023 – Utah at Cincinnati. 5:35 pm. Heritage Bank Arena. 

Friday, December 15, 2023 – Utah at Fort Wayne. 6:00 pm. Memorial Coliseum. 

Saturday, December 16, 2023 – Utah at Fort Wayne. 5:30 pm. Memorial Coliseum. 

Sunday, December 17, 2023 – Utah at Fort Wayne. 3:00 pm. Memorial Coliseum. 

All Times Mountain. 

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

Grizzlies Sign Forward Patriks Marcinkevics 

Forward Patriks Marcinkevics made his professional debut on December 8^th at Maverik Center. He had 2 shots on goal and 2 penalty minutes in the 5-3 loss vs Allen. 

Nathan Burke and Brett Stapley Share Grizzlies Points Lead\

Nathan Burke (7 goals, 7 assists) and Brett Stapley (3 goals, 11 assists) are tied for the team lead with 14 points this season. Burke has a point in 3 straight games, including a 3 point effort on December 6^th where he was the number 1 star as he scored 2 goals and 1 assist. Stapley has a point in 10 of 13 games this season. Stapley had 2 assists on December 8^th vs Allen. 

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 Allen Americans are 2-1 in overtime this season. Last season Utah met Allen 12 times and they went past regulation twice. Utah won 3-2 at Allen in overtime on November 9, 2022 as Connor McDonald got the game winner. On March 17, 2023 Utah won 2-1 at Allen in a shootout as Cameron Wright scored the only goal in the shootout. Trent Miner was outstanding in net that night as he stopped 40 of 41 and all 3 in the shootout.

Player Notes

Nathan Burke has 14 points this season (7 goals, 7 assists). Burke has a respectable 14.9 shooting %. He has scored the first goal in a game twice. He also leads Utah in goals (7) and penalty minutes (20). 

Mick Messner has 11 points (5g, 6a) in his last 13 games. Messner is a +6 in his last 13 games. He has 2 multiple point games this season. 9 of his 11 points this season have come at home. 

Brett Stapley has a point in 10 of his 13 games with Utah. Stapley has 4 multiple point games. Stapley has 6 assists in 5 games in December.

Bryan Yoon was a +6 in the month of November. Yoon scored his first 2 pro goals last week. He leads Utah with a +7 rating. Yoon has a minus rating in only 1 game this season. 

Kyle Mayhew is tied for 4th among league defensemen with 4 goals. He leads Utah d-men with 10 points. Mayhew has an assist in 3 of his last 4 games. Mayhew has a point in 9 of 18 games this season. 

Josh Wesley has 65 shots on goal, 2^nd among all league defenseman.  

Cole Gallant has a point in 4 of his last 5 games. Gallant is a +3 in 5 games in December. He has 6 points in December (3 goals, 3 assists). 

Brandon Cutler leads Utah with 2 game winning goals and is 2^nd in shots on goal with 63. He is 3^rd on the team with 12 points. 

Dante Giannuzzi has started in 5 of Utah’s last 6 games. 

Bear Bites: Grizzlies Team Notes

Utah is 6-1 when scoring first. Utah is the only team in the league who has not played a game past regulation. Utah is 7-5 at home this season, outscoring opponents 40 to 35. Utah has 4 shorthanded goals this season. Utah has outshot opponents 198 to 168 in the third period. Utah is 4-1 when leading after 1 period and 6-1 when leading after 2 periods.

Penner Played in 162^nd Straight Regular Season Game 

On December 8^th the Grizzlies Ironman, Tyler Penner, played in his 162^nd 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 162 regular season contests and 186 games if you include the postseason. Penner’s consecutive game streak is the longest for the Grizzlies in the 21^st century. 

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

Overall record: 7-11

Home record: 7-5

Road record: 0-6

Win percentage: .389

Streak: Lost 1

Standings Points: 14

Last 10: 3-7

Goals per game: 2.78 (26^th)  Goals for: 50

Goals against per game: 3.17 (Tied 11^th) Goals Against: 57

Shots per game: 31.33 (15^th)

Shots against per game: 31.89 (17^th)

Power Play: 9 for 54 – 16.7 % (Tied 20^th)

Penalty Kill: 42 for 56 – 75.0 % (Tied 23^rd)

Penalty Minutes: 167. 9.28 per game.  

Shorthanded Goals: 4 

Shorthanded Goals Allowed: 4.   

Record When Scoring First: 6-1. 

Opposition Scores First: 1-10. 

Record in One Goal Games: 2-4. 

SCORING         1ST       2ND               3RD               OT/Shootout      TOTAL                      

Utah Grizzlies     13         20                   17                   0                               50         

Opposition          18         20                   19                   0                               57

Team Leaders 

Goals: Nathan Burke (7) 

Assists: Brett Stapley (11)

Points: Burke/Stapley (14)

Plus/Minus: Bryan Yoon (+7)

PIM: Burke (20)

Power Play Points: Jordan Martel/Stapley (5)

Power Play Goals: Martel (3) 

Power Play Assists: Stapley (3) 

Shots on Goal: Josh Wesley (65) 

Shooting Percentage: Cole Gallant (16.7 %)  - Minimum 14 shots.  

Game Winning Goals: Cutler (2) 

Wins: Trent Miner (4)

Save %: Miner (.916)

Goals Against Average: Miner (2.52) 

Shutouts: Metcalf (1)

Streaks 

Goals: Mick Messner (2)

Assists: Burke (3) Gallant, Brett Stapley (2) 

Points – Burke, Gallant (3) Messner, Stapley (2)