Grizzlies Fall 7-4 on Friday Night at Maverik Center

Mavericks Defeat Grizzlies 7-4 

West Valley City, Utah – The Utah Grizzlies got goals from 4 different skaters, including Connor Mayer’s first professional goal but the Kansas City Mavericks got 2 goals and 3 assists from Jeremy McKenna and 2 goals and 2 assists from Jacob Hayhurst as they defeated the Grizz 7-4 in front of a crowd of 7633 at Maverik Center. 

KC took a 1-0 lead as Max Andreev scored from the right wing 6:21 into the contest. Utah tied it up as Alex Beaucage scored his 11^th of the season from the left circle 8:29 in. The score was tied 1-1 after 20 minutes of play. 

Brandon Cutler gave the Grizz a 2-1 lead 37 seconds into the second period with a power play goal. Cutler now leads Utah with 10 power play goals this season. The Mavericks scored 4 goals in a 4 minute 21 second stretch as they took a 5-2 lead after goals from McKenna (4:22 in), Nolan Walker (5:10 in), Hayhurst (6:55 in) and Marc-Olivier Duquette shorthanded 8:43 in. Utah’s Josh Wesley scored his 18^th of the year 9:21 in on a power play. Utah went 2 for 4 on the power play and they were also 2 for 2 on the penalty kill. Later in the frame Utah’s Connor Mayer scored his first pro goal 18:02 in. Mayer had 7 goals in 5 seasons at Colorado College. Mavericks led 5-4 after 2 periods. 

McKenna scored his second goal of the night to extend the KC lead 3:20 in. Hayhurst scored his second of the night 9:55 in to complete the scoring as Kansas City has scored 12 goals in the first two games of the series. 

Mavericks outshot Utah 33 to 30. Cole Gallant and Luke Manning each had 2 assists for Utah, whose record falls to 31-35-3 on the season. Kansas City clinched the Brabham Cup with the Friday night win. The Brabham Cup is awarded annually to the ECHL team that finishes with the best record in the regular season. 

KC’s Jack LaFontaine stopped 26 of 30 in the win. Utah’s Dante Giannuzzi saved 11 of 15 in the first 26:03 of the contest. Will Cranley was the goaltender of record for the Grizz as he stopped 15 of 18 in relief. 

The series finale and the Grizzlies final home game of the regular season is on Saturday night at 7:10 pm. It will be Fan Appreciation Night presented by Les Schwab. Tickets are available at utahgrizzlies.com. 

3 stars

1. Jeremy McKenna (KC) – 2 goals, 3 assists, +5, 6 shots. 
2. Jacob Hayhurst (KC) – 2 goals, 2 assists, +4, 3 shots. 
3. Max Andreev (KC) – 1 goal, 2 assists, +5, 1 shot.