Grizzlies Gameday: Blizzard Conditions Outside in Tahoe for Saturday Night Showdown

Grizzlies Gameday: Blizzard Outside Surrounds Saturday Night Showdown in Tahoe 

Utah Grizzlies (5-14-2, 12 points, .286 point %) @ Tahoe Knight Monsters (13-6-1-1, 28 points, .667 point %) 

Date: December 14, 2024 Venue: Tahoe Blue Event Center Game Time: 8:00 pm. 

Streaming: FloHockey – https://www.flohockey.tv/events/12620086-2024-utah-grizzlies-vs-tahoe-knight-monsters?nav_id=75  

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

Next Home Game: December 18, 2024 - Tahoe @ Utah. 7:10 pm.

Saturday’s Matchup

It’s the second of a three-game road trip for the Grizzlies as they are in Tahoe for the first time ever. Utah split a two-game series vs Tahoe in November, winning 6-4 on November 9^th and falling 6-2 on November 10^th. The Grizz are 2-1-2 in one goal games. 

Briley Wood has 3 goals in his last 3 games, all of them on power plays. Wood has 6 points (4g, 2a) in his last 6 games. Wood has a point in 5 of his last 6 games. Cole Fonstad and Andrew Nielsen each have 3 assists in 4 games with Utah. Gianni Fairbrother is tied for 2nd among league defensemen with 6 goals. 

Games vs Tahoe in December

December 12, 2024 – Utah 2 Tahoe 8 – Aaron Aragon and Luke Manning each scored a goal for Utah. 13 of Tahoe’s 18 skaters had 1 or more points. Tahoe captain Luke Adam had 5 assists. Tahoe outshot Utah 39 to 38. 

December 14, 2024 – Utah at Tahoe. 8:00 pm. Tahoe Blue Event Center. 

December 15, 2024 – Utah at Tahoe. 4:00 pm. Tahoe Blue Event Center. 

December 18, 2024 – Tahoe at Utah. 7:10 pm. Maverik Center. Bud Light Wednesday. 

December 20, 2024 – Tahoe at Utah. 7:10 pm. Maverik Center. AFCU Friday. 

December 21, 2024 – Tahoe at Utah. 7:10 pm. Maverik Center. Teddy Bear Toss, Ugly Sweater Night. 

Utah split a 2-game series vs Tahoe in November, winning 6-4 on Nov. 9 and losing 6-2 on Nov. 10. Dylan Fitze has 2 goals and 2 assists vs Tahoe. 

All Times Mountain. 

Tickets for every Grizzlies home game are available at utahgrizzlies.com or by calling (801) 988-8000. Every Grizzlies game can be streamed on FloHockey and audio coverage is available on the Grizzlies YouTube channel. 

Grizzlies Trivia: Rare Pacific Time Zone Game for Utah

The Grizzlies are playing a game in the pacific time zone for the second time since they faced the Ontario Reign on May 4, 2015 in game 2 of the second round of the playoffs. Ontario won that night 6-2 and the Reign eventually won the best of seven series 4 games to 1.  The Grizzlies last victory in the pacific time zone was an 8-3 score at Bakersfield on March 13, 2015. Brenden Walker had 2 goals, and 3 assists and Jacob Johnston had 2 goals and 1 assist to lead Utah to the win. 

Tahoe Knight Monsters

The Tahoe Knight Monsters are in their first season as a franchise. They have a record of 13-6-1-1. They have been a strong team at home (7-3-1-1) as well as being a good road team (6-3). The Knight Monsters have won 5 straight games and are 7-3 in their last 10. Tahoe is led by Simon Pinard, who is tied for 10^th in the league with 22 points (13 goals, 9 assists). Sloan Stanick has 21 points (8g, 13a) in 19 games. Stanick leads all league rookies with 6 power play assists and 8 power play points. Bear Hughes is averaging more than a point per game with 17 points (5g, 12a) in 16 games. Tahoe is 10-3-1 when scoring first. The Knight Monsters have been a strong third period club as they have outscored opponents 31 to 19. Tahoe is 2^nd in the league in goals per game (3.90). 

Grizzlies Team Notes 

Utah is 3-0 when leading after 2 periods. Utah is 2-1 when leading after 1 period. Utah is 4-2-1 when outshooting opponents. Utah is 2-1-2 in one goal games. Utah is 3-3-2 when scoring first. 25 of their 55 goals this season have come in the second period(s). Believe it or not the -11 goal differential in the second period (25-37) is the Grizzlies best period this season. Utah has 3 power play goals in their last 3 games. 

Grizzlies are Searching for a Win 

The Grizzlies’ 11 game losing streak is the second longest in team history. They lost 12 straight games from March 2-31, 2008. 

Grizzlies Player Notes 

#3 Craig Armstrong scored his first professional goal vs Kansas City on December 7^th. Armstrong is a +2 in 3 different games this season. “Army” has 7 shots in his last 3 games. 

#4 Bryan Yoon has a point in 6 of his first 10 games this season (3g, 3a). Yoon has a 17.6 shooting % (3 for 17). Yoon has missed the last 11 games due to injury. Utah is 5-4-1 when Yoon plays.  

#5 Derek Daschke is tied for the club lead in assists (12), points (15) and shots on goal (49). Daschke has 15 points in 14 games (3 goals, 12 assists). Daschke has an assist in 5 of his last 6 games. He has a point in 10 of his 14 games. Daschke leads Utah with 5 power play points (1g, 4a). Daschke has 3 or more shots in 9 of 14 games. Derek returned to the lineup on Dec. 12 at Tahoe after missing 7 straight games with a lower body injury. 

#6 Andrew Nielsen last wore number 6 with the AHL’s Stockton Heat in the 2019-2020 season. Nielsen had 3 assists in 4 games vs Utah this season when he was a member of the Allen Americans. In 4 games with Utah this season he has 3 assists. In 87 career games with Utah he has 17 goals and 54 assists.

#8 Keaton Mastrodonato was reassigned to Utah from Colorado (AHL) on Dec. 12. He has 1 assist and 6 shots on goal in 2 games.    

#10 Mick Messner leads Utah in shots on goal with 66 (3.14 per game). Messner has a point in 8 of his 21 games. Messner has not scored a point in each of his last 10 games. 

#11 Cameron Buhl was the number 1 star on Nov. 9 vs Tahoe as he scored the game tying and game winning goals in the third period. Buhl has 3 goals this season, all of them assisted by Dylan Fitze. Buhl has 43 shots in 20 games. 

#12 Blake Wells was injured on opening night at Idaho (October 18^th) and is out with an upper body injury. 

#13 Dylan Fitze scored three points in the third period on November 9 vs Tahoe (1 goal, 2 assists). Fitze has assisted in all 3 of Cameron Buhl’s goals. Fitze was a +2 on Dec. 4 vs KC. Fitze has 4 points (2g, 2a) in 2 games vs Tahoe this season. 

#14 Briley Wood has a point in 12 of his last 20 games. Wood has 5 goals and 5 assists in his last 12 games. Wood has 16 shots on goal in his last 6 games. Wood leads Utah with 3 power play goals. He has a 14.0 shooting %. 

#15 Aaron Aragon has 4 goals and 1 assist in his last 10 games. Aragon had 1 goal and 1 assist vs KC on Dec. 4.  

#16 Luke Manning is tied second in the club with 3 power play assists. Manning has 3 or more shots in 9 different games this season.

#17 Reed Lebster has 2 or more shots in 13 of his 17 games with Utah and 3 or more shots in 10 different games. Lebster scored 2 goals, took 4 shots and was a +2 in Utah’s game on Nov. 29 vs Indy. 

#19 Adam Berg scored a goal in his first shift in his return to the club 3:08 into the first period on Nov. 15 at Allen. Berg is currently out of the lineup with a lower body injury. 

#23 Kade Jensen scored his first pro goal at Rapid City on October 25, 2024. That night Jensen had 1 goal and 1 assist. Jensen has 2 goals and 3 assists in 21 games this season. Jensen has a 14.3 shooting percentage (2 for 14). 

#24 Gianni Fairbrother has 6 goals, which leads the Grizzlies as well as all league defensemen. 5 of his 6 goals this season have come against Allen. Fairbrother had 2 goals, 1 assist and 8 shots on goal vs Allen on Nov. 2. He was named Grizzlies Captain on October 23rd. It's the third straight season that a defenseman has been named Grizzlies captain (Josh Wesley 2023-24, Connor McDonald 2022-23). 

#25 Cole Gallant has 9 assists in his last 15 games and an assist in 6 of his last 15 contests. Gallant leads Utah forwards in assists (12). He had 3 assists at Allen on November 16 and 2 helpers vs Wichita on November 20. Gallant has 34 shots in his last 16 games. 

#26 Tyson Upper scored his first pro goal vs Indy on Nov. 27. 

#27 Cade Neilson scored a goal in his pro debut on Nov. 1^st vs Allen. Neilson got into a fight halfway through the first period on Nov. 2. Neilson got his first north American pro assist on Nov. 9 vs Tahoe. Neilson had 1 assist in 4 games with the EIHL’s Glasgow Clan this season. Neilson has a point in 8 of his 18 games with Utah. 

#28 Kabore Dunn scored his first pro goal 16:30 into the first period at Wichita on Nov. 22. Dunn was a +3 and had 1 assist for Utah on Nov. 29 vs Indy. 

#35 Vincent Duplessis made his first appearance of the season on November 21 at Wichita, stopping 29 of 32 in a 4-1 loss. Duplessis made his first pro appearance at Maverik Center on November 29 vs Indy and stopped 29 of 33. 

#39 Jake Barczewski has appeared in 4 games with Utah this season, 3 of them coming in relief. Barczewski got in a fight with KC’s Victor Ostman on December 7, 2024. 

#51 Brayden Nicholetts signed with Utah on Dec. 12. He was a college teammate with Cade Neilson at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. 

#61 Dilan Savenkov has 1 assist and 4 shots on goal in 5 games. He fought Daniel Amesbury on Dec. 7. 

#74 James Shearer has 3 assists this season. He has been paired up with Gianni Fairbrother to start the season. In 80 career games with Utah he has 9 goals, 28 assists and a +9 rating. Shearer has missed the last 7 games due to a lower body injury. 

Utah Grizzlies 2024-2025 Roster

Forwards (16): Aaron Aragon, Craig Armstrong, Adam Berg, Cameron Buhl, Dylan Fitze, Cole Fonstad, Cole Gallant, Reed Lebster, Luke Manning, Keaton Mastrodonato, Mick Messner, Cade Neilson, Brayden Nicholetts, Tyson Upper, Blake Wells, Briley Wood. 

Defenseman (8): Derek Daschke, Kabore Dunn, Gianni Fairbrother, Kade Jensen, Andrew Nielsen, Dilan Savenkov, James Shearer, Bryan Yoon. 

Goaltenders (2): Jake Barczewski, Vincent Duplessis. 

2024-2025 Utah Grizzlies Regular Season Totals 

Overall record: 5-14-2

Home record: 2-7-1 

Road record: 3-7-1

Win percentage: .286

Standings Points: 12

Last 10: 0-9-1

Goals per game: 2.62 (19^th)  Goals for: 55

Goals against per game: 4.57 (29^th) Goals Against: 96

Shots per game: 31.10 (12^th) 

Shots against per game: 35.05 (28^th)

Power Play: 10 for 64 – 15.6 % (22^nd) 

Penalty Kill: 29 for 54 – 53.7 % (29^th)

Penalty Minutes: 234. 11.24 per game. 

Shorthanded Goals: 1.  

Shorthanded Goals Allowed: 1. 

Record When Scoring First: 3-3-2.

Opposition Scores First: 2-11. 

Record in One Goal Games: 2-1-2 

Games Decided Past Regulation: 2-0-2 

Team Leaders 

Goals: Gianni Fairbrother/Briley Wood (6) 

Assists: Derek Daschke/Cole Gallant (12) 

Points: Derek Daschke (15) 

Plus/Minus: Reed Morison/Neil Shea (+1) 

PIM: Kyle Pow (27) 

Power Play Points: Daschke (5)

Power Play Goals: Briley Wood (3) 

Power Play Assists: Daschke (4)

Shots on Goal: Mick Messner (66) 

Shooting Percentage: Gianni Fairbrother/Briley Wood (14.0 %) - Minimum 30 shots. 

Game Winning Goals: Cameron Buhl/Derek Daschke/Gianni Fairbrother/Kade Jensen (1) 

Wins: Adam Scheel (5)

Save %: Scheel (.885) 

Goals Against Average: Scheel (3.98)