Grizzlies Gameday: Dec. 7, 2024 - Kansas City at Utah

Grizzlies Gameday: Series Finale at Maverik Center

Kansas City Mavericks (13-6-1-1, 28 points, .667 point %) @ Utah Grizzlies (5-12-2, 12 points, .316 point %) 

Date: December 7, 2024 Venue: Maverik Center Game Time: 7:10 pm. 

Streaming: FloHockey – https://www.flohockey.tv/events/12610028-2024-kansas-city-mavericks-vs-utah-grizzlies?nav_id=75 

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

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

Saturday’s Matchup

It’s the last of a three-game series between the Grizzlies and Mavericks. Utah went 2-6-1 vs KC last season. The Grizzlies are 20-16-3 vs the Mavericks over the past 5-plus seasons. Utah has 26 goals in 9 home games this season. The Grizz are 2-1-2 in one goal games. 

Cole Gallant has 9 assists in his last 13 games. Mick Messner had 57 shots on goal in his last 16 games. Briley Wood and Cade Neilson each have 3 points (2 goals, 1 assist) in their last 4 games. Craig Armstrong and Kade Jensen each have 2 assists in their last 5 games. Reed Lebster has 3 points (2 goals, 1 assist) in his last 3 games. Lebster has missed the past 2 games due to injury. 

Grizzlies Among League Leaders

Adam Scheel leads the league in minutes (911) and saves (469). Gianni Fairbrother is tied for 2nd for goals among defensemen with 6. Derek Daschke is tied for 6^th among league defensemen in both assists (12) and points (15). 

Games on the Grizzlies Homestand at Maverik Center

Wednesday, November 27, 2024 – Indy 4 Utah 2 – Gianni Fairbrother and Tyson Upper each scored a goal for Utah. Indy was led by a 2 goal and 1 assist performance from Nathan Burke and 3 assists from Bryan Lemos. Indy went 1 for 3 on the power play, Utah was 0 for 5. 

Friday, November 29, 2024 – Indy 4 Utah 3 (Overtime) – Reed Lebster scored 2 goals for Utah. Cade Neilson scored a second period goal. Indy went 3 for 5 on the power play. Ryan Gagnier scored the overtime game winner for Indy. Indy outshot Utah 33 to 25. Kabore Dunn was a +3 for Utah. Kade Jensen and Lebster were each a +2. 

Saturday, November 30, 2024 – Indy 4 Utah 1 - Briley Wood scored a goal in the second period for Utah with Craig Armstrong getting an assist. 

Wednesday, December 4, 2024 – Kansas City 3 Utah 2 – Aaron Aragon and Cade Neilson each had 1 goal and 1 assist for Utah. Utah outshot KC 30 to 28. Mavericks got goals from Nolan Sullivan, Cade Borchardt and Damien Giroux. KC was 1 for 2 on the power play, Utah was 0 for 3. 

Friday, December 6, 2024 – Kansas City 5 Utah 1 – Briley Wood scored Utah’s only goal 46 seconds into the second period on a power play. Utah was 1 for 6 on the power play and 1 for 1 on the penalty kill. Cade Borchardt scored 3 goals and 1 assist to lead the KC attack. Mavericks outshot the Grizz 34 to 27. Casey Carreau had 1 goal and 1 assist for KC. 

Saturday, December 7, 2024 – Kansas City @ Utah. 7:10 pm. Health Care Appreciation Weekend Presented by U of U Health. 

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. 

Recent Transactions

December 6 – Grizzlies sign defenseman Sam Lofquist. 

December 3 – Forward Cole Fonstad was reassigned to the Grizzlies from the AHL’s Colorado Eagles. 

December 2 – Grizzlies acquire Andrew Nielsen in a trade with the Worcester Railers in exchange for forward Reed Morison. 

December 1 – Goaltender Jake Barczewski reassigned to Utah from Colorado (AHL). The Grizzlies release defenseman Cody Corbett. 

November 29 – Grizzlies sign defenseman Dilan Savenkov. Savenkov played with Trois-Rivieres, Cincinnati, Orlando and Reading last season. Savenkov is 23 years old, and he is from Estonia. 

November 29 – Grizzlies release Chase Hartje. Hartje appeared in 8 games with Utah and had 1 assist. 

November 27 – Grizzlies sign defenseman Cody Corbett. 

November 26 – Grizzlies released forward Nick Pastorious. 

The Kansas City Mavericks

The defending Western Conference champion Kansas City Mavericks roll into Maverik Center for the third of 10 regular season meetings, 5 in Utah and 5 in Kansas City. The Mavericks are 13-6-1-1 on the season. They have been an outstanding road team as they are 11-3-1 away from home, outscoring opponents 57 to 34. Cade Borchardt is tied for the league lead with 15 goals. Borchardt leads the league in plus/minus (+20). Forward Max Andreev is second in the league in plus/minus (+18) and he has 19 points (5 goals, 14 assists) in 16 games. Goaltender Victor Ostman is second in the league with 9 wins and is 3^rd in minutes (787). David Noel is second among league defensemen with 67 shots on goal and is tied with Utah’s Gianni Fairbrother for 2^nd in the league for goals among defensemen with 6. 

Grizzlies/Mavericks Connections 

Grizzlies forward Dylan Fitze played in 2 games with the Mavericks in the 2019-20 season. 

Grizzlies Team Notes 

Utah has scored 26 goals in 9 home games this season. Utah is 3-0 when leading after 2 periods. Utah is 4-2-1 when outshooting opponents. Utah is 2-1-2 in one goal games. Utah is 3-2-2 when scoring first. 23 of their 50 goals this season have come in the second periods. 

Grizzlies Player Notes 

#3 Craig Armstrong had 4 assists and 22 shots in November. Armstrong is a +2 in 3 different games this season. Armstrong has 2 assists in his last 5 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 9 games due to injury.  

#5 Derek Daschke leads the team in points (15), is tied for the club lead with 12 assists and is second on the club in shots on goal (44).  Daschke has 15 points in 13 games (3 goals, 12 assists). Daschke has a current 5 game assist streak. He has a point in 10 of his 13 games. He leads Grizzlies defenseman with a +3 rating. Daschke leads Utah with 5 power play points (1g, 4a). Daschke has 3 or more shots in 8 of 13 games. Derek has missed the past 6 games due to 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 2 games with Utah this season he has 1 assist, 4 PIM and 4 shots on goal.  

#10 Mick Messner leads Utah in shots on goal with 62 (3.26 per game). He is tied among all Grizzlies forwards for the team lead with 5 goals. Messner has a point in 8 of his 19 games. He had 8 points (3g, 5a) in 14 games in November. 

#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 38 shots in 18 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. 

#14 Briley Wood has a point in 10 of his last 18 games. Wood has 3 goals and 4 assists in his last 10 games. 

#15 Aaron Aragon has 3 goals and 1 assist in his last 8 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 leads Utah with 2 power play goals. Lebster has 2 or more shots in 12 of his 16 games with Utah and 3 or more shots in 9 different games. Lebster scored 2 goals, took 4 shots and was a +2 in Utah’s game on Nov. 29 vs Indy. Lebster has missed 2 straight games due to a lower body injury. 

#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 scored 9 goals and 14 assists in 50 games with the Grizzlies last season. 

#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 19 games this season. Jensen has a 15.4 shooting percentage (2 for 13). 

#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 13 games and an assist in 6 of his last 13 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 33 shots in his last 14 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 6 of his 16 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. 

#34 Adam Scheel leads the league in saves (469) and minutes (911). Scheel has started 15 of Utah’s 19 games. 

#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 2 games with Utah this season. 

#43 Sam Lofquist made his Grizzlies debut on Dec. 6, 2024 and had 1 shot on goal. 

#44 Kyle Pow is through 2 games of a 6 game suspension. Pow leads the Grizzlies with 27 penalty minutes. 

#61 Dilan Savenkov was a +2 for Utah in 2 games last week vs Indy. Savenkov has 1 assist, 2 penalty minutes and 4 shots on goal. 

#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 6 games due to a lower body injury. 

Utah Grizzlies 2024-2025 Roster

Forwards (14): Aaron Aragon, Craig Armstrong, Adam Berg, Cameron Buhl, Dylan Fitze, Cole Fonstad, Cole Gallant, Reed Lebster, Luke Manning, Mick Messner, Cade Neilson, Tyson Upper, Blake Wells, Briley Wood. 

Defenseman (10): Derek Daschke, Kabore Dunn, Gianni Fairbrother, Kade Jensen, Sam Lofquist, Andrew Nielsen, Kyle Pow, Dilan Savenkov, James Shearer, Bryan Yoon. 

Goaltenders (3): Jake Barczewski, Vincent Duplessis, Adam Scheel.

2024-2025 Utah Grizzlies Regular Season Totals 

Overall record: 5-12-2

Home record: 2-6-1 

Road record: 3-6-1

Win percentage: .316

Standings Points: 12

Last 10: 1-8-1

Goals per game: 2.63 (Tied 18^th)  Goals for: 50

Goals against per game: 4.11 (29^th) Goals Against: 78

Shots per game: 31.11 (12^th) 

Shots against per game: 34.84 (27^th)

Power Play: 8 for 59 – 13.6 % (24^th)

Penalty Kill: 26 for 47 – 55.3 % (29^th)

Penalty Minutes: 188. 9.89 per game. 

Shorthanded Goals: 1.  

Shorthanded Goals Allowed: 1. 

Record When Scoring First: 3-2-2.

Opposition Scores First: 2-10. 

Record in One Goal Games: 2-1-2 

Games Decided Past Regulation: 2-0-2 

Team Leaders 

Goals: Gianni Fairbrother (6) 

Assists: Derek Daschke/Cole Gallant (12) 

Points: Derek Daschke (15) 

Plus/Minus: Daschke (+3) 

PIM: Kyle Pow (27) 

Power Play Points: Daschke (5)

Power Play Goals: Reed Lebster/Mick Messner (2) 

Power Play Assists: Daschke (4)

Shots on Goal: Mick Messner (62) 

Shooting Percentage: Gianni Fairbrother (15.4 %) - Minimum 30 shots. 

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

Wins: Adam Scheel (5)

Save %: Scheel (.895) 

Goals Against Average: Scheel (3.62)