Grizzlies Finish 2024-25 Season with a 6-3 Victory at Rapid City
Rapid City, South Dakota – The Utah Grizzlies broke a 3-3 third period tie as they scored three unanswered goals in the final 8 minutes and 42 seconds of regulation as they defeated the Rapid City Rush 6-3 in the finale of the 2024-25 season.
Dylan Fitze scored his 10th goal of the season on a backhand shot 2:46 into the contest to give Utah a 1-0 lead. Luke Manning scored 64 seconds later to give the Grizzlies a 2-0 lead. Garrett Pyke extended Utah’s lead as he scored from the left wing 5:55 in. The Grizzlies led 3-0 after 20 minutes of play.
Ryan Wagner got the Rush on the board with an unassisted goal exactly 7 minutes into the second period. David Gagnon scored a power play goal for Rapid City 16:40 into the frame. The Grizzlies led 3-2 after 2 frames.
The Rush tied the game as Dalton Skelly scored his first goal of the season 2:09 into the third period. The game winner was a shorthanded goal by Adam Berg 11:18 into the third period with Griffin Ness getting the assist. First team all-league defenseman Derek Daschke scored a 4 on 4 insurance goal 15:04 in on an odd man break with Keaton Mastrodonato getting the assist. Manning scored a shorthanded empty net goal 17:47 in to complete the scoring. Utah was 7-0 in games this season when scoring a shorthanded goal.
Garrett Pyke had 1 goal, 1 assist and a +5 rating for the night. Pyke was a +8 in his last 2 games of the season. Luke LaMaster had 2 assists and was a +4 for the night. LaMaster was a +7 in his last 2 games. Dylan Fitze had 1 goal and 1 assist in the victory.
Mick Messner and Briley Wood each played in all 72 games for Utah during the 2024-25 season. Wood led Utah with 20 goals. Griffin Ness appeared in 73 games this season, 59 for Toledo and 14 for Utah.
Jake Barczewski stopped 36 of 39 in the victory as he ended the 2024-25 season with a winning record of 16-15-2-1 in his rookie campaign.
Utah went 4-1 at Rapid City during the 2024-25 season. The Grizzlies were 13-9 on Saturday’s this season.
The Grizzlies went 5-5 in their last 10 games of the season. Utah will next hit the ice for training camp in October 2025. Season tickets for the 2025-26 Utah Grizzlies season are available at utahgrizzlies.com or by calling (801) 988-8000.
3 stars
1. Adam Berg (Utah) - Game Winning shorthanded goal.
2. Jake Barczewski (Utah) - 36 of 39 saves.
3. Ryan Wagner (RC) - 1 goal, 8 shots on goal.
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