Gelatt’s Hat Trick Leads Grizzlies to 6-3 Victory
West Valley City, Utah – John Gelatt scored three goals and Evan Friesen added goals as the Utah Grizzlies defeated the Rapid City Rush 6-3 on Friday night at Maverik Center.
Maurizio Colella gave Rapid City a 1-0 lead 9:20 into the contest. Rapid City led 1-0 after 20 minutes of play. Utah tied up the game 6:48 into the second period as Marek Hejduk scored his third of the year. Hejduk has three goals in his last 4 games. Evan Friesen scored a 4 on 4 goal on a great pass from Danny Dzhaniyev 10:16 in. John Gelatt scored from the right wing 13:39 in to extend Utah’s lead to 3-1.
Early in the third period Maurizio Colella scored his second goal of the night 52 seconds in. Gelatt scored his second of the night 10:22 in. Evan Friesen made it a 5-2 game on a pass from Dzhaniyev 12:50 in. It is Friesen’s third 2 goal game of the season. Gelatt completed the hat trick 13:20 in unassisted. It was Utah’s fifth hat trick of the season and Gelatt’s first as a pro. Ryan Chyzowski scored for Rapid City 15:14 in.
It was the 13th time this season where Utah has scored 6 or more goals. Danny Dzhaniyev, Aiden-Hansen Bukata and Reed Lebster each had 2 assists. Hunter Miska got the victory in net as he saved 23 of 26.
Utah has won 5 games in a row for the first time since March 3-12, 2023. The Grizzlies are 65-41-14 all-time vs Rapid City.
The final series of the 2025-26 regular season continues on Saturday night at 7:10 pm. Tickets for every Grizzlies home game are available at utahgrizzlies.com or by calling (801) 988-8000.
3 stars
- John Gelatt (Utah) – 3 goals, +3, 3 shots.
- Evan Friesen (Utah) – 2 goals, 3 shots.
- Danny Dzhaniyev (Utah) – 2 assists, +1, 3 shots.
Adirondack Thunder
Allen Americans
Atlanta Gladiators
Bloomington Bison
Cincinnati Cyclones
Florida Everblades
Fort Wayne Komets
Greensboro Gargoyles
Greenville Swamp Rabbits
Idaho Steelheads
Indy Fuel
Iowa Heartlanders
Jacksonville Icemen
Kalamazoo Wings
Kansas City Mavericks
Maine Mariners
Norfolk Admirals
Orlando Solar Bears
Rapid City Rush
Reading Royals
Savannah Ghost Pirates
South Carolina Stingrays
Tahoe Knight Monsters
Toledo Walleye
Trois-Rivières Lions
Tulsa Oilers
Utah Grizzlies
Wheeling Nailers
Wichita Thunder
Worcester Railers