WHEN: 8:00 p.m. MT
WHERE: SAP Center – San Jose, California
TV: SEG+, UtahHC+, Utah 16 | RADIO: KSL Sports Zone 97.5 FM, NHL App
The Utah Hockey Club (13-11-5) looks to continue its strong run of form against the Pacific Division’s San Jose Sharks (11-16-5) at SAP Center in Silicon Valley tonight. Utah has won five of its last eight games and has earned standings points in seven of its last eight. Three points out of a wild card spot in the Western Conference, Utah is wrapping up a busy stretch of five games in eight days. The current two-game swing to Colorado and San Jose for Utah is this season’s “Mentors Trip”, with each player bringing along a mentor to enjoy the road trip with the team.
ONE-TIMERS
- Kevin Stenlund has goals in four straight games, marking the longest goal streak for any Utah skater this season and the longest of Stenlund’s career.
- Dylan Guenther leads the team with 28 points (12G, 16A) after two goals and an assist on Thursday night in Denver.
- Utah has won five straight road games; the longest such streak of the season for the team.
- Utah has held the opposition scoreless in the first period in 10 of its last 11 games.
- Utah has scored four or more goals in four straight games.
TONIGHT’S MATCHUP
The Sharks waited nine games before claiming their first win of the season against Utah on Oct. 28. Since then, San Jose is 11-9-3 and has seen an uptick in production from its young stars Macklin Celebrini (10G, 9A) and Will Smith (5G, 6A…injured). Mikael Granlund is on pace for a career year and leads the Sharks with 31 points (10G, 21A) in 30 games. Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky’s group won three straight to end November. dropped three in a row against stiff competition (Tampa Bay, Florida, Carolina) early in December, and then won 4-3 against the St. Louis Blues Thursday night.
WHO TO WATCH
UTAH: #11 DYLAN GUENTHER – The 21-year-old Guenther jumped into first place in scoring amongst Utah skaters with two tallies and an assist on Thursday against Colorado. Guenther now has four multi-goal games this season.
SAN JOSE: #71 MACKLIN CELEBRINI – Selected first overall out of Boston University in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, Celebrini was one of the most celebrated prospects to ever come from college hockey. The former Hobey Baker Award winner had two goals and an assist in his team’s last game against St. Louis on Thursday, and he has points in seven of his last nine contests.
LOOK BACK
Utah knocked off their Central Division Rival, the Colorado Avalanche, in 4-1 fashion on Thursday night at Ball Arena. Dylan Guenther scored twice, including once on the power play, and Vladislav Kolyachonok lit the lamp in his first game back into the lineup since Nov. 24 against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Kevin Stenlund provided the empty-netter to seal the victory and record a goal in his fourth straight game. Karel Vejmelka finished the night with 22 saves on 24 Avalanche shots. With the win, Utah pulled within three points of the fourth-place Avalanche in the Central Division standings.
LAST MEETING
Utah and San Jose last played on Oct. 28, and it was a game that Utah would like to forget. With Utah leading 4-1 near the end of the third period, the Sharks scored three consecutive goals at 6-on-5 in the last five minutes of regulation to force overtime. Alexander Wennberg scored the overtime-winner for the Sharks, and San Jose completed a miraculous comeback to claim their first win of the season.
POWER PLAY
Utah’s power play has connected in three straight games for the first time this season, and the PP is 4-for-8 in that three-game span. Entering the game on Nov. 23 against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Utah’s power play operated at just 12.7%, ranked 30th in the NHL, and had produced just one goal in the last eight games. The power play then broke out against the Penguins with three special teams goals in that game, and Utah hasn’t looked back since. Including that three power-play goal game against Pittsburgh, Utah is now 9-for-24 (37.5%) on the power play since Nov. 23. For the season, Utah ranks 18th in power-play percentage at 20.3%. Dylan Guenther leads the team in goals and points on the power play with five and 13 respectively, and his power-play-point total is tied for the 13th most in the NHL.
PENALTY KILL
The penalty kill deserves as much love as the power play and is in its best run of form this season with four consecutive clean sheets for the first time. Utah is 10-for-10 over those last four games on the PK, including a 3-for-3 effort against Colorado’s top-10 power play on Thursday. Utah has also been taking less penalties and providing opposing power plays less opportunities. This is only the second four-game stretch of the season for Utah in which the team has not been shorthanded four or more times in a game during that span. According to Sportlogiq, Utah still spends the most time in the NHL on the penalty kill with an average of 5:57 minutes per game.
LOOK AHEAD
Utah returns home to face the Vancouver Canucks for the first time in history on Wednesday, Dec. 18 at Delta Center. Vancouver is currently four points ahead of Utah in the Western Conference wild card race.
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