WHEN: 6:00 p.m. MT
WHERE: Xcel Energy Center - St. Paul, Minnesota
TV: ESPN+, Hulu | RADIO: KSL Sports Zone 1280 AM, NHL App
The Utah Hockey Club (20-19-7) continues a grueling stretch of games against top competition with a matchup tonight against the Minnesota Wild (28-15-4) at Xcel Energy Center. While Utah is four points out of the second wild card spot in the Western Conference after two straight wins, Minnesota is entrenched in second place in the Central Division with 60 points. Tonight is the first game of a back-to-back and the first of a three-game road trip for Utah. This evening also marks the second of three straight matchups against the top two teams in the Central Division (Winnipeg, Minnesota).
ONE-TIMERS
- Logan Cooley has goals in four straight games.
- Olli Määttä scored his first goal of the season on Monday against Winnipeg.
- Barrett Hayton produced his first three-point night of the season on Monday and was named the game’s first star.
- Utah’s Nick Bjugstad is a native of Blaine, Minnesota and played at the University of Minnesota.
- Utah has scored nine total goals over its last two games.
TONIGHT’S MATCHUP
The Wild raced through the first part of the season, earning points in 21 of their first 25 games. Over the last two months, Minnesota has come back down to earth with a 7-7-0 record in December and a 5-4-0 record in January so far. A big reason for the downward trend has been the absence of Hart Trophy candidate Kirill Kaprizov since Dec. 23 due to injury. Kaprizov, who had 50 points (23G, 27A) in 34 games before injury, changes the dynamic of a game when he is in the lineup. Even without Kaprizov in the lineup, the Wild are a force to be reckoned with up front with talented forwards like Matt Boldy, Marco Rossi, and Joel Eriksson Ek. In net, Filip Gustavsson and Marc-Andre Fleury make up one of the stingiest goaltending tandems in the league with a combined save percentage of .913.
WHO TO WATCH
UTAH: #92 LOGAN COOLEY - Cooley has goals in four straight games, tying him for the longest goal streak of Utah’s season with Kevin Stenlund. The young center has 42 points (15G, 27A) in 46 games for Utah and ranks second on the team in scoring.
MINNESOTA: #12 MATT BOLDY - Boldy has been productive recently for Minnesota with five goals over his last eight games. He also has four multi-point games over the last eight contests and is second on the Wild in scoring with 41 points (18G, 23A) in 47 contests.
LOOK BACK
Utah tamed the top team in the Western Conference on Monday night at Delta Center with a 5-2 win over the conference-leading Winnipeg Jets. The game was scoreless until 36 minutes in, when Olli Määttä buried a slapshot from the blue line for his first goal of the season. Later in the second with just 18 seconds remaining in the period, Logan Cooley scored on a two-on-one to extend Utah’s lead. The line of Barrett Hayton, Josh Doan, and Matias Maccelli produced two more tallies in the third to cement Utah’s lead; Hayton netted a crafty setup from Doan off the rush, and Maccelli lit the lamp after a tic-tac-toe passing play involving the entire line. Winnipeg pushed back with two goals of their own in the third, but Clayton Keller scored the empty-netter to clinch the win.
LAST MEETING
Utah extended a winning streak to four and a road winning streak to seven with a 2-1 win over the Minnesota Wild at Xcel Energy Center on Dec. 20. The Wild’s Mats Zuccarello led off the scoring in the middle of the first, but only a minute later, Dylan Guenther knocked in a rebound from a Jack McBain shot and tied the game. Guenther scored the game-winner and his second of the game later in the third period on the power play. Goaltender Karel Vejmelka was stellar once again with 28 saves on 29 shots. Utah’s penalty kill came up big with a five-for-five effort against the Wild.
CLAYTON KELLER
With a goal and an assist on Monday against Winnipeg, Clayton Keller now has multiple points in each of his last two games and three of his last four. During his current four-game point streak, the Utah captain has amassed nine points (2G, 7A), including a four-point night on Jan. 18 against St. Louis. The nine points is tied for the most in a four-game span that Keller has tabulated this season. The 26-year-old is off to the best statistical start of his career, and he currently leads Utah with 50 points (16G, 34A). He reached the 40-point plateau in just 39 games this season- five games faster than his previous fastest 40 points which came last season with the Arizona Coyotes in 44 contests. Keller is on pace for 90 points this season, which would be a new career high.
BARRETT HAYTON
Barrett Hayton registered his first three-point night of the season on Monday against Winnipeg with a goal and two assists. Monday also marked his first three-point night since the 2022-23 campaign, and the fifth of his career. Hayton has 23 points (9G, 14A) in 46 games this season, and he is tied for second on the team with a +7 rating. The centerman also tabbed two assists on Jan. 16 against the New York Rangers and now has five points (1G, 4A) over his last three contests.
LOOK AHEAD
Utah continues the road trip tomorrow with a rematch against the Winnipeg Jets. Tomorrow’s game at Canada Life Centre will be the third meeting of the season between the teams after Winnipeg defeated Utah 3-0 on Nov. 5, and Utah returned the favor 5-2 on Jan. 20. Tomorrow’s puck drop is scheduled for 6 p.m. MT.
