WHEN: 6:30 p.m. MT
WHERE: United Center - Chicago, Illinois
TV: SEG+, UtahHC+, Utah 16 | RADIO: KSL Sports Zone 1280 AM, NHL App
The Utah Hockey Club (28-25-9) visits the Chicago Blackhawks (19-35-8) at United Center in the third meeting of the season between the two Central Division Rivals. After a 4-2 win over the Detroit Red Wings last night, Utah has now won four of its last five games and is just three points out of a playoff spot in the Western Conference.
ONE-TIMERS
- Nick Schmaltz was drafted 20th overall by Chicago in 2014.
- Utah has allowed just eight total goals in the last five games.
- Dylan Guenther leads the team with 23 goals.
- Eight Utah Hockey Club skaters have scored at least 10 goals this season.
- Utah’s power play has been clutch; 21 of Utah’s last 28 power-play goals have either tied the game or given Utah the lead.
TONIGHT’S MATCHUP
Utah and Chicago lock horns for the third time this season after Utah won the previous two matchups at Delta Center. The Blackhawks have won two of their last three after losing five in a row and have the second fewest points in the Western Conference with 46.
The Blackhawks acquired goaltender Spencer Knight and a first round pick from the Florida Panthers in exchange for five-time all-star defenseman Seth Jones. Since the trade, Chicago is 1-1-0, including a 5-1 win against the Los Angeles Kings in which Knight stopped 42 of 43 shots. The Hawks’ last effort resulted in a 4-3 loss to the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday. In that game against Ottawa, Chicago’s lineup contained nine players aged 23 or younger and 10 players who were selected by the Blackhawks in an NHL draft.
Up front for the Blackhawks, Ryan Donato is having a career year, and he leads the club with 23 goals on the season. Connor Bedard leads the team with 49 points (16G, 33A).
WHO TO WATCH
UTAH: #67 LAWSON CROUSE - Crouse scored the fourth goal for Utah last night against Detroit and now has 10 tallies on the season. The winger has reached double-digit goal totals in each of his last four seasons.
CHICAGO: #8 RYAN DONATO - After a goal on Wednesday against Ottawa, Donato now has four goals over his last three contests for the Blackhawks. This season is the first time that Donato has hit the 20-goal plateau, and the Boston, Massachusetts native has eight goals in 10 games since the start of February.
LOOK BACK
Utah defeated the Detroit Red Wings 4-2 last night at Little Caesars Arena. Goaltender Karel Vejmelka helped keep Utah in the game throughout the night with 38 saves on 40 Red Wings shots, marking the second most saves in a game for Vejmelka this season.
Dylan Guenther led off the scoring just 2:08 into the first frame, but Detroit eventually took the lead with first-period tallies from Dylan Larkin and Jonatan Berggren. Nick Schmaltz tied the game at 2-2 on the power play in the second frame following a perfect saucer pass from Barrett Hayton.
Later in the third, Kevin Stenlund provided the game-winner and Lawson Crouse scored on a setup from Jack McBain.
LAST MEETING
Utah won its second straight game at home on Feb. 25 against the Chicago Blackhawks. After giving up a power-play goal to Chicago’s Seth Jones in the first period, Clayton Keller tied the game at 1-1 in the final minute of the second. Lawson Crouse scored the game-winning goal with 7:48 to go in regulation.
Utah outshot Chicago 37-22 and dominated at the faceoff dot, winning 61.5% of the draws. Every Utah forward registered a shot, and Utah finished with 10:17 worth of offensive zone possession time- the second most in a game this season.
CLAYTON KELLER
With an assist on Nick Schmaltz’s second-period goal last night, Clayton Keller picked up the 300th apple of his career. The Chesterfield, Missouri native now has 488 points (188G, 300A) in 581 career games in the NHL.
Keller’s 29 power-play points (6G, 23A) are now tied for the third most in the NHL this season, as are his 23 power-play assists. He now has recorded a point on 71% of Utah’s power-play goals this season, the fifth highest percentage for any one player this season.
MICHAEL KESSELRING
Defenseman Michael Kesselring picked up a pair of assists last night against Detroit and now has 25 points (6G, 19A) in 62 games this season for Utah. The goal, assist, and point totals for Kesselring this season mark a new career high, surpassing the 21 points (5G, 16A) he posted in 65 games with the Arizona Coyotes last season. The 25-year-old rearguard now has four multi-point efforts under his belt this season.
LOOK AHEAD
Utah returns home on Monday, Mar. 10 to face the Toronto Maple Leafs at Delta Center. The two clubs last saw each other on Nov. 24, and Toronto pulled out a narrow 3-2 victory. Monday will mark the third straight game in which Utah is facing an Original Six franchise.
