In addition to their strong performance offensively, Utah delivered with their defensive effort only allowing their opponent one power play goal. Goaltender Karel Vejmelka was part of that, stopping 18 of the 19 shots he faced in his 21st straight start.
“They’re not easy to play against,” head coach André Tourigny shared about Seattle. “They’re a team who will possess the puck a lot in the o-zone. If you look at their numbers, it’s a team who really improved offensively in their last 10, 15 games, they were top of the league. I think we did a really good job defensively. having good goaltending as well made a difference. Vejmelka was solid, make key saves at key moments which with a 7-1 game, maybe you don’t notice that as much, but he made a difference.”
Mikhail Sergachev’s 15th goal of the season gave Utah a 1-0 lead in the opening three minutes. After the team worked the puck around the zone, and overwhelmed Seattle’s defense, Sergachev lost his coverage and fired a shot on net from the slot to beat goaltender Joey Daccord. Kevin Stenlund and Sean Durzi picked up assists. Credit also to Michael Carcone and Nick Bjugstad for creating traffic with their net front presence.
There was plenty of special teams action in the first period, starting eight and a half minutes in when Utah went on the power play. Just after Utah’s power play expired, a puck over the glass put the home team on the penalty kill.
In the final 30 seconds of the penalty kill, Jack McBain intercepted the puck and Utah went on offense. Logan Cooley was tripped which led to 4-on-4 hockey for 22 seconds. However, eight seconds later, Seattle received a double minor after Jamie Oleksiak high sticked Kailer Yamamoto. Just as 4-on-3 hockey expired, and Utah was getting their fifth skater on the ice, Captain Clayton Keller scored a power play goal to make it 2-0. Sergachev and Dylan Guenther picked up assists on the play.
Yamamoto, with a bloody lip, scored his second of the season at the end of the four-minute power play, which increased the score to 3-0. The goal was a result of the second power play unit’s hard work and connected passing. Josh Doan and Logan Cooley had the helpers on Yamamoto’s goal.
“That one hurt a little bit,” Yamamoto said of his bleeding lip. “But it’s alright right now, scored a goal after, made it feel a little bit better.”
16 seconds into the second period, Utah’s lead increased to 4-0 when Lawson Crouse scored his 12th of the season. Crouse picked off a pass right below the blue line, skated in, and unleashed his shot. Seattle’s goaltender did get a piece, but the puck still bounced in. The goal was unassisted.
11 minutes into the middle frame, Logan Cooley joined the scoring party and Utah took a 5-0 lead over Seattle. Cooley won the faceoff to start the play and Utah passed it around. Dylan Guenther, after getting space from his coverage, shot the puck and Cooley redirected it on the doorstep past Daccord. In addition to Guenther, Keller picked up a helper on the goal.
Nick Schmaltz’s power play with four minutes left in the second period helped Utah keep their foot on the gas and increased the home team’s lead to 6-0. After a face off win, Sergachev fed the puck to Guenther. Guenther’s initial shot was stopped by Schmaltz pounced on the rebound and scored.
Utah’s strong passing and movement continued and lead to the home team’s seventh goal of the game. Kevin Stenlund passed to Michael Kesselring who then passed to Michael Carcone. Carcone’s seventh of the year increased the lead with just under two minutes to play in the second period.
Seattle made a goaltending change to start the third period, with Victor Ostman making his NHL debut in relief. 23 seconds into the final frame, Jared McCann’s power play goal got Seattle on the board.
Utah’s seven goals in a single game are a new franchise high. With the win, Utah improved to 36-30-12 on the season.
