The Hat Trick: Dylan Guenther, Clayton Keller Bury Avalanche In Dominant UHC Victory

Sep 29, 2024 , 8:58 PM | Updated: Oct 1, 2024, 11:27 pm

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COLE BAGLEY


Utah Hockey Club Insider

DENVER – The Utah Hockey Club stormed their way back into the win column on Sunday night after a dominant 6-3 victory over the Colorado Avalanche. Thanks to the efforts of Dylan Guenther and Clayton Keller who combined for three goals, Utah buried their Rocky Mountain rival in the very first edition of the matchup.

Here are the key takeaways from Utah’s dominant victory.

Utah Hockey Club needs to be more physical defensively but commit fewer penalties

Over the last two games, Utah’s opposition has made it an emphasis to be extra physical in the offensive zone and hit the forecheck incredibly hard. Both times, that strategy created issues for Utah as they were unable to get out of their own zone early and forfeited a lot of quality scoring opportunities.

Despite playing without most of their stars, the Avalanche dominated puck possession early in the first period. They were aggressive, consistent on the forecheck, crowded the crease and cleaned up what felt like every loose rebound.

Even the Avalanche’s second goal was the result of poor physical play as Sam Malinski skated right in on net without much opposition and snuck it right between Karel Vejmelka’s legs. That simply can’t happen. No player should be allowed to attack the net so easily without being met by force.

Utah also continued to struggle in terms of committing penalties as both Colorado goals came while shorthanded. First on a 5-on-3 opportunity for the Avalanche while the second was a 5-on-4. Overall, Utah sent seven bodies to the penalty box opposed to just two for Colorado.

“In the regular season, you get that many penalties you’re not happy. I think in our situation it was good to give a chance to a few guys and see how they can kill and if they can fill that role for us,” head coach Andre Tourigny said.

When you give up that many penalties, you’re bound to surrender a few goals. It is still preseason but that’s something that has to be cleaned up before October 8.

Tij Iginla looked great in his Utah Hockey Club preseason debut

It’s important to take everything with a grain of salt but No. 6 overall pick Tij Iginla had an impressive preseason debut for his new NHL club.

In 12 minutes on the ice, Iginla lived up to his draft expectations as he looked comfortable offensively, put some shots on net, demonstrated shifty puck handling skills and nearly registered an assist in his first game.

To kick things off, Iginla’s shifty hands were on full display during an offensive zone entry as he deked his way through some bodies with speed and precession. He also fired a few pucks on Colorado’s net and consistently put himself in dangerous positions as he looked to score.

Later in the game, Iginla could also be credited for keeping the puck alive inside Colorado’s end as he won it back in the corner to maintain Utah’s possession. This effort resulted in a beautiful second goal for Dylan Guenther after Iginla made a change at the bench. He also nearly recorded an assist as he threaded a pass from behind the net to Jack McBain who put a shot on goal that just wouldn’t go.

Overall, Iginla was just as the doctor ordered in his first game wearing the Utah sweater. His confidence level was obvious, he looked dangerous at moments and his elite potential was on full display.

Give him another year or so in the juniors and Iginla should be ready for the NHL soon.

Dylan Guenther was a fine-tuned scoring machine

After signing his new contract with the Utah Hockey Club, Guenther has been busy earning every penny and tonight he was right back at it.

Sharing a line with Clayton Keller for the night, Guenther was a scoring machine as he lit the lamp twice and recorded an assist enroute to a three-point outing against Colorado.

Beginning on a power-play for Utah, Keller, Guenther and Mikhail Sergachev were working the offensive zone as Colorado’s inferior power-kill unit scrambled to try and win back possession. Unable to do so, the trio toyed with the opposition before working the puck all the way around and teeing Guenther up for a one-timer which he blazingly buried.

Later on, that group recreated a similar series of movement inside the offensive zone as Keller found Guenther in the same spot with the same end result.

Guenther then decided to pay it forward with a gorgeous backhand pass through multiple bodies to Keller, who delivered the knockout punch midway through the third period.

It’s easy to see why Utah locked Guenther up for so long as he not only boasts one of the deadliest and most accurate shots in the league, but he can also create opportunities for others. Based on the space he was provided by both of Colorado’s defenders before his assist, he easily could’ve gone for goal to complete the hat-trick. Instead, he was unselfish and found Keller to setup a much easier opportunity.

While these two generally don’t play on the same line, it wouldn’t be a shock to see them on power-play opportunities moving forward.

Additionally, it’s important to note Sergachev’s performance tonight as he also tallied assists on both of Guenther’s goals alongside Keller. Adding even more reasons why Utah made the big trade to go and get such a well-balanced defenseman this summer.

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Utah Hockey Club Schedule

The Utah Hockey Club will continue their preseason against the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday night at the SAP Center. The game can be viewed on SEG+. Fans can also tune in on air on the KSL Sports APP or on 97.5 and 1280 The Zone.  Click here for the full schedule.

Cole Bagley is the Utah Hockey Club insider for KSL Sports. Keep up with him on X here. You can hear Cole break down the team on KSL Sports Zone and KSL 5 TV.

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