Dylan Guenther #11 of the Utah Hockey Club scores a goal on the San Jose Sharks in the first period at SAP Center on December 14, 2024 in San Jose, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
ST. PAUL, Minn. – Exactly a minute after Minnesota took a 1-0 lead over Utah, Dylan Guenther came back with a response for the Hockey Club.
Off of an assist from Jack McBain, Guenther scored the equalizer for his 15th of the season.
This has become the norm for #UtahHC
Wizardry from Cooley and Guenther finding the back of the net. Huge response from those two in order to tie the game.
Superstars in the making. https://t.co/dY52rIU5ln
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) December 21, 2024
That play marked the third time this season that McBain has directly set up a Guenther goal.
In the first period, the Wild held the advantage in shots, faceoffs won, and penalty minutes.
After Minnesota’s Mats Zuccarello finally broke through the wall-in-net that is Karel Vejmelka, Utah needed a response to prevent the momentum from going to far in the favor of the home team.
DYLAN GUENTHER SCORES AND ITS 1-1 IN MINNESOTA.
What a response!#UtahHC
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) December 21, 2024
Guenther was able to do just that and expanded his lead in goals scored for Utah.
With 15, Guenther is comfortably ahead of Clayton Keller who has 11 goals on the season. The goal also broke a tie with Keller for most total points.
Over the last 10 games, the Utah Hockey Club has been one of the hottest teams in the NHL.
With three-straight wins and seven in their last 10, the team appears to have discovered an identity and are currently playing their best hockey of the season.
Keller on Utah’s potential & the vet’s impact: “It’s a completely different team & we’re in a different direction. So, it’s exciting…We brought in some guys that have won Stanley Cups…when times are tough, they’re the ones that have been through stuff like that & step up…” pic.twitter.com/myh5PpwufH
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) December 20, 2024
“It’s a completely different team and we’re in a different direction. So, it’s exciting. We’ve been playing some good hockey, and we have a long way to go but we’ve been taking some steps in right direction,” Keller said.
“We brought in some guys that have won Stanley Cups. Guys that have been around a long time, been on successful teams and they’re here to add a lot on the ice but off the ice as well. They’ve been awesome additions to our team. When the times are tough, they’re the ones that have been through stuff like that and step up, talk about it, and help us get through it.”
