Post Game: Grizzlies 4, Thunder 2

Grizzlies win.

This was a completely different team we saw tonight as opposed to Wednesday. Passes were clicking, defense was solid, and offense was scoring.

Defense was shorthanded tonight, playing with only 5 blueliners and continually rotating pairs throughout the game. Play wise you couldn't even tell; it was an amazing effort on their part. Something else we truly appreciated from the d-men was not allowing Stockton to push their buttons. Only 5 of the 14 penalties assessed to Utah in the match were from the 5 defensemen. Thank you for that.

Grantham took over the penalty role, seemingly spending more time in the penalty box than out. But since he was able to draw the Stockton sideshow circus his way and let defense take care of business, we see it as taking one for the team. Thumbs up.

Parnham was back on the ice and looked great. We didn't think he'd be back for a while, so that was a welcome surprise. Between Parnham, Shea, and McIlveen - those boys got things rolling for Deeth and May to capture some great goals later in the game.

And a great job by Connelly. He definitely made some (34, to be exact) timely saves and as the game continued, looked more and more comfortable in the crease.

Let's go for the rest of the weekend, boys!

Stars of the Game -

1. UTA - T. May
2. UTA - K. Deeth
3. UTA - S. Connelly

Links -
post game || Grizzlies Beat Stockton 4-2
gamesheet || Stockton at Utah - 3/11/11
highlights || Game Highlights 3/11/11 vs Stockton
photos || 3/11/11 - Utah Grizzlies vs Stockton Thunder
interview || Kevin Colley 3/11/11 post game
interview || Paul McIlveen 3/11/11 intermission

Post-weekend scramble

Today's Magic Number (straight from utahgrizzlies.com)
The Grizzlies magic number for clinching a playoff spot is eight. Each time Utah wins or Ontario loses in regulation, two points will be shaved off the number.

The Las Vegas Wranglers and the Alaska Aces were the first two teams to clinch a play-off spot this season. How do we feel about that? Boo. These two teams have proved tough for the Grizzlies lately.

This weekend Jarome Iginla of the Calgary Flames became only the 10th player in NHL history to score 30 or more goals in 10 consecutive seasons. He joins the like of Wayne Gretzky , Bobby Hull, and Jaromir Jagr. He did the even after a slow start, only score 2 goals in 15 games.

This article by Kyle Goon of The Salt Lake Tribune was featured on the Grizzlies site. In it, he calls February a disaster for the Grizzlies. Part of this was blamed on the loss of players such as Jake Gannon, Nick Tuzzolino, and Andrew Engelage.

"It’s definitely an adjustment. You start seeing that anybody can beat anybody in this league if you don’t bring your best every night."--Kevin Deeth

Another article in the Tribune feels a little more upbeat about the situation. "The Utah Grizzlies didn’t just end their seasonlong seven-game winless streak Saturday at the Maverik Center — they did so with authority." In comparing Saturday night's game to a professional wrestling match, it echoes the sentiment "I went to a fight and a hockey game broke out." 118 penalty minutes and 10 game misconducts? Definitely a WWE event.

“Tonight was just a matter of putting the nail in the coffin,” Kevin Deeth said. “We let teams hang around. We get a lead and then give it up. We didn’t let up after we got up one or two, we kept pouring on ’em.”

So what do you think? Which article seems more upbeat about the Grizz?

Post Game: Salmon Kings 6, Grizzlies 5 (SO)

Grizzlies lose, but not as bad.

So the effort Colley wanted to see in this game was definitely taking shape. There was more push from the boys to keep up with the game, and we saw more of the Crowder magic with Tim's goal to tie things 2-2 at the end of the 1st. Even better, it was amazing to see Utah battle back from a 2 goal 3rd period deficit to send things past regulation. It's hard to recall when we last saw this kind of play from the Grizzlies, and we plan on holding them to more of it.

Welcome once again to Meyers and Grantham who both picked up points in their second game in Utah colors.

And special teams - ah, how we've hated you over this last stretch. We're glad to see the Grizzlies getting both their power play and their penalty kill back on track. The boys slaughtered a 4 minute shorthanded situation during the last few minutes of regulation and the beginning of overtime. Just amazing. And on the power play, Utah capitalized 3 of their 5 opportunities on the man advantage. Such an improvement from what we've grown accustomed to cursing under our breath. Keep it up, boys.

Glad to see Deeth once again making the stars of the game list - we're sure he is too.

The boys are back next weekend.

Stars of the Game -

1. VIC - C. Painchaud
2. VIC - R. Dingle
3. UTA - K. Deeth

Links -
post game || Grizzlies Fight Back To End Streak: Collect Shootout Point In Victoria
gamesheet || Utah at Victoria - 2/26/11
highlights || Game Highlights 2/26/11 at Victoria
interview || Marcus Carroll 2/26/11 intermission

Post Game: Grizzlies 5, Wranglers 0

Grizzlies win.

We can honestly say we weren't expecting this one. We thought the game would be a bit tighter, but the Grizzlies really broke out here to make for one amazing game. Denny said that the boys caught Vegas on an off night, but we'd rather look at it as Vegas caught Utah on an ON night.

The name of the offensive game for the Grizzlies was timing. Timing made Carpentier's goal work, we can't say enough about May's timing on the shorthanded goal, and Parnham swooping in just in time to push a rebound in for the fourth goal was brilliance. Both Deeth (3a) and Ferguson (1g, 2a) had three point games, while Hugo picked up 2 points (1g, 1a).

Engelage was on fire: 40 saves for the shutout. And while the boys may have hung Andy out to dry a bit in the 3rd as Colley put it, we have to say that they made just as many necessary defensive clears on rebounds as Engelage made saves. Just a great performance from everyone.

On to Stockton . . .

Game Photos -



Stars of the Game -

1. UTA - K. Deeth
2. UTA - S. Ferguson
3. UTA - A. Engelage

Links -
post game || Grizzlies Blank Las Vegas 5-0: Win Battle Of Division Leaders
gamesheet || Las Vegas at Utah - 2/2/11
highlights || Game Highlights 2/2/11 vs Las Vegas
photos || 2/2/11 - Utah Grizzlies vs Las Vegas Wranglers
interview || Kevin Colley 2/2/11 post game
interview || Hugo Carpentier 2/2/11 intermission

Kevin Deeth Interview

(Photo courtesy Deseret News)
Kevin Deeth was interviewed by the Deseret News recently. When talking about coming from a family full of hockey players, Deeth provided the best quote of the article: "It wasn't really an option in my family. You either played hockey or you lived on the street." He seems pretty down to earth when asked about his professional goals:

"I'd love to make it to the next level. I think that's everybody's goal to make it to the NHL. That's pretty lofty and maybe not very realistic for me. Making it to the AHL (American Hockey League) would be definitely a big accomplishment. Hopefully if I had a really good year I could play there (AHL). Obviously it's a little tougher for smaller guys to play in the NHL because there are so many good players these days that it's always going to be tough. This year I just want to win a championship in Utah."

Winning a championship here is realistic, right? If we just all forget about the horrifying loss this weekend...

The Grizzlies acquired Brendan Milnamow (D) from Bakersfield to complete the December trade that sent Snetsinger to Bakersfield.

Today ECHL.com released long list of ways you can hear/listen to the All-Star game. We already mentioned being able to see/hear it in Utah. 110 million homes? That's a lot.

Game Day: Idaho Steelheads

Idaho tonight.


The Grizzlies are currently tied for the top position in the league for points. The boys are looking to keep it that way, while extending their current win streak to 4 games.

Special teams on both the Utah and Idaho side will be a big factor in this matchup. The Grizzlies are at the top of the pack with a power play conversion percentage of 23.6, which is pretty stellar - until you realize that the Steelheads sit at second in the league on the penalty kill. We've seen these stats in action during the last series between these two teams. Utah went 0 for 6 on the man advantage in a penalty heavy game and lost 6-3, demonstrating the effectiveness of the Idaho PK.

However, the Grizzlies have some not-so-secret weapons up their sleeve in their rookie line of Deeth, Donovan, and Carroll. Kevin Deeth currently leads Utah in points against the Steelheads with 3 goals and 6 assists. Carroll is not far behind with 3 goals and 5 assists against Idaho. And let's not forget the spectacular showing from Ferguson in Ontario this weekend.

Also on Utah's side is the recently awarded Goalie of the Week Andrew Engelage. With a SV% of 0.924, he currently sits at second in the league for save percentage. And over his last 3 wins, he allowed an average of only 1.67 goals. That's one beauty of a GAA number.

Puck drops at 7:05 tonight. If you're a student, you get in for $5 with an ID. If you're attending at all, you get $2 food specials.

Weekend Preview - Utah Grizzlies vs Ontario Reign

The Grizzlies take up arms tonight and Saturday against the Ontario Reign. They're going into this weekend on a 1 game winning streak, which isn't really a streak at all, but we're pretty sure they're planning on turning it into one, so we're going with it.

Streak or not, Utah has won 7 of their last 10 games and has been getting excellent play from everyone on the team. They are still at the top of the Western Conference despite a tiny little setback in Idaho on Tuesday. No big deal - they aren't going to win every game, no matter how much voodoo or fairy dust we throw out there. (Just for the record, combining voodoo and fairy dust is a bad idea. Or so we've heard.) Still, we're keeping our standards high and expecting 4 points this weekend.

Ontario may only have 21 points in the standings to the Grizzlies' 44, and they may have only won two of their last 10 games, but the truth of the matter is they can be a tough team for Utah to play against. The two teams have matched up four times already this season, and Ontario has won twice, both on the Grizzlies' home ice. Utah needs to look at this weekend not as an easy four points, but as a chance for payback in Ontario. We're not too worried about this team taking a vacation though. Maybe toward the beginning of the season they were guilty of that on occasion, but they seem pretty determined to stay on top now. They don't want the curse of Coach Colley on their heads. Plus it looks like the weather in Ontario is going to be crappy this weekend. (Maybe that IS the curse of Coach Colley. We have no idea what kind of powers he has.) Anyway, the Reign are 7-1-1 when leading after 2 periods, so the Grizzlies will want to get to work early. No pulling a Russian World Junior this weekend. (Our sympathies to all our Canadian friends out there - hopefully no one jumped.) If we were coaching, we'd tell the team to get ahead in the first two periods and stay there. Useful advice, but that's pretty much the extent of our plan, so it's a good thing we're not coaching.

For the Grizzlies, Marcus Carroll and Chris Donovan currently have 4 game point streaks going, and Kevin Deeth has two mulitple point games in a row. Ontario has new goaltender Alex Petizian from Alaska/Portland. Brock Wilson has a 1 game streak without suspension.

If you happen to be in Ontario for the game, try to be one of the first 3,000 people in the arena - it's Bud Holloway bobblehead night.

Games start tonight at 8:00 pm MST. You can listen on 1230 KFAN. Second win of the latest win streak.

Post Game: Grizzlies 4, Condors 1

Well worth the weather.

There's not much left to say about this one. It was a great team game for a solid win. Everyone was present on the ice tonight, which made for some exciting hockey. We think Colley put it best in his post game: "When you have a great team game, you don't want to just pick out individuals. I'd have to give 18 stars tonight."

The power play was back in full swing with the Grizzlies picking up 2 goals on the man advantage. Also, the penalty kill came out on top with the boys killing all 5 short-handed situations that Utah saw. 5-on-5 play was great as well, both on the forecheck and backcheck. And Engelage was solid in net, stopping 23 of 24. Can't really ask for much more.

Nice to see Timmy Crowder on a goal streak.

It sounds like Bakersfield was running their mouths a bit through the game. Really, Bakersfield? Don't know you know yet how these things end?

Next game at home starts early at 6:05pm.

Game Photos -



Stars of the Game -

1. UTA - T. May
2. UTA - K. Deeth
3. UTA - A. Engelage

Links -
post game || Grizzlies Score Four-Straight To Beat Bakersfield 4-1
gamesheet || Bakersfield at Utah - 12/29/10
highlights || Game Highlights 12/29/10 vs Bakersfield
photos || 12/29/10 - Utah Grizzlies vs Bakersfield Condors
interview || Kevin Colley 12/29/10 post game
interview || Riley Emmerson 12/29/10 intermission

Game Day: Bakersfield Condors

Bakersfield tonight.

The Grizzlies are fresh off a road win in Las Vegas, which saw Kevin Deeth tally up another 3 points. This makes the rookie 3 points in the last 3 games according to Adrian Denny's game day blog. So, Bakersfield will definitely have their eyes on the Gig Harbor native.


In order to beat the stats, Utah will want to score first against the Condors who are 10-3-1 when they tally the first goal. With the top ranked power play in the ECHL and a firepower defenseman like Nick Tuzzolino, the Grizzlies should have ample ability to accomplish scoring the first goal of the night.

The Condor to watch for in this series is Stephane Goulet, who has picked up 7 points against Utah so far this season. And while we're kind of getting sick of Bakersfield (as the boys have played them 8 times already this year), this game will also be Brad Snetsinger's return to Grizzlies ice, as he was traded to the Condors about a week ago.

The Grizzlies are advertising that if you brave the weather, you can get a free voucher to the January 12th game. Not a bad deal if you can make it there.

Puck drops at 7:05pm.

Grizzlies Live - There's more than one stoplight in Gig Harbor

'Tis the season for procrastination! But we're finally getting this up.

Denny was joined by Riley Emmerson and Kevin Deeth for Grizzlies Live on Tuesday.


On Tuesday, the boys stated that they haven't shown anyone that they could play at home. But a couple of games later, they've definitely started to improve on their home record. In discussing the home record, Deeth stated "Anytime you can pick up wins on the road, it builds momentum for the rest of the season." And we feel that's what has finally started happening on home ice.

Adrian and the boys discussed both Stockton and Ontario. Denny asked Kevin Deeth what it was like on the ice during the Stockton game as it seemed like a bit of a riot situation from the press box. Deeth summed it up adequately, "[It was] kind of a circus with the Hunt brothers running around trying to rip your head off. But I just tried to ignore it and play."

Adrian then asked Emmerson his opinion on the Stockton team, who he played with last season. Riley related that he grew up with the Hunt brothers and they were good guys off the ice, but completely different when they laced up the skates. "I remember one game we were playing and Garrett was just screaming at the top of his lungs, trying to get someone to fight him. I skated over to him and said, 'Garrett, play hockey.'"

Denny made the comparison between fan bases and their teams; Utah's fans come late, it takes them a while to get into it, and they don't get stressed until the 3rd period or 4th quarter, which parallels the way the teams play. In making the comparison to Stockton, Adrian stated "It seems like both the team and the fans are still trying to learn hockey and are more into the physical side of play." Riley piped up with a chuckle, "I don't know anyone in Stockton is actually trying to learn it."

Adrian turned to asking the boys about their hometowns, Riley about Abbotsford (but he was born in Burnaby - shout out to RW!) and Kevin about Gig Harbor. Denny quizzed Deeth about a local teen from Gig Harbor who'd stolen a plane recently. Kevin responded, "Well, I don't know everybody and there's more than one stoplight . . ." We laughed.

The boys and Adrian also discussed Kevin Colley and the impact he has on the team. Emmerson relayed, "[Colley] is a very smart coach that relates to the players and how they react just because he used to play and he knows what it's like."

The show ended with another round of ADD: the Game Show which was backed by Atari music . . . Really, that's all we remembered about it - the Atari music.

Next broadcast of Grizzlies Live is January 11 at 7:00pm.

Post Game: Grizzlies 4, Wranglers 2

Awesome to see the boys win at home.

A great game to watch all around. The Grizzlies did a spectacular job of coming out ready in the 1st and controlling the puck. Of course, a couple of lulls in the 2nd after Utah's third goal by Crowder and at the top of the 3rd made us a little nervous, but the boys held on and added another goal from Gergen to snatch the win from the Wranglers.

The boys went 3 for 3 on the penalty kill and 1 for 3 on the power play against the ECHL's top ranked PK. Utah also managed to pick up some 5 on 5 goals, which we know Colley wanted to see. Special teams have been a big factor in Utah's success rate this season. But in a game with as few penalties as this one it's necessary to be successful in 5 on 5 play, and the Grizzlies pulled it off with style.

Kevin Deeth ended the game one goal shy of a hat trick. He had some nice looks in the 2nd, but just wasn't able to knock a 3rd one home. We were definitely hoping for some pizza, but impressed by Deeth nonetheless. Nicely done.

Chris Donovan picked up the last Utah penalty of the game. Denny mentioned his animation in the penalty box during the post game, wanting to know if Chris had some plan as the Grizzlies scored 20 seconds after his release. Colley's response? "Well, he had 2 minutes to think about it."

Game Photos -



Stars of the Game -

1. UTA - K. Deeth
2. UTA - S. Ferguson
3. UTA - N. Tuzzolino

Links -
post game || Grizzlies Beat Las Vegas 4-2
gamesheet }} Las Vegas at Utah - 12/15/10
highlights || Game Highlights 12/15/10
photos || 12/15/10 - Utah Grizzlies vs Las Vegas Wranglers
interview }} Kevin Colley 12/15/10 post game
interview || Kevin Deeth 12/15/10 intermission

News: Sloooooow Day

In other news, wait there is no other news. Aside from getting a new player, covered yesterday, there really isn't much to talk about. The Grizz will be starting their holiday season public campaign, for lack of a better term. Tonight Brian Kilburg, Matt Sorteberg, Kevin Deeth and Tyler Ruegsegger will be attending a public skate at the South Davis Recreation Center in Bountiful from 7:30-8:30 p.m. Stolen straight from the Grizzlies website, that was! Tomorrow they will visit Primary Children's Medical Center. Hopefully they'll post some fun pictures from that, since I'm guess it's not really a public event. Hospitals usually frown on a lot of strangers looking in on patients.

Here's a question I thought up, due to the recent loss of Jackman to a league in Europe: How does the family of a hockey player feel to pack up and move to a different country for a job? It seems like the league has a lot of potential for player trades or moves to different leagues. Or does the player leave the family "at home" and travel to visit when he can? Just a thought.

Post Game: Grizzlies 4, Steelheads 3 (SO)

We missed the first goal of the game because of traffic school - thanks, City of American Fork. We got home just in time to see the long string of penalties that the Grizzlies committed. Stay out of the damn box, boys (. . . Chad)! Eight short handed situations in this game with two Idaho goals allowed.

But the real game was the 5 minute overtime period with the 4-on-3 penalty kill. Utah controlled the puck for most of the 5 minute stretch picking up 6 SOG, which was just one shot less than their entire 20 minute 3rd period. And even after going shorthanded at the worst possible moment, the boys were able to drive the game to a shootout. Now, this is Grizzlies hockey.

Also, this was definitely a game for firsts. First pro goals for Deeth, Ruegsegger, and Carroll. First time in net this season for Andrew Engelage. First point of the season for Chad Denny. And we'd definitely be remiss in not saying congrats to all! Engelage stopped 41 of 44 in his season debut, and stopped 4 of 4 in the shootout.

Outside of the action on the ice, we really have to give props to this guy:


Everyone watching on the B2 will know exactly what I'm talking about. But for those of you who weren't, just imagine this guy doing a dance somewhere between a booty shake and the Jump on It dance from Fresh Prince to C&C Music Factory's "Gonna Make You Sweat" and you'll have a pretty close visual. We salute you, random Idaho fan.

Let's go for Friday!

Stars of the Game -

1. IDH - M. Derlago
2. UTA - K. Deeth
3. IDH - J. Swanson


Links -
post game || Grizzlies Top Idaho 4-3 In Shootout
gamesheet || Utah at Idaho - 10/27/10
highlights || Game Hightlights 10/27/10 at Idaho
interview || Hugo Carpentier 10/27/10 intermission

Game Day: Idaho Steelheads

Ah, the Idaho Steelheads.

After splitting a two game preseason series with the Steelheads, the Grizzlies look to start their 8 game road trip on the right foot. According to Adrian's blog this morning, it may be an uphill battle: "Last year, Utah was outshot 361-252 in 10 games played here and outscored 10-7 in the first period while being outshot 110-68 in the opening frames." On top of these stats, Idaho's goalie Mike Zacharias is tied for fifth in the league with a 2.01 goals-against average, which means Utah will need to look sharp in all areas tonight.

The Grizzlies picked up some new help this week in the form of defenseman Nick Tuzzolini and forwards Kevin Deeth and Tyler Ruegsegger. D-man Tuzzolino is no stranger to Grizzlies fans, having spent 2 seasons in Alaska and should add to the experience of the defensive lines. Deeth adds speed and a strong, accurate shot to the front end, while Ruegsegger brings an ability to take the puck to the net for the goal. This will be much needed with Parnham out on the 21-day IR. We found a nice goal of Ruegsegger's on YouTube and fans should recognize former Grizzly Tom May in the clip as well.



Andrew Engelage will get his first start of the season. Derlago is the man to watch out for, leading the Steelheads with 4 goals.

Game starts tonight at 7:10 pm, and the pregame show at 6:40, on 1230 KFAN-2 or you can watch online at the B2 Network which is probably what we'll be doing . . . after we finish traffic school.

Go Grizzlies!