WEST VALLEY CITY — There was little mistaking the team that went to the conference finals and lost in the seventh game to the eventual ECHL champion last year.
Thursday night in the E Center, in the Utah Grizzlies' first home playoff game in four years, Jason Christie's club, basically an expansion team, looked like a group still trying to learn about playoff hockey while the regular-season champion Alaska Aces skated smoothly through a 4-1 victory.
Alaska, with speed, defense, goaltending and firepower, was 53-12-7 in the regular season, and its 113 points were the second-most ever totaled in the ECHL.
The Aces scored twice short-handed and twice on 5-on-3 power plays and severely limited Utah's good chances, though Christie saw three opportunities go to waste in the first period, a no-no against a team that's 48-0 this season when taking an advantage into the third period.
Utah's one score was a slap shot from the top of the right-wing faceoff circle by defenseman Brent Henley, who stepped out of the penalty box, cruised up the wing and scored his second playoff goal, most on the team. That made it 3-1 at 12:28 of the second period.
Utah's other scorers rarely got an unfettered shot at veteran goalie Matt Underhill.
"We're not scoring on the power play," said Christie. "We've got guys that have had good stats all year that aren't even on the board.
"Brent Henley, defenseman, has got two goals. I think right there, that has to say a lot, that we need more production out of guys."
The loss put Utah on the precipice of leaving the Kelly Cup playoffs as fast as it possibly can.
Utah is down 0-3 to the Aces, who have 11 players on the roster who played to the conference finals seventh game last year, and nine of them were in Thursday's game.
Scoring for Alaska were Vladimir Novak short-handed at 5:01 of the first, followed by Chris Minard scoring 5-on-3 power-play goals at 11:41 of the first and 11:20 of the second and Mike Scott planting an empty-net goal while the Aces were short-handed at 18:16 of the third.
Utah must win tonight in the E Center or clean out the dressing room.
"It's nothing else but ourselves," Christie said. "We can't wait for somebody else to do it."
He's just learning about this club in playoff pressure now — they were all playing elsewhere last year and not together, as were many of the Aces — and Christie is wondering exactly who will show up tonight.
If Utah should win its first against Alaska — it was 4-1 in the E Center against the Aces in the regular season, but that was the regular season — it will host the Aces for the if-necessary Game 5 on Sunday night in the E Center. Should the series go beyond that, the games will be played in Alaska, as were the first two, 4-1 and 3-1 losses for Utah in Anchorage Monday and Tuesday.
"I hope there's fight (in his players)," Christie said, with somewhat of a wait-and-see demeanor. "We need fight."
And not the kind that puts you in the penalty box, as the odd-man scores Thursday would point out.
"Now you've got to throw everything on your sleeve. We've got some character guys that will hopefully get her done."
If not, the Grizz will be swept out of playoffs for the second consecutive time, though the last time was at another level, three years ago Wednesday in the AHL when the 2003 Grizz were beaten 2-0 in a best-of-three miniseries at Wilkes-Barre.
Thursday was their first home playoff game since 2002.
The Grizzlies were again without center Garett Cameron, who sustained an upper-body injury in Game 1 and did not play in Games 2 or 3. Center Kris Kasper was activated from the injured list for Thursday's game.
E-mail: lham@desnews.com