After sweeping their two-game Eastern Conference road trip, the Utah Hockey Club comes home to a tough opponent on Tuesday, the Minnesota Wild.
The Wild have surprised a lot of people this year. They didn’t make the playoffs last season and they didn’t make any earth-shattering moves in the offseason, so most people expected them to remain in the mushy middle between the playoffs and the draft lottery.
But among other things, several of the Wild’s players are having outstanding seasons. Kirill Kaprizov is tied for the league lead in points, Matt Boldy is at a point per game, Brock Faber has continued his solid play from last year and Filip Gustavsson could be in the Vezina Trophy conversation.
Everything is just going right for the Wild, and they are tied atop the Western Conference standings with the Winnipeg Jets.
Another big night for Juuso Välimäki
On Wednesday, Juuso Välimäki was named to Team Finland for the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off tournament. On Sunday, he scored his first goal of the season.
Now, on Tuesday, he’ll skate in his 250th NHL game. He’s on top of the world.
“Pretty good,” Välimäki said after the game on Sunday, in response to how it feels to score. “(It) took a little bit too long, but better late than never.”
Until recently, it was a tough season for Välimäki. He had been in and out of the lineup, he’d struggled to keep the puck out of his net and he hadn’t contributed much offensively.
All that combined with the move from Arizona with a newborn baby had made for a tough start, and he’s glad to have some things to celebrate.
Former Wild of the Utah Hockey Club
A lot of people in the Utah HC organization have been involved with the Wild at some point, although none of them were there for more than two seasons. Here’s the list:
- Nick Bjugstad: Played there from 2021 to 2022. He’s also from Minnesota.
- Ian Cole: Played there in the 2021 season.
- Jack McBain: Drafted there in 2018, 63rd overall. He never played for them.
- John Madden: Played there in the 2010-11 season.
- Dominic Moore: Played half of the 2007-08 season there.
- Matt McConnell: Worked as their play-by-play announcer from 2004 to 2006.
Where to watch
This is important: You won’t be able to watch this game on the normal channels. It’s a nationally broadcast game, meaning the local stations won’t carry it. It will be exclusively on ESPN+ and Hulu.
The game starts at 7:30 p.m., rather than Utah’s typical start time of 7 for home games.