A 6-1 loss wasn’t the way the Utah Hockey Club wanted to end its inaugural season, but give the St. Louis Blues credit: They were ready for this one.
Winning this game was the only way for the Blues to guarantee themselves a playoff spot. Any other result would have put them at the mercy of the Calgary Flames, and they did not want to take that chance. They had two full days off to prepare for their final game of the season and they made the most of it.
“I think our guys, they fought hard all season long,” said head coach André Tourigny after the game. “They showed a lot of pride. I have a ton of respect for the way they showed up in the second half.”
Utah Hockey for dummies
For the first time in his career, Clayton Keller hit the 90-point mark. He also scored 30 goals for the third season in a row.
Keller always seems to show up on the scoreboard against his hometown team, the Blues. But this season, it didn’t matter which team he was up against — he scored against most of them.
He didn’t quite reach my lofty preseason prediction of 100 points, but at the moment, he is among the league’s top 10 scorers.
Every good team is centered around a special player, and that’s exactly what Keller is. At 26 years old, Keller is likely just entering his prime. That should mean that he’ll be an impactful player for this organization for many years to come.
Utah Hockey for casual fans
Though he hasn’t announced anything, it’s likely that this was Robert Bortuzzo’s last game in the NHL. It was his first time suiting up since Jan. 2, and it was against his former St. Louis Blues, with whom he won the Stanley Cup in 2019.
His pre- and post-game interviews were both full of indications that this could be the end.
Before the game, he told the media that his parents made the trip down from Thunder Bay, Ontario. He got a little choked up when talking about all they’d sacrificed to help him get to where he is.
“It’s been a hell of a ride,” he said in the same interview. “Not trying to make any pronouncements or anything, but just want to take it in stride and have some fun.”
He gave particular thanks to the Utah HC organization for allowing him to play in the final game of the season.
Whether it’s the end for Bortuzzo or not, he has much to be proud of. Between the regular season and the playoffs, he amassed 637 games, 79 points and 59 fights, with a Stanley Cup ring to show for it.
Bortuzzo’s job this year was to lead by example, especially off the ice — and he did exactly that. Even when he was injured or scratched, he was always at the games, on the road trips and skating at practice. He even allowed Maveric Lamoureux to live with him for the couple months he was in the NHL.
“I just try to come to the rink with enthusiasm,” he said after the game. “I mean, even on the bad days, it’s the best job in the world. (I) always wanted to be dragged out of this game.”
After the game, the entire Blues team lined up to shake his hand. That’s in addition to the standing ovation he got from the crowd during a video introduction in the first period.
He ended his post-game interview talking about the rush of playing in an NHL game, with a hint that seems to indicate retirement.
“If it is the end, it’s one of the things you’re going to miss, he said.”
Utah Hockey for nerds
As a cap on the season, let’s look at how far the group came this year. I’ll acknowledge that this is a distinct franchise from the Arizona Coyotes, but it’s important to realize that their history is still relevant to these players.
Utah finished with 89 points in 82 games, scoring 241 goals and allowing 251. That’s a 12-point improvement, with a +8 jump in goal differential year over year.
The power play operated at 24.1%, which is better than the Coyotes’ 22% last season. Same goes for the penalty kill, which went from 76.3% to 80%.
Arizona was the second-worst team in the faceoff circle last year, and Utah currently sits in eighth this year (though it could change with the games on Wednesday and Thursday).
They got better both in shot volume and shot suppression and they blocked slightly more shots.
The team is getting better. That’s all a building team can hope for, so mark this season as a success for the Utah Hockey Club.
What’s next?
This is it. That’s the season.
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