After a 1-1 start to the season, the Utes set their sights on the coming weekend in Montana, where they will face off against Montana State University and the University of Montana. The M2 squad will look to get above .500 and come out of Montana unscathed after a week of no games.
The Montana State Bobcats are an impressive team, finishing 7th in the American Collegiate Hockey Association standings last year with 52 points; a 26-6 record. The Bobcats have won the Mountain West Collegiate Hockey League the last two seasons and have also been to Nationals 3 times in the past 5 years. Last weekend, they took down Boise State twice, moving to 2-0 in the season.
The Utes and Bobcats have not matched up in at least two seasons. Montana State’s current roster is not what it was a couple of seasons ago; they are a much-improved team. The Skatin’ Utes will have to put their best foot forward and use the confidence gained from their 7-2 win against Utah Valley University in Provo 2 weeks ago.
The Utes and Bobcats will face off on Friday, September 29th, at 7:15 pm.
On Saturday night, the Utes will travel to Missoula to face the University of Montana Grizzlies. They placed 153rd in the ACHA rankings in the 2022-2023 season, only posting 4 wins for 8 points. One of these wins came against Utah during last year’s Beehive Showcase, with the Utes suffering a 7-4 loss. The Grizzlies exploded for 5 goals in the 2nd period and Utah failed to climb back despite receiving 9 power plays. Utah will look to avenge last season’s loss on home ice to the Grizzlies.
The Grizzlies are coming off of a big weekend, thumping Eastern Washington University twice, outscoring them 16-3. The Skatin’ Utes will have to bring the energy on their second night of a back-to-back, especially because September 30th will be the home opener on the Grizzlies’ home ice.
Utah will face off against the Grizzlies on Saturday night, at 7:30 pm.
The trip up north won’t be easy and the Utes will have to earn their points. The power play was humming last weekend against Utah Valley, as the team netted 3 PP goals. On the man advantage Garrett Jackson had 2 goals and Ezekial Endy had 1, and by full-time, they had 3 goals and 1 assist a piece. Generating so many goals was helped along by offensively active defenseman Jack Umina, who hopped into plays and dished the puck wonderfully for 4 total assists. This offensive production will be much needed heading into Montana, where sturdy goaltending has proven to be commonplace after the first couple of games this season.
It’s difficult to win games without a great goalie and the Utes are no exception. Jamie Dziurdzik kept 32 shots out of the back of the net after facing a total of 34. Facing teams with +5 and +13 goal differentials after just two games will surely test the Utah defense and netminders, and they will be ready for the challenge.