The Utah Hockey Club are yet to be officially eliminated from Stanley Cup playoff contention, but they are taking steps forward that should make a difference down the road.
Utah (35-30-12, 82 points) technically is alive for the playoff chase but officially would be eliminated with a regulation-time loss. As the club readies to host the Seattle Kraken on Tuesday in Salt Lake City, it is coming off a 4-1 victory over the league-leading Winnipeg Jets on Saturday and has won three of four games.
“It’s a step in the right direction,” forward Clayton Keller, who collected a goal and an assist against the Jets, told the Salt Lake Tribune. “We’re still learning every single game just how hard it is to win.”
Utah put many of those lessons on display against the Jets, a game in which it recorded a three-goal lead by the end of the second period thanks to a pair of power-play goals.
“I like the fact that we’re not scared. We’re taking it the right way,” coach Andre Tourigny said. “We played against a really good team and we played a hell of a game.”
Thanks to his performance, Keller reached the 500-point milestone for his career.
“I honestly had no idea coming into the game, so I was a bit surprised,” he said. “So many people in my life sacrificed for me to get to this level, so just super thankful for everything that they’ve done for me. … I still feel like I have a lot more to give and I’m just getting started.”
The Kraken (34-38-6, 74 points) arrive in Salt Lake City after claiming an impressive 2-1 road victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Monday.
Seattle, which has long been eliminated from playoff contention, erased a 1-0 deficit with a pair of goals 54 seconds apart late in the first period and hung on for the victory.
“We want to hold ourselves to a certain standard going into next year,” forward Chandler Stephenson said. “Against a good team, you want to win games like that.”
As disappointing as the season has turned out, the Kraken are seeing the performances expected from the squad that was built to take a step forward, even if it took time for things to fall into place.
The Kraken have won the first three outings in a five-game road trip and surrendered only two goals in total during that stretch.
“You see the shot blocks, the guys paying the price,” coach Dan Bylsma said. “I think we’re playing quicker and more aggressive on defense.”
Now, the quest is to continue pushing to end the season with positive results.
Not only are the Kraken seeing players reach individual success — for example, Matty Beniers scored his 19th of the campaign and defenseman Brandon Montour has notched a career-best 17 goals — they have enjoyed team success.
“Just ride the momentum,” Bylsma said. “We’ve got an extended road trip here and we’ve won some different games, some big games, some tough games. We competed hard, got the win and have to take it to Salt Lake.”
