Newark, N.J. • Before the 2024-25 season started, Bill Armstrong steadied the expectations for Utah Hockey Club.
“You’re gonna go to the rink some nights and be like, ‘Wow, are they good,’” the team’s general manager said. “Other nights you’re gonna go to the rink and go ‘Wow, are they young.’”
That sentiment rang true in Utah’s 3-0 loss to the New Jersey Devils Monday afternoon at Prudential Center. The defeat came after three consecutive wins to start the season — including an overtime thriller at Madison Square Garden on Saturday — but that’s the way hockey is, especially with a group that’s still working toward its highest potential.
“It’s the fourth year of the rebuild. We’ve got some good talent on the ice. It’s going to take some time, just be patient with us,” Armstrong said.
All the things Utah had done well in the last three games — earn inside ice, utilize its speed, play with physicality and score — were dimmed against the Devils. The Hockey Club was shut out for the first time this season following a cumulative 16-goal spurt. What’s more, Utah took seven penalties and spent 14 minutes of a 60-minute game on the kill.
“That’s something we’ll address. That’s something our group knows. I don’t like our stick, there’s a lot of stick penalties,” head coach André Tourigny said. “We need to move our feet, work on body position better.”
(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Hockey Club Head Coach Andr Tourigny, answers questions during media day at the Delta Center, on Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024.
It was a sloppy opening 20 minutes of play for Utah. The team was disjointed on its breakouts and did not command the neutral zone well, but the period ended tied 0-0.
Seamus Casey gave the Devils an early second-period lead while on the power play. The defenseman forced Mikhail Sergachev off the puck at the top of the zone before going the other way and wristing it from the right circle to make it 1-0 at 1:14.
New Jersey doubled its advantage at 8:13 of the middle frame with a backhand shot from Stefan Noesen. The forward, stationed by the crease, corralled the puck around goaltender Karel Vejmelka’s right pad and into the back of the net for the 2-0 lead. Vejmelka started in his first game of the season and made 30 saves by the final buzzer.
“It’s a learning curve and we have guys that can show by example how to play hockey, how to win. The guys know we have to play a different style now to grow our game,” Sergachev said. “They’ve been in the league for a long time ... it’s just going to take a little bit of time.”
Sergachev lost his defensive partner in the second period after Sean Durzi left the game with an upper-body injury and did not return. Utah skated with just five defensemen thereafter, forcing guys to play on their offside and log extended minutes. Vladislav Kolyachonok got time on the first pair with Sergachev in Durzi’s absence.
Tourigny said there is no update on Durzi’s condition and that the defenseman will be reevaluated daily.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Hockey Club defenseman Sean Durzi (50) as Utah Hockey Club hosts the Los Angeles Kings, NHL pre-season hockey in Salt Lake City on Monday, Sept. 23, 2024.
“I don’t think we played really well without [Durzi], but I don’t think it’s on any of the other guys. We were already sliding at that moment,” Tourigny said.
If Durzi misses games due to injury, Sergachev’s already-important role grows in size. The two-time Stanley Cup Champion was acquired during the offseason to add experience and a “winning culture” to the backend. He plays in all situations — power play, penalty kill, up or down a goal — and will be leaned on to guide the younger talent on the blue line.
Sergachev was on the Tampa Bay Lightning for seven years and saw the team develop its young players — alongside veterans — into a title-winning team. He was one of those up-and-coming pieces that made a difference. Sergachev is bringing those lessons to Utah.
“My first three, four years in Tampa, we were kind of the same. We would score more than we gave up. …I ’ve been on a team like that so it’s not like it’s something new, but my role is new,” Sergachev said. “I didn’t play a lot last year so I kind of lost that confidence that I had before, but it’s going to come and obviously I am going to be better.”
The Hockey Club’s power play — which produced three goals through the first three games of the season — struggled while going 0-for-4. New Jersey pressured well at the blue line and did not allow Utah to set up much while keeping it to the perimeter.
Los Angeles Kings center Trevor Lewis (61) moves the puck ahead of Utah Hockey Club defenseman Mikhail Sergachev (98) during the first period of a preseason NHL hockey game, Monday, Sept. 23, 2024, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Spenser Heaps)
The Devils sealed the 3-0 victory with Nico Hischier’s power-play goal at 10:13 of the third period and handed Utah its first loss in franchise history.
“I think you can obviously take away from both [wins and losses.] I think it’s good to not get complacent,” said Dylan Guenther who was named NHL’s First Star of the Week. “We beat two pretty good teams before, and this is another team that’s probably going to be near the top. There’s always room for improvement every game.”
