Utah Hockey Club Is In ‘Solution Mode’ Following Tough Stretch

Nov 11, 2024, 4:22 PM

KSL Sports

SALT LAKE CITY – After a strong start to their inaugural season, the Utah Hockey Club has endured a significantly tough stretch. Over the last nine games, the team has been shut out three times, outscored 31-19 and posted a 2-5-2 record. According to head coach Andre Tourigny, this difficult stretch has forced the team into a “solution mode” in an attempt to turn things around.

#UtahHC loses 4-0 to the Nashville Predators.

Over the last nine games, Utah has been shutout 3 times, outscored 31-19, and posted a 2-5-2 record.

Four game road trip ends 1-2-1 and it doesn’t get any easier heading home.

Utah needs to find some consistency.

— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) November 10, 2024

It’s no time to panic, but things need to change for Utah Hockey Club

As it currently stands, the Utah Hockey Club is fourth in the Central Division with a 6-6-3 overall record, far from panicking and about where most probably would’ve predicted they’d be this many games into the new season. However, with so many losses over the last few weeks and struggles on both ends of the ice, there needs to be continued experimentation and changes to figure things out.

As one of Utah’s most seasoned veterans and someone who knows how to turn things around as a member of the 2016 Stanley Cup Champion Penguins roster who flipped a nightmare season into a dream, defenseman Ian Cole shared that Utah needs to look at it from every angle and be open to necessary changes.

“Along the way here, we need to continue to make changes and be mature about it and say hey, this is what worked, this is what didn’t work, we’re going to continue to do this, we’re going to change this, and we’re going to improve this,” Cole said regarding the situation.

“We need to take a step back, try to look at it as objectively as we can. I mean, some of the underlying numbers are really good, some of them aren’t good enough. So, what do we need to fix, what do we need to change, what do we keep the same, what do we improve on? These are all questions we’re trying to systematically answer and move forward.” he added.

Recently, the coaching staff has embraced changes as the forward lines have looked different on a nightly basis. They’ve experimented with Logan Cooley and Dylan Guenther on the top line, Matias Maccelli was moved up to the second and there’s been plenty of other combinations tested among the third and fourth lines.

Looking ahead to this homestand, more changes are on the way as Nick Bjugstad has been bumped up to the top line with Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz while Barrett Hayton will likely drop to the third.

Change is good. Things are clearly not working and it’s better to experiment now as opposed to later in the season. With that being said though, Utah also needs to find changes that last so they can begin cementing line chemistry and discover their true identity.

The Utah Hockey Club needs to find solutions and fast

November is a critical month for the Utah Hockey Club. With nine away games and some of the best teams in the league making their way to Salt Lake City, Utah has to begin finding solutions to remain competitive.

Over the next week, Utah will face the Carolina Hurricanes (10-3), Vegas Golden Knights (9-3-2) and Washington Capitals (10-4) at Delta Center. A brutal stretch and one that the team will need to be fully prepared for as all three of these teams are scoring goals at a high rate and refusing to allow them.

Andre Tourigny: “We are all in solution mode…we did it defensively on a lot of stuff. Now we need to fix it offensively. When we get a goal early, we’re good. When we don’t get a goal early, we squeeze and try to do more.”#UtahHC

— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) November 11, 2024

“It’s everybody,” head coach Andre Tourigny said. “There’s no us and them. It’s us, period…discussion with the players, leaders, with everybody…we’re connected, we see the same thing. We are all in solution mode. When you put your mind to something, you can fix it. We did it defensively on a lot of stuff. Now we need to fix it offensively. When we get a goal early, we’re good. When we don’t get a goal early, we squeeze and try to do more…”

What do those solutions look like? According to Tourigny, Utah needs to involve the defense more and get back to the way they were playing early in the season to regain confidence.

“Offensively, we went away from a little bit our game. We need to involve our D more off the rush. Part of it is confidence, pure confidence. Just making the next play. The play is there but the pass is a little bit behind, that’s confidence. What we can do to get confidence back is having our D a little more involved, more numbers off the rush, as well as the offensive zone,” Tourigny said.

The Utah Hockey Club certainly has their work cut out for them over the next few weeks. But with three days in between games, there’s a huge opportunity to figure things out and prepare for the rest of November that will test their limits.

Utah Hockey Schedule

The Utah Hockey Club will now return home and begin a three-game homestand against the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday night. The game can be viewed on SEG+. Fans can also tune in on air on the KSL Sports APP or on 97.5 and 1280 The Zone. Click here for the full schedule.