The Utah Hockey Club will look to continue building momentum as they take on the New York Islanders on Thursday night at UBS Arena. For the Isles, Thursday night’s game is their season opener at home. For the Hockey Club, it’s the team’s second game in franchise history.
The Hockey Club is coming off a big 5-2 win in its season opener against the Chicago Blackhawks. While the game was much closer than the score indicated, the Hockey Club held the fort in the third period before eventually pulling away.
So, let’s take a closer look at what fans can expect on Thursday night in this Utah-Islanders tilt.
Utah Hockey Club vs New York Islanders game preview
The Utah Hockey Club and the New York Islanders meet for the first time in Utah’s history. While the Hockey Club and the Isles have a long history dating back to the Arizona Coyotes days, it’s a clean slate now for Utah.
Under Patrick Roy, the Isles play a much more old-school style of hockey focusing on puck control and solid structure. However, the Islanders are not a boring team to watch. They have two up-tempo lines featuring high-octane players.
On defense, the overall punishing style could wear Utah down, especially with some heavy hitters like Scott Mayfield and Ryan Pulock. As for goaltending, Semyon Varlamov is expected to get the call. Varlamov is an underrated netminder who plays with a cool head. He should be tough to beat.
On the other hand, Utah deploys a fast-paced, end-to-end brand of hockey. The Hockey Club relies on quick transitions and speedy plays to catch opponents off-guard. That was evident in the game against Chicago. The Blackhawks ran out of gas in the third period and could not keep up with the likes of Dylan Guenther and Clayton Keller.
As for defense, Sean Durzi and Mikhail Sergachev look like a bona fide top pairing. Both should get plenty of attention from the Islanders’ top players like speedster Anthony Duclair. In goal, Connor Ingram should get the nod. Ingram played very well against Chicago, shutting the door late when most.
Overall, this matchup should be a spirited one. Fans should expect too much violence but plenty of fast-paced, physical hockey. It’s too close to call, but Utah could skate away with its first road victory as long as the Hockey Club avoids getting overpowered by the Isles’ physical style.
Players to watch
For the Islanders, the top line of Barzal, Bo Horvat, and Anthony Duclair should deploy plenty of speed and skill. But the player to watch is Russian import Maxim Tsyplakov. During the preseason, Tsyplakov hardly looked like a rookie. He looked more like a ten-year NHL veteran. He should give Utah plenty to worry about, especially with his strong netfront presence.
As for Utah, there is no question that Dylan Guenther has come flying out of the gate. Guenther scored two goals against Chicago in the opener. He should continue his strong play. But fans should also keep an eye on captain Clayton Keller. Keller has quickly risen to the level expected from the Hockey Club’s first-ever captain.