Game preview, 1/26: Utah Hockey Club vs. Ottawa Senators

WHEN: 3:00 PM MT

WHERE: Canadian Tire Center – Ottawa, Ontario

TV: SEG+, UtahHC+, Utah 16 | RADIO: KSL Sports Zone 97.5 FM, NHL App

The Utah Hockey Club (21-20-7) wraps up a three-game road trip tonight against the Ottawa Senators (25-20-4). Utah had won three in a row before Friday's 5-2 loss to the Winnipeg Jets, and look to even the score tonight against an Ottawa team that defeated Utah 4-0 in October. Both teams are in similar positions tonight, with Utah six points out of the second wild card position in the Western Conference and Ottawa one point out of the second wild card position in the Eastern Conference.

ONE-TIME

• Barrett Hayton has scored four goals in the last three games.
• Nick Schmaltz is riding an eight-game streak (4G, 6A) tonight.
• Either Barrett Hayton or Clayton Keller have contributed a goal or an assist on 18 of Utah's last 19 scores.
• Today is Utah's third and final game of a road trip before returning home for a four-game homestand.
• Utah is 13-9-3 on the road.

MATCH TONIGHT

The Ottawa Senators are within striking distance of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference after picking up two more points in a 2-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs last night. Scoring has been an issue for the Sens as of late, with Ottawa scoring two or fewer goals in each of their last four games. On the other side of the coin, the Travis Greens Senators have performed well defensively, allowing two or fewer goals in seven of their last nine games. Ottawa has won six of those last nine and is now 6-5-2 in January. Tim Sttzle leads the team with 46 points (16G, 30A) in 49 games.

WHO TO WATCH

UTAH: #27 BARRETT HAYTON – Hayton has scored four goals in his last three games, including a third-period tying goal against Winnipeg on Friday. Hayton now has 12 goals on the season, which ranks fourth on Utah's roster, and his five game-winning goals lead the club.

OTTAWA: #7 BRADY TKACHUK – Tkachuk leads Ottawa with 18 goals this season, though he hasn't been behind the goal in the past 10 games. Born in Scottsdale, Arizona when his father Keith Tkachuk played for the Phoenix Coyotes, Brady grew up next to Utah's Clayton Keller in the St. Louis area when Keith played for the Blues.

LOOK BACK

Utah fell short to the Western Conference-leading Winnipeg Jets in a 5-2 loss Friday at the Canada Life Center. Utah answered Winnipeg's power-play goal in the first period with a special teams goal by Nick Schmaltz early in the second frame, tying the game at 1–1. Later in the second, an awkward bounce off the glass gave David Gustafsson and the Jets a 2-1 lead. Barrett Hayton scored his fourth goal in three games to open the third frame and tie the match 2-2 before Cole Perfetti scored his second of the night to put Winnipeg back on top. Perfetti would eventually score the empty-netter for his first career hat trick, assisted by Nikolaj Ehler's 500th career point.

FINAL MEETING

Utah will look to get revenge on the Senators tonight after a 4-0 shutout loss to Ottawa on October 22 at Delta Center. Utah stormed out of the gate, outscoring Ottawa 8-0 in the first 12 minutes of the first period, not allowing a shot on goal until the 11:43 mark. The Senators scored two goals at 4-on-4, one on the power play and one goal at 5-on-5 in the second half of the first frame. Utah defeated Ottawa 31-22 for the game.

POWER PLAY

Utah's power play has connected in back-to-back games following Nick Schmaltz's power play in the second period on Friday. The specialty unit has cashed five times in the last five games and 18 times in the last 22 games. Clayton Keller has recorded a goal or an assist in 16 of Utah's last 18 power play games and has five power play goals this season. Dylan Guenther and Logan Cooley are tied for the team lead in power play goals with seven each. Utah now has the 13th best power play in the NHL at 22.4% for the season.

GET OFF

Utah played without some of its best players the past two weeks. Dylan Guenther, currently second on the team with 16 goals, has missed the last eight games due to a lower-body injury, and top defenseman Mikhail Sergachev has missed the last four games due to an upper-body injury. As a result of Guenther's injury, 22-year-old Josh Doan was recalled from the Tucson Roadrunners of the AHL and has three points (1G, 2A) and a +1 rating in his last eight games against Utah. Defenseman Nick DeSimone was cleared off waivers on Jan. 5 and has three assists in six games with his new team. Defenseman John Marino was activated from injured reserve on Jan. 14 and has two helpers with a +2 rating in his first six games with Utah. As a team, Utah has lost 175 man games to injury.

LOOK AHEAD

Utah returns home to take on Sydney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday, January 29 at Delta Center. When the teams last played on Nov. 23, Utah skated away with a 6-1 win. Wednesday's game will be the start of a four-game homestand for Utah, which also features the Columbus Blue Jackets, St. Louis Blues and Philadelphia Flyers.