Just when Utah thought defenseman injuries were a thing of the past, the team suffers a blow on its blue line. Right before a Dylan Guenther game-winner in a 3-2 overtime win against Nashville, Sean Durzi suffered quite the blow when a collision from Predators forward Jonathan Marchessault sent him to the ice hard. It was evident that the hard fall, primarily on his right arm, had hurt Durzi, especially since he skated off immediately to the bench while Utah was pushing for an overtime goal. Four weeks will certainly be a long time for the Mammoth to play without Durzi, but it could have been worse considering Durzi suffered a right shoulder injury that had him miss 52 games last season. Having a blue line injury only two games in isn’t the greatest sign for a team that had both Durzi and Marino miss significant time last year. But if anyone is equipped to handle defenseman injuries, it’s Utah. For now, Utah will already have to rely on rookie Dmitri Simashev early to get adjusted to the NHL fast. Simashev has totaled 32 shifts across his first two starts, most notably playing 19 shifts in Utah’s season opener against Colorado after defenseman Olli Määttä left the game after his first shift. And hey, there’s no better way to see what your rookie has got than giving him lots of playing time early. Dylan Guenther Is Already Getting Game-Winners Again for Utah Mammoth [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/8acc91cd-ba68-4919-a082-00e135d6fb83.jpeg] Dylan Guenther Is Already Getting Game-Winners Again for Utah Mammoth Dylan Guenther is as clutch as ever for Utah Mammoth. [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/utah/latest-news/dylan-guenther-is-already-getting-game-winners-again-for-utah-mammoth] But even if Utah would still prefer to play seven defensemen, as it has in its first two games, André Tourigny can rely on defenseman Nick DeSimone, who has been a healthy scratch in each game and stepped up for Utah last season after being picked up off waivers from New Jersey. DeSimone fit with the team, played a lot of mistake-free hockey and was good enough for GM Bill Armstrong to bring back for another season. As of right now, expect Tourigny to keep DeSimone as a healthy scratch and go with six defensemen after confirming to Mammoth reporter Catherine Bogart that Michael Carcone will play in Utah’s game against the Blackhawks. Along with Carcone, Utah could get an even bigger boost if Barrett Hayton plays his first game of the season. Utah has had moments where it has crashed the blue paint, with Jack McBain’s game-tying goal against Nashville being the best example, but the Mammoth have missed Hayton’s aggressive net-front play style and will greatly benefit from his return. or now, Utah should focus on how it can best support its defense while it waits for Durzi to get healthy. Utah will finish its three-game road trip with a game against the Chicago Blackhawks. It’ll air at 6:30 p.m. MT on Mammoth+ as well as Utah 16.
