Mar 12, 2025; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Hockey Club goaltender Karel Vejmelka (70) and defenseman Ian Cole (28) celebrate a win over the Anaheim Ducks at Delta Center. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images

Dylan Guenther goes over game-winning goal and Utah's win over Anaheim

Every win matters in the wild, wild Western Conference. Especially when arguably your biggest opponents, Vancouver and Calgary, end their game in a 4-3 shootout.

With Utah moving just two points behind the aforementioned teams after its 3-2 win against Anaheim, the impending matchup with Vancouver on Sunday, March 16, carries more weight than ever.

But before worrying about any future games and its playoff implications, Utah needed to take care of business against the Ducks first.

Thankfully for Utah, Mikhail Sergachev is on its team:

With Vejmelka coming out of the net, anticipating a shot from Ducks' forward Ryan Strome, a quick move with the puck gave Strome an open lane right behind Vejmelka. Despite being tangled with Anaheim's Alex Killorn, Sergachev saw that Strome was about to have a wide-open net.

Just as Strome was getting what looked to be a surefire goal, Sergachev kicked his right skate out at the last second to keep Utah's lead intact.

"Really nice save by him there in the second," said Dylan Guenther. "I think he's just a big leader for us off the ice. When he talks, everybody's listening. He's the backbone of our team, and it's great to have him."

Though the play happened midway through the second period when Utah was up only 1-0, Sergachev's skate proved to be the difference, keeping Utah from playing in its third consecutive overtime.

While two back-to-back penalties from Sergachev eventually led to a game-tying goal from Anaheim early in the third, he didn't let the mistakes get to his head and later assisted on what became the game-winning goal for Guenther.

"When I saw [Anaheim] was low, I wanted [Keller] to go up to [Sergachev], and then he gave it over to me," said Guenther. "So, it was just good recognition. I feel like we've gotten pretty good chemistry as we've continued to play together."

While the goal from Gunner proved to be all Utah needed to secure the win, it also gave Sergachev a significant accolade, giving him his 300th point of his career.

It wasn't just Sergachev who reached an important milestone in this game. Utah's Jack McBain also achieved a personal milestone, tying his career-high mark of 12 goals with Utah's first goal of the night.

With Alexander Kerfoot scoring Utah's other goal—his first since signing his extension—Utah avenged its 5-4 shootout loss to Anaheim back in December.

"Definitely a huge win, huge home stand," said Barrett Hayton. "Obviously, it would have been really nice to get all four points, but the way we were able to fight back in that Toronto game and get a point, it's huge for us."

With an upcoming road trip against Seattle, Vancouver, and Edmonton, securing tonight's win could go a long way for Utah in its hunt for the playoffs.

But with head coach André Tourigny emphasizing that every game is a playoff game for this team, Utah will treat every matchup with the utmost priority.

But considering the team 'love[s] each other' and 'fight[s] for each other,' in the words of Tourigny, Utah should be ready for any adversity coming its way.

Report: Utah HC's Connor Ingram Enters NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program The National Hockey League Players’ Association and the National Hockey League announced today that goaltender Connor Ingram of the Utah Hockey Club will be unavailable to his team for an indefinite period while he receives care from the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program.

Mikhail Sergachev Skate Save Proves Vital in 3-2 Win Over Anaheim