The San Jose Sharks kicked off the 2024 Rookie Faceoff at the Toyota Sports Performance Center in El Segundo, CA against the newly minted Utah Hockey Club on Friday afternoon. While both of the Sharks’ first-round draft picks in the 2024 NHL Draft, Macklin Celebrini and Sam Dickinson were on the ice, Utah was without their top pick, Tij Iginla, who is recovering from an injury. Utah still had some exciting players in their lineup though, including center Cole Beaudoin and defenseman Maveric Lamoureux. Georgi Romanov got the start for the Sharks while Anson Thornton was between the pipes for Utah.
San Jose started out bringing a lot of pressure in the offensive zone in the opening minutes. Utah was defending well but struggled to get the puck past the neutral zone. Utah wasn’t shying away from physicality though, throwing quite a few hits in the first few minutes. After about four minutes of the Sharks controlling the majority of play, Utah was able to do the same for the next three. Neither team was truly getting out to an advantage.
The Sharks got the first power play just over seven minutes into the period when Justin Kipkie got called for roughing. The Sharks were unable to convert on the opportunity, and eventually, Utah got their first power play about six minutes later when Kasper Halttunnen got called for slashing. As the penalty expired, the Sharks got on the scoreboard when Luke Grainger found the back of the net off of assists from Lucas Vanroboys and Gannon Laroque. Grainger, a former captain in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) with Western Michigan University, made his debut in the American Hockey League (AHL) with the San Jose Barracuda last season.
Beaudoin was penalized for slashing a few moments later, giving the Sharks their second chance with the man advantage of the night. Once again, they’d be unable to make the most of the opportunity and Utah killed it off. The first period came to a close and the Sharks maintained their 1-0 lead into the first intermission.
Related: Sharks’ Ethan Cardwell Optimistic Heading into Rookie Faceoff
Early in the second period, Thornton was involved in a massive collision at the side of the net. It ended up looking much worse than it actually was for Utah’s goaltender and he quickly got up and back into position. Six minutes into the second period, Utah found a way to get themselves on the board. Slovakian forward Peter Repcik scored off of an assist from Drew Elliott. Less than a minute later, Romanov was tested again but was able to deny Beaudoin from point-blank range. The second period would remain tied until intermission.
It didn’t take Utah long to get the lead in the third period though, as they were able to score five minutes into the period. This time it was Owen Allard who got the goal. The Sharks got another power play a minute later when Elliott was called for interference. This was an opportunity they couldn’t afford to waste and they didn’t. After the most confident passing play they’d had with the man advantage, Celebrini scored on a shot from the slot to tie it up. Gannon Laroque nearly gave the Sharks the lead with just over nine minutes remaining in regulation, but the inside of the goalpost denied him.
With just under six minutes remaining, Miko Matikka was sent to the box for slashing, giving the Sharks another late power play opportunity. Luca Cagnoni lost an edge and went awkwardly into the boards just moments into the man advantage, but luckily was able to get back up fairly quickly.
The Sharks’ power play looked to have more confidence this time out due to Celebrini’s goal, but the Utah penalty kill seemed to be holding strong. In the dying moments of the power play though, Ethan Cardwell was able to beat Thornton, giving the Sharks a 3-2 lead. Cardwell mentioned earlier this week that his goal is to make the Sharks out of training camp, and he’s certainly gotten off to a great start with a game-winning goal. Beaudoin essentially sealed his team’s fate with just over a minute and a half remaining when he got sent to the penalty box for his part in a big altercation near the Sharks’ net. He was called for high sticking, while there were also offsetting penalties for roughing.
Sharks & Utah Provide Depth Scoring
Each team’s opening goal was scored by a member of their fourth line. You’d typically expect names like Celebrini or Will Smith to be the ones contributing on the scoresheet and dominating a tournament of this stature. That wasn’t the case early on though. It was depth scoring that both gave the Sharks the lead in the first period and allowed Utah to get an equalizer in the second. It’s clear that the fringe players who aren’t guaranteed anything, at any level, heading into the upcoming season are using the Rookie Faceoff as an opportunity to find themselves a home for 2024-25.
Utah Not Backing Down
While Utah inherited a fairly strong prospect pool when the Arizona Coyotes relocated, the Sharks are widely considered to have the strongest prospect pool in the NHL and a few of them are undoubtedly NHL-ready. As a result, it would be hard not to see San Jose as the favorite heading into this game. With that being said, Utah countered the Sharks’ skill with physicality, and it certainly worked. They brought a lot of size to their blue line, with three defensemen being 6-foot-4 or taller, while even their smallest defender Lleyton Moore played much bigger than his 5-foot-8 frame.
Don’t Count Out Celebrini
In the Sharks’ Prospect Showcase early in the summer, it was the third period where Celebrini truly came to life. He does all of the little things right over the course of the entire game, but if his team is trailing then it’ll be almost surprising if he doesn’t score in the final frame. He did the same thing on Friday afternoon. Shortly after Utah took the lead, he took matters into his own hands and found the back of the net. Based on what he’s done in limited outings with the Sharks, it’s already clear that he’s a big-moment player. When he needs to, he can put the team on his back and dominate. The only question remaining is whether or not he’ll be able to do so at the NHL level.
The Sharks walked away with a 3-2 victory in the opening contest of the tournament, but both teams had a strong showing. It was a highly entertaining game, which will set the tone for the remainder of the event. The Sharks will practice Saturday and do their final games on Sunday and Monday. Meanwhile, Utah is back on Saturday to take on the Los Angeles Kings.
