3 Takeaways From Utah’s 5-2 Win Over Blackhawks

The rest of Utah knew what Yamamoto had been through in the past couple of seasons. From being bought out by the Edmonton Oilers to having his worst season in his career on his hometown team, then to the Seattle Kraken, to being sent down to the AHL this season, it has not been an easy couple of years for Yamamoto. His teammates made sure to congratulate him when he scored the goal.

“Guys are great in the locker room,” Yamamoto said. “Being able to tuck that one in and see how happy everyone was for me, it was awesome.”

Yamamoto does not have a contract for next season as his current one expires after the end of this season. He will have a chance to potentially earn an extension in the final stretch of games with Utah. His play with the Roadrunners this season also bodes well for the 26-year-old.

Utah’s Offense Reawakens

After only scoring two goals in the past three games, it was only a matter of time before Utah’s offense reawoke. All season long, there’s always been someone carrying the offense. Dylan Guenther, Clayton Keller, and Logan Cooley have all had stretches of pure dominance throughout the season. Even players like Kevin Stenlund has had stretches of games with goals. The second period offered goals from all around the lineup.

On a rush in the middle of the second period, Kerfoot dropped a puck back to the blue line, where Nick DeSimone hammered a shot to the net. It looked like the puck deflected off Nick Bjugstad and into the back of the net. However, after review, the goal actually went to DeSimone for his first with Utah. It was also his first goal in more than a year. His previous one had come with the New Jersey Devils against (coincidentally enough) the Arizona Coyotes.

While the Blackhawks rallied back with two straight goals, Mikhail Sergachev’s wrist shot beat Soderblom, beginning a streak of Utah offense. Kerfoot got a goal seconds later, putting Utah up by one. He would end the game with three points. Yamamoto then got his goal, and then Cooley put the icing on the cake with his 22nd of the season to win the game for Utah.

Head coach André Tourigny liked the effort Utah had against the Blackhawks, especially considering the last time the two teams met, his team lost and not in good fashion. Tourigny saw the complete opposite on Sunday.

“We created good traffic in front of their net and got some dirty goals, some deflections,” Tourigny said. “We made it tough for their goalie. That’s stuff we didn’t do against them previously, so I’m happy about that part.”

In net, Karel Vejmelka played his 17th straight game. He’s struggled in some recent games, but he was rock solid on Sunday, making some massive saves to keep the score in Utah’s favor. Tourigny saw the hard work he put in against the Panthers on Friday and then the Blackhawks on Sunday and made sure to recognize it after the game.

“He bounced back,” Tourigny said. “Game against Detroit, (he was) just ok. Game against Tampa, we all know what happened …then he came up with a huge performance in Florida and even better tonight…He showed his character. We can rely on him.”

The 17 straight starts for Vejmelka have been under question recently. However, his incredible play has not. A lot of Utah’s wins have come because of Vejmelka’s play. His teammates have never undermined that and know how important he’s been for them this season.

“He’s been battling,” Lawson Crouse said. “He works so hard. He gives us a chance to win and that’s all you can ask for. He’s kept us in a lot of hockey games…When he’s in net, he gives us a chance to win the game.”

Some more cool stuff for Utah happened within the game. Ian Cole played his 900th NHL game. While he’s not projected to crack 1,000 until early in the 2026-27 season, it’s still an impressive number of games. John Marino and Crouse also both recorded their 100th NHL career assist, becoming the fifth duo to do so in the same game and the first since the 2003-04 season, where Dany Heatley and Patrik Stefan did it for the Atlanta Thrashers.

All in all, it was a great game for Utah, and it was a good way to get back on track after a three-game losing streak. After all, they still haven’t been mathematically eliminated from the playoffs yet, despite now being 11 points back of the St. Louis Blues, who hold the second wild card spot. Utah will keep doing whatever it takes to get points until the math tells them otherwise.

Utah Continues to Improve Season By Season

The win against the Blackhawks was huge for another reason. It got Utah up to 78 points this season. It is the most points this team has gotten since the 2018-19 season, where the Coyotes had 86 points with a 39-35-8 record. That team missed the playoffs by four points.

That was the start of the two seasons the Coyotes were in playoff contention. Year two, however, was the year when the COVID-19 pandemic cut the NHL season short. The Coyotes only had 74 points in 70 games.

Since then, the Coyotes have been in their rebuild initiated by general manager Bill Armstrong, who took over in 2020. Each season, they’ve accumulated more points than the last. From 54 to 57 to 70 to 77 last season. Now, with eight games left, they will once again improve from the season prior, with 78 points currently.

The consistent improvement is proof that the rebuild is working. Players like Guenther and Cooley, ever since being drafted and making their NHL debuts, have also been improving season by season. It’s only a matter of time until Utah takes the next step, and their point totals end up in the 90s and the team makes the playoffs. Patience is a crucial thing, and so far, Utah has been great at it. It’s paid off in spades.

Utah is also still technically in playoff contention. Last season, they were eliminated on March 27. On March 30, while they’re basically out of the playoff race, they’re still alive. Utah’s players plan on playing like they’re still alive, which shows the continued growth of the locker room culture.

“At this point in the year it’s no secret, we’ve got to win as many games as we can,” Crouse said. “It takes one at a time. Obviously, great to get this one and got to get ready for our homestand.”

That homestand starts on Tuesday as Utah hosts the Calgary Flames. The Flames are 34-26-12 this season and are coming off a 3-2 overtime loss to the Oilers. They’ll play the Colorado Avalanche before heading to Salt Lake City. The two last met in January in a game which Utah won 5-3.