NEW YORK CITY — Utah Hockey Club star Clayton Keller said his team showed it can measure up with Stanley Cup contenders after its 6-5 overtime win at the New York Rangers on Saturday night. But the NHL’s newest team also showed it can win when things get weird.
Utah improved to 3-0-0 after winning a game that saw seven goals scored in the second period; another Rangers goal kept off the board because of goalie interference; two ejections for starting a fight while one was already ongoing; and the home team rallying to tie the game three times, including in the third period before Keller ended it in overtime with his third goal of the season, roofing the puck over goalie Igor Shesterkin.
“Those are the games where you have to stay patient,” Keller said. “Before, I would kind of get off my game because things aren’t going my way or there are a couple bad bounces. But as a group we were able to fight through and get the win.”
That was especially true after one of the oddest goals of the young NHL season: Rangers defenseman K’Andre Miller banking the puck off the side boards and having it travel directly into an open Utah net to cut the lead to 4-3 in the second period.
“I said ‘That’s MSG, baby.’ That’s what I thought. Here we go. There’s ghosts somewhere,” Utah coach André Tourigny said. “But we were still ahead. It was important for us to stay level and not get emotional.”
After the game, Utah did get emotional in its dressing room, celebrating a torrid 3-0-0 start that has been defined by their goal scoring. Utah is the third franchise in NHL history to score five or more goals in each of its first three games of existence. The 1917-18 Montreal Canadiens hold the NHL record at five straight games with five or more goals. Despite relocating from Arizona, Utah is considered a new NHL franchise since its records and intellectual property remained with Coyotes ownership after the sale.
Leading that offense is forward Dylan Guenther, who scored on the power play against the Rangers to give him five goals on the season and the NHL lead in that category.
“He’s good at every phase of the game. He sees the ice well and has a lot of pride in his game offensive and defensively,” Tourigny said. “That’s good, because that means the coach will want to put you on the ice.”
Keller, who played eight years with the Coyotes, had two goals and an assist on the night. While he wouldn’t go as far as to say that the third game of the season could be a statement game, he said winning against the Rangers was a confidence boost for the team.
“That’s a team that has had a lot of success. They’ve been right there the last couple years. There’s not any holes in their lineup, so it’s good to go head-to-head with them early in the season and see how we match up against them,” he said.
While Utah beat the Rangers on the ice, Keller indicated his team also had an advantage in the stands when asked if Delta Center in Salt Lake City was louder than Madison Square Garden.
“I think Delta Center was a little louder for the home opener,” he said.
Tourigny joked that 6-5 result was “exactly the way we wanted it” in terms of play.
“It’s entertainment. We’re in Manhattan,” he said, before indicating that this team had to tighten up defensively.
“We scored a lot of goals, but we give up too much, and that’s with great goaltending,” he added, shouting out goalie Connor Ingram’s 29 saves in the win. “We’re not falling asleep with our résumé. It’s fun winning. Everybody has fun. But we know if we want to sustain it, we need to tighten it up defensively.”
Utah next visits the New Jersey Devils on Monday.