After a disappointing loss to the Detroit Red Wings on Monday, the Utah Hockey Club needed to rebound on Thursday with a win against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Eight goals later and instead Utah suffered their worst loss in franchise history at the hands of the Lightning by a score of 8-0. Here are some takeaways from Thursday’s game.
Mikhail Sergachev Returns to Tampa
The lone bright spot in the game for anyone on Utah on Thursday was Mikhail Sergachev finally returning to Tampa Bay for the first time since the blockbuster trade during the summer. Both of Utah’s games against the Lightning were scheduled towards the end of the season, which built up everyone’s suspense of seeing the former Lightning star return to the arena where he helped build a dynasty.
After being acquired from the Montreal Canadiens in 2017, Sergachev began his Lightning career by recording his first NHL point in his first game with the team. He later followed it up with his first two NHL goals in a game against the Columbus Blue Jackets, becoming the youngest Lightning defenseman to record a multi-goal game.
In his seven seasons with the Lightning, Sergachev recorded 257 points, which is the second most in the franchise’s all-time list for defensemen, only trailing Victor Hedman. He also played in 100 playoff games with the Lightning, helping them reach three straight Stanley Cup Finals, winning two of them in 2020 and 2021.
When Sergachev got his video tribute on Thursday, it made sure to go over all of his on-ice achievements, but it also showed some of his off-ice moments. Of course, there were clips of him being involved in the community and also lifting the Stanley Cup on boats. However, it also illustrated his 2023-24 season, where he went down with two injuries in separate games, including a broken leg, and somehow managed to come back in the playoffs in Game 4 against the Florida Panthers. Sergachev recorded a point in that game, helping the Lightning win 6-3.
In his first season with Utah, Sergachev has proven he is a number one defenseman in the NHL. He’s reached new career highs in goals (13) and is also having his second-best season in terms of points (45). He’s also been a big presence in the locker room, helping the young players learn how to win in the league.
Despite now being in Utah, Sergachev is still a fan favorite in Tampa. He got a loud standing ovation during his tribute. He also got a nice round of applause when he took the ceremonial faceoff against Hedman. Lightning head coach Jon Cooper coached Sergachev his whole Lightning career and called him a huge, underrated part of the franchise’s back-to-back Cups.
“You can’t pinpoint one person when you win the Stanley Cup,” Cooper said. “Everybody’s involved. He was a huge part of it. We have so many guys that got the attention and won a lot of the awards, but I could sit there and say Sergachev should’ve had his name right in the hat. The way our defense was built, he was a perfect fit for us. We had him when he was young. He was thrust into positions that he probably wasn’t used to in pro hockey, and he really excelled at it. If you can do that at such a young age, you know he’s going to be a really good player.”
Cooper went on to say that he understands why the Lightning couldn’t keep him, but wishes Sergachev was still wearing the blue and white. He also mentioned how tough it was to hear about the trade that sent Sergachev to Utah, especially after winning two championships together.
For Sergachev, his special moment was ruined by Utah’s horrendous game. It was tough for him to speak about it after the game, but he thanked the Lightning fans for the standing ovation.
“It’s tough to talk about it right now after a game like that,” Sergachev said. “But I really appreciate it, and it was great. Thanks for the warm reception. The fans are great. Everybody’s great. That was supposed to be a special night.”
While Sergachev will always be welcomed back to Tampa, the tribute closes his chapter as a Lightning player for good. It was a fantastic seven years for the defenseman in Tampa and now Utah and their fans hope that his strong 2024-25 season continues as he continues the next chapter of his career in Salt Lake City.
Sergachev won’t be the only Utah player returning to their former home on this road trip, however. Kevin Stenlund will make his first trip back to Sunrise since winning the Stanley Cup with the Panthers last season. While he wasn’t a Panther for a very long time, similar to Sergachev, he was a key part in the team’s 2024 championship, which will probably garner him a pretty nice reaction from the crowd.
The Worst Loss in Franchise History
The Utah franchise has only 72 regular-season games under its belt. In those games, there have been some ugly losses, like the 7-1 loss to the Edmonton Oilers a couple of weeks ago. However, Game 72 has taken that spot for the worst loss in franchise history.
Everything that could go wrong did. It started with two Lightning goals coming within five minutes of the game starting. It was obvious that the blue line wasn’t clicking, and the offense wasn’t doing much either.
The second period was even worse. The Lightning scored two more goals halfway through the period, and Utah finally relieved Karel Vejmelka of the nightmare and threw in Jaxson Stauber. The game was pretty much over by that point, but the Lightning made sure to put Stauber through the same torture they put Vejmelka through by scoring four more goals to win 8-0.
If anything, Thursday’s game was a huge reason why it’s time to give Vejmelka a break and start putting Stauber in as the starter. While the loss shouldn’t be entirely placed upon goaltending, part of it needs to be. Vejmelka has started 15 straight games, and recently, it’s been made clear that he needs a break.
It’s not like Stauber doesn’t have NHL experience. He actually recorded the first shutout in franchise history back in November. Before being thrown to the dogs against the Oilers and Lightning, he had some really good stats. However, despite Connor Ingram entering the NHLPA Player Assistance Program and Stauber becoming the backup for most likely the rest of the season, he has yet to start a game. It’s time for that to change.
Focusing back on the forwards and defense, Utah was also pushed around for a lot of the game. It did result in Erik Černák laying a massive hit on Clayton Keller. Logan Cooley stood up for Keller, and Michael Kesselring later fought Černák, but Utah didn’t lay any retaliating hits. It wasn’t a good look, and head coach André Tourigny was not too pleased.
“They hit our best player,” Tourigny said. “What did we do with their best player? You want to win tomorrow against Florida and you will let their best players play and you won’t hit them?”
It gets even worse because, as Tourigny mentioned, Utah plays the Panthers on Friday. They are one of the most physical teams in the league, and they’ll be getting reinforcements as well, as Brad Marchand is expected to make his Panthers debut against Utah.
Sergachev called Utah’s efforts terrible. Tourigny had pretty much the same reaction.
“It’s really disappointing, the way we came out,” Tourigny said. “(We) didn’t win enough battles, didn’t get on the inside. You play against a good team like that, you need to be ready to fight, and in our situation, it’s disappointing.”
Considering Utah beat the Lightning 6-4 just a couple of weeks ago, it was a pathetic outing for the team on Thursday. If there was a bright spot in the game, you’re probably going to need a microscope to see it. It is at this point, the worst loss in franchise history.
Utah’s Playoff Hopes Are Pretty Much Dead
Somehow, the loss gets even worse when you look around at the rest of the league. While Utah was pretty much out of the playoffs before the puck was even dropped on Thursday, the St. Louis Blues made sure to pretty much kill any remaining hope that Utah had with a 3-2 win over the Nashville Predators.
That win puts Utah 10 points back of the wild card spot that the Blues currently hold. Just a couple of weeks ago, they were just two points back of that spot. It helps that the Blues have been on a monster run, including their current eight-game win streak.
With 10 games remaining in the season for Utah, focus is now starting to shift to when they’ll officially get eliminated from playoff contention. The Predators were just eliminated on Thursday with the loss, as they join the San Jose Sharks and Chicago Blackhawks in the trio of teams that will 100% not play playoff hockey. It’s only a matter of time before Utah ends up in that pile as well.
For now, Utah’s players are going to remain focused on the playoffs. It’s what you do until you’re officially eliminated. However, they would be foolish not to see the writing on the wall, especially after the loss to the Lightning. Sergachev called the team out, saying the locker room needs to decide if their season is officially over or not.
“We need to make a decision if we want to be in the playoffs,” Sergachev said. “If you want to fight for the playoffs or not. I think this is a punch in the face where we got to take a step back and see what we want out of the season.”
It’s getting to that point where Utah should start considering giving players chances and seeing who they should re-sign or give ice time to next season. Players like Kailer Yamamoto and Cameron Hebig, who are signed to NHL contracts that are expiring after this season, should get ice time, especially considering how questionable some players in the bottom six have been. Why not? There’s ultimately nothing to lose at this point, and it could spark something that could help the team out of this funk.
The same narrative goes for Stauber, who should get some starts soon. Playing Vejmelka every game clearly isn’t working anymore. Give him some rest and start playing Stauber.
If you’re yearning for some meaningful hockey related to Utah, there are actually plenty of teams around the hockey universe to root for. The Tucson Roadrunners are currently fighting for their own playoff lives. They hold the final playoff spot in the Pacific Division but only have a three-point lead on the Bakersfield Condors. The Roadrunners only have 10 games left in the season.
Meanwhile, the NCAA playoffs are underway, and two Utah prospects were part of some huge upsets. The first was Jonathan Castagna, who plays for Cornell University. In the final couple of seconds in their game against Michigan State, they were able to score the game-winning goal, taking down the number one-ranked team in the league. Castagna and Cornell now move on to play Boston University on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Michael Hrabel made 25 saves in UMass’ upset against Minnesota. That game was won in overtime by UMass by a score of 5-4. Hrabel and the Minutemen move on to face Western Michigan.
Hopefully, those three teams are a distraction for Utah fans. Game 72 was a rough one, especially considering the team is pretty much out of playoff contention. Finishing strong is the best outcome for the final 10 games of the season. However, it’ll be tough because of the teams Utah will be facing next, which include the Panthers, Winnipeg Jets, LA Kings, and Dallas Stars. One game at a time, though, as the team will try to find a way to rebound from the ugliest loss this season.
Utah will have a quick turnaround as they’ll face the Panthers on Friday. The Panthers are 43-25-3 this season and are coming off a 4-3 shootout win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. The two last met in January, where Utah lost 4-1.
