San Jose Sharks (13-24-6) vs. Utah Hockey Club (17-16-7)
The 2024-25 NHL season goes on Friday, January 10, with the San Jose Sharks facing off against the Utah Hockey Club in the Western Conference showdown at Delta Center in Salt Lake City, UT, with the puck drop at 9:00 PM ET.
San Jose and Utah wrap up their three-game regular-season series after splitting their previous two encounters. San Jose beat Utah 5-4 in overtime at Delta Center, and the Hockey Club responded with a 4-3 victory at SAP Center at San Jose. Let’s take a closer look at this Sharks vs. Hockey Club prediction.
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The Sharks couldn’t cope with the mighty Golden Knights
The San Jose Sharks finished December on an eight-game losing streak. They broke out of their funk with a couple of wins to the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 and the New Jersey Devils 3-2 before losing to the red-hot Vegas Golden Knights 4-2 this past Tuesday.
Vegas outshot San Jose 42-21. The Sharks kept it close with a couple of power-play goals from William Eklund and Timothy Lijegren, and the Golden Knights sealed the win with an empty-netter. Alexandar Georgiev gave up three goals on 41 shots, falling to 9-12-0 on the season.
Georgiev has gone 1-5-0 with a 3.91 GAA and a .881 save percentage since joining the Sharks via trade from Colorado. Yaroslav Askarov is 3-2-2 with a 2.30 GAA and a .923 save percentage. The Sharks allow 3.47 goals per game (29th in the NHL) while tallying 2.60 goals in return (28th).
San Jose cannot count on center Logan Couture (groin), winger Carl Grundstrom (undisclosed), and defenseman Jake Walman (lower body). Center Nico Sturm (undisclosed) is questionable to play against Utah, while winger Fabian Zetterlund (lower body) is listed as probable.
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The Hockey Club hope to snap a two-game skid
The Utah Hockey Club have only won one of their previous eight games overall. After stopping a five-game losing streak with a 5-3 victory at the Calgary Flames, the Hockey Club dropped consecutive games against the Dallas Stars 3-2 in overtime and Florida Panthers 4-1.
The Hockey Club opened a seven-game homestand last Wednesday. They were outshot 33-26 by the Panthers, and we saw four goals in the third period, including a couple of empty-netters. Logan Cooley converted one of Utah’s four power-play opportunities, while Karel Vejmelka yielded two goals on 31 shots.
Vejmelka is now 9-11-3 with a 2.43 GAA and a .915 save percentage in 2024-25, while Jaxson Stauber is 2-1-1 with a 2.23 GAA and a .925 save percentage. Utah allows 3.00 goals per game (tied-13th in the league) while scoring 2.85 goals in return (tied-22nd).
Connor Ingram (6-4-3; 3.61 GAA) is still on the IR. Defensemen Robert Bortuzzo (lower body), Sean Durzi (shoulder), and John Marino (back) are also unavailable.
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Insiders Status:
Both San Jose and Utah will take the ice Saturday on the second night of a back-to-back, so it’s unknown who will guard the cages at Delta Center on Friday night. Alexandar Georgiev is expected to get the nod for San Jose, while Karel Vejmelka should patrol the crease on the other side of the ice.
The Sharks pulled off a couple of upsets against Tampa Bay and New Jersey thanks to Yaroslav Askarov. Georgiev had a good game in a loss at Vegas, but he’s been terrible for most of the season. On the other side, Vejmelka has done a great job for the Hockey Club thus far.
Vejmelka had a 2.40 GAA and a .915 save percentage in December (10 starts). He’s recorded a 2.65 GAA and a .907 save percentage across three starts in January. Utah certainly looks like a better team than San Jose, so I’m backing the Hockey Club to beat the puckline.
Insiders Status:
Although San Jose and Utah provided two high-scoring affairs in 2024-25, I’m looking for the under in this game. Both teams have struggled to score lately, and I don’t think they will combine for more than six goals this time around.
The Sharks have only scored eight goals over their last five outings, and each of these five games has seen fewer than seven goals on the scoreboard. Utah has accounted for 14 goals in its past seven contests, and five of these seven games have produced five or fewer goals in total.
For another opinion on this game, check out San Jose Sharks vs. Utah Hockey Club Prediction from Statsalt, our partner site.
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Viktor “The Viking” Allenson has been slaying the books for many years now. He has hammered the lines in all sports including basketball, football, soccer, MMA and baseball. The Viking’s strength is his versatility and research in all sports. He also has the ability to find soft lines that the public loves and goes the other way.
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