The first-ever team awards recognized outstanding players both on and off the ice
Utah Hockey Club announced today the recipients of the 2024-25 Utah Hockey Club Honors, its first-ever team awards, to recognize outstanding players both on and off the ice during this NHL season.
Vejmelka was selected by his teammates as the player with the most valuable contributions to the team’s success. He has had a career-best season, posting a 25-21-8 record with a 2.51 goals-against average (GAA), .906 save percentage (SV%) and one shutout, to win Team MVP as voted on by the players. The 28-year-old goaltender has established career highs in games played (58), starts (53), wins (25), GAA (2.51) and SV% (.906). Vejmelka has also posted a 12-6-4 record in 22 consecutive starts dating back to Feb. 23, marking the longest streak of starts by any NHL goaltender since 2018-19.
Guenther was recognized with the Three Stars Award for receiving the most postgame star honors throughout the season. He has been selected as one of the Three Stars 16 times this season, with nine First Star recognitions. The 22-year-old forward was named First Star in each of Utah’s first two games (Oct. 8-10) and also earned three First Star selections in a six-game span from Feb. 4-23, with game-winning goals in all three contests. Guenther ranks tied for the team lead in goals (27), fourth in points (57) and first in power-play goals (12) this season. He also sits tied for third in the NHL in game-winning goals (9) and tied for sixth in overtime goals (3), and his 15 total go-ahead tallies are tied for the fifth-most of any NHL skater in 2024-25.
In recognition of finishing the season with the team’s highest point total, earning 27-58-85 in 78 games, Keller received the Leading Scorer Award. Utah’s first-ever captain ranks top-15 in the NHL in both assists and points, and he needs just two points over the final four games to set a new single-season career-high scoring total. Keller has already established new career highs in power-play assists (26) and power-play points (35) this season, and he leads the league with 8-22-30 on the man-advantage since Dec. 8. The 26-year-old forward has been held without a point in back-to-back games just once this season, and he posted the first five-point game (1-4-5) in franchise history against Minnesota on Feb. 27.
Selected as the player who is most active in the community, Kerfoot focused heavily on growing the game of hockey in the area by offering unique access and experiences to the sport, especially for young girl hockey players. Also the Club’s King Clancy Memorial Trophy nominee, Kerfoot has touched many aspiring players throughout the inaugural 2024-25 season by providing tickets and experiences, as well as community appearances for teams and organizations such as Ogden Lady Mustangs, Utah Olympic Oval Wildcats, Lady Grizzlies, Primary Children’s Hospital, Make-A-Wish, Granite Education Foundation, Utah Hockey Club Learn to Play and Utah Hockey Club Youth.
Hayton has been selected by the fans as the first-ever winner of the All-In Award, given to the player who leaves it all on the ice, from the opening puck drop to the final buzzer. One of only six skaters to appear in all 79 games for Utah this season, the 24-year-old forward has matched his career highs in goals, assists and points while setting new career-best marks in power-play goals (6), power-play points (12) and game-winning goals (7). Hayton sits second on the team with a career-high 53.8% faceoff win percentage and ranks tied for sixth among Utah forwards in blocked shots (42). He also scored the first hat trick in franchise history at Los Angeles on Feb. 22.
