Utah’s strangest game of the season ends in a 4-2 loss

It started when Logan Cooley dragged Adrian Kempe down on a back-check, causing him to crash into Utah goaltender Karel Vejmelka.

The referee’s arm immediately went up to call Cooley for interference, meanwhile Cooley went after Kempe for running into the goalie.

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As Utah’s captain was arguing on Cooley’s behalf, the officials were looking at another aspect of the play: the fact that the puck was in the net.

Andrei Kuzmenko’s shot landed in Vejmelka’s glove initially, but he dropped it as Kempe came barreling toward him. Kempe’s skate pushed it under Vejmelka as he fell, and it ended up in the net.

It’s hard to see it on most of the replay angles, but the overhead camera caught it perfectly. It’s one of the stranger goals you’ll ever see, but it was the right call.

Utah Hockey for casual fans

Before the game, Kings head coach Jim Hiller was confident.

“I’d be surprised if we’re not really good tonight,” he said.

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He also indicated that he’d like to fire lots of shots at Vejmelka, who was bound to be fatigued in his 19th consecutive start.

“We want to get (to the front of the net) every night, but the fact that he’s played a lot (will) incentivize the players,” Hiller said. “If we can get there, maybe we can find a couple extra ones.”

When the shots were 25-9 in Utah HC’s favor after the second period, it was clear that he may have underestimated his opponent. Hiller recognized his fault after the game.

“Well, I was wrong, first of all,” he said. “I said our legs would be good and we would play well, and we did not for the first 40 minutes — with the exception of the goalie. But then give our guys credit. Third period, we played good.”

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He’s right. The Kings were the better team in the third period by most metrics — not just because they scored more goals. They dominated in terms of shots, scoring chances, expected goals and even face-offs.

UHC associate captain Lawson Crouse was frustrated that his team’s solid play through the first two frames didn’t supply the result he wanted.

“We were in control of the game,” he said. “We were playing hungry hockey, determined hockey and (it’s) just a crappy feeling when it doesn’t pay out.”

Utah Hockey for nerds

Two goals against at 4 on 4 put a close game out of reach for UHC.

They’ve now allowed five goals at 4 on 4 this season — tied for the second-most in the league. Additionally, they’re tied for the second-most goals against at 3 on 3 with eight.