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Officials at the University of Utah School of Medicine are apologizing for an erroneous email sent earlier this week to a large number of applicants that apparently indicated they were being offered admittance to the highly competitive medical program.

An automated email was sent out mistakenly to a “large group” of medical school applicants, according to University of Utah Health spokesperson Kathy Wilets.

“It was intended to go to a small number of students who had been accepted,” noted Wilets. “We’re trying to figure out exactly what triggered the email and do all that we can to prevent it from ever happening again.”

Wilets acknowledged that the school recognizes that the medical school application and acceptance process is stressful for students and their loved ones.

“We are so sorry to have created additional stress or confusion.”

An email correction was sent Thursday to all who had received the original email.

“If students have any questions, they should call the medical school,” added Wilets.

Medical school admission: A brutal ‘waiting game’

A University of Utah medical school applicant who requested not to be identified told the Deseret News that it was “devastating” to learn that the email announcing his acceptance was sent by mistake.

The applicant interviewed for a spot last October, but had not heard anything from the admissions office until receiving the erroneous message.

“The medical school admission ‘waiting game’ is brutal,” the applicant wrote in an email. “It’s even more brutal when you are sent an email suggesting your acceptance — only to be informed that it was an error.”

The applicant called the University of Utah School of Medicine his “dream school” — and feels that dream was “yanked away.”

“Mistakes happen — but this situation struck me as unprofessional,” he wrote. “I sincerely hope whatever went wrong will be improved.”

A single-digit admission rate to Utah’s med school

Securing admission to the University of Utah’s medical school is tough.

U.S. News & World Report notes that the University of Utah’s medical school has only a 6.2% acceptance rate.

The report adds that Utah’s medical school is in the “Tier 2″ category in Best Medical Schools: Research — earning a ranking alongside renowned medical schools such as University of Southern California, North Carolina and Dartmouth.

Utah is classified as “Tier 3″ in Best Medical Schools: Primary Care.

The University of Utah Schools of Medicine is the only institution in the state that currently grants MDs.

In a recent presentation to lawmakers, University of Utah President Taylor Randall highlighted the medical school’s upcoming partnership with Utah Tech University in St. George designed to increase the number of primary care physicians serving rural communities.

Provo’s Noorda College of Osteopathic Medicine and Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine in Washington County are private medical schools.

Last July, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced plans to build a medical school at the flagship school it sponsors, Brigham Young University.

The medical school will be located on BYU’s Provo campus and will offer Doctor of Medicine degrees (MDs).

A key focus of the new medical school will be international health and aid.

Kim Shelley will step down from her role as executive director of the Utah Department of Environmental Quality, the department confirmed Thursday to The Salt Lake Tribune. She will leave the position, which she has held for over four years, before the legislative session ends.

“Under Kim’s leadership, DEQ has achieved many significant milestones that will have a lasting, positive impact on Utah’s air, land, and water,” a spokesperson for the department said in a statement. “We are grateful for her leadership and dedication to our mission throughout her tenure, and look forward to her continued focus and success on environmental priorities in her future endeavors.”

The Department of Environmental Quality lists its mission as “safeguarding and improving Utah’s air, land and water through balanced regulation.” Utah Gov. Spencer Cox appointed Shelley to the position in December 2020, just before his first term.

At the time, Cox said in a statement that Shelley had “depth of experience” and “respect” from her colleagues, adding she was “uniquely qualified.”

Shelley will leave Cox’s cabinet at the end of February, two months into his second term. The governor did not comment on Shelley’s time as the department’s leader. A spokesperson for the governor’s office on Thursday said it was “aligned” with the Department of Environmental Quality’s statement.

In an email to department staff sent Thursday afternoon, Shelley praised the work of her staff, saying that serving “alongside the most talented, driven, and mission-focused team in state government has been the opportunity of a lifetime.”

“I am profoundly grateful to each of you and incredibly proud of all we have accomplished together. The mission of our department is not easy work, but I am honored to have championed it beside you,” Shelley wrote. “My hope is that you will continue to trust in your voice, the value of your efforts, and the impact you make. Even in the moments it may not feel like it, your work truly matters.”

Shelley and the Division of Air Quality, which is housed under the Department of Environmental Quality, received pushback from lawmakers last year after floating restrictions to bring Utah back into compliance with federal ozone requirements. Ozone can irritate your respiratory system, causing breathing issues and exacerbating lung diseases like asthma.

Utah has fought federal air quality standards, like the Environmental Protection Agency’s “good neighbor” rule, for years. State leaders and legislators have argued that federal regulations for air quality amount to “federal overreach.”

Before directing it, Shelley worked at the Department of Environmental Quality for more than 20 years. She was previously the agency’s deputy director and worked in the state’s Division of Water Quality and Division of Environmental Response and Remediation.

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: The Utah Hockey Club pulled off a 3-2 win, thanks to a last-minute overtime goal from Dylan Guenther.

It was the story of Tuesday’s game against the Philadelphia Flyers and it happened again on Thursday in Utah’s rematch with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

A large portion of the credit for that goal belongs to goaltender Connor Ingram, who recognized that his best chance at keeping the puck out of his own net was to rush out into the face-off circle and hammer it off the glass and out.

Guenther recognized what was going on, put himself in position to collect the puck off the glass and followed his shot to score on the rebound.

“I saw they were offside, so I took off and got a little lucky it came back,” Guenther said after the game.

Utah hockey for dummies

As cool as it was for Guenther to score yet another highlight goal, he recognized the true importance of what he did:

“We found a way to win,” he said. “That’s the biggest thing.”

That’s something that UHC has struggled to do recently. They’ve lost by just one goal in seven of their last 10 losses (disregarding empty-netters), but they just haven’t been able to get over the hump and win.

In two consecutive games now, Utah has found ways to win. Hockey coaches often talk about learning how to win, and that’s exactly what this team is doing.

“When you’re in those situations more often, I think you get more comfortable, more confident,” Guenther said. “We’re going to be in a lot of those moving forward, so it’s important for us to get some wins doing it like that.”

Will Utah HC make the playoffs? The odds are against them. But it’s games like these that the guys learn from, which will ultimately benefit the team in the long run.

Utah hockey casual fans

Lawson Crouse scored in his return to the lineup after watching from the press box against the Flyers on Tuesday. It’s a great beginning to his return, but it’s not enough.

Let me explain.

Crouse ended a 14-game goal drought in the first game of the new year, potting two goals against the Calgary Flames. It was widely regarded as Crouse’s return to his former self, but he proceeded to go the next eight games without a goal.

His goal on Thursday ended a five-game point drought, but if he lets that satisfy him, he’ll find himself in the same predicament again.

If Crouse can stay hungry and keep playing like his spot in the lineup depends on it, he should be able to get back to the level he was at last season. If he’s content for now, he might get to know the security guards on the sixth floor of the Delta Center a lot better.

Utah hockey for nerds

Crouse wasn’t the only one that responded positively to adversity.

He and Olli Määttä shared culpability for the Blue Jackets’ goal in the first period after Crouse’s clearing attempt took a weird bounce and Määttä failed to tie up his man in time.

Both guys seemed to use it as fuel to their fires, and each proceeded to score a goal afterwards.

Ingram did the same.

In 99 instances out of 100 Ingram or any other NHL goalie would have handled Ivan Provorov’s short-handed bid with ease. But goalie has “how did that go in?” moments and that was exactly the case with that goal.

But just like Crouse and Määttä, he didn’t let a bad read get him down. He went on to save every shot after that, including every shot on Utah’s two penalty kills. And, of course, he made a big play to set up the game-winner.

“I think we controlled our emotions much better and we were able to come back playing with a lot of passion, a lot of pace,” said head coach André Tourigny after the game.

The players and coaches talk frequently about having short memories — it doesn’t matter what happened last game or last shift. The guys took that to heart on Thursday and secured two points because of it.

What’s next?

Utah’s Eastern Conference swing continues with a morning game against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday.

Fans might remember the last time Utah played Carolina. Despite firing 50 shots at Karel Vejmelka, the Hurricanes could only get one past him and UHC walked away with a 4-1 win.

If Utah proceeds with the goaltender rotation that it has used since Ingram’s return, Vejmelka will be back in net against his new favorite team to play against.

The game starts at 10:30 a.m. MST and will be streamed on Utah HC+ and Utah16.

Lawson Crouse and Olli Maatta scored, and Ingram made 20 saves for Utah (23-22-9).

“I don’t think that we played our best today and we found a way to win, but when you’re in those situations more often, you get more comfortable, more confident,” Guenther said. “We’re going to be in a lot of those moving forward, so it’s important for us to get some of those wins doing it like that.”

Justin Danforth and Ivan Provorov scored, and Elvis Merzlikins made 30 saves for the Blue Jackets (26-21-8), who have lost three straight. Zach Werenski had an assist to extend his home point streak to 20 games.

“You take as many points as you can,” Columbus defenseman Damon Severson said. “We had a .500 road trip there (2-2-0, ending Tuesday). We would love to get a little bit better than that, but a .500 road trip, we come back, you get a point. Now, if we get a win (against the New York Rangers on Saturday) going to the break (for the 4 Nations Face-Off), that’s going to set us up pretty solid moving forward here.”

Danforth gave Columbus a 1-0 lead at 5:51 of the first period. Maatta rimmed the puck around the boards to the right wall, where Jordan Harris got a touch on it to send it to the front of the net, and Danforth shoveled it in.

“There’s no excuses for us,” Danforth said. “We pride ourselves on being a consistent team. I felt like we were there for most of the night but just not enough.”

Crouse, a healthy scratch in the previous game, tied it 1-1 at 2:06 of the second period, six seconds after a Utah power play expired. He was in the slot to one-time a pass from Josh Doan.

“I think he played hard,” Utah coach Andre Tourigny said of Crouse. “He was focused. He was intense. I really liked his game.”

Maatta, who will play for Team Finland at the 4 Nations Face-Off from Feb. 12-20, made it 2-1 at 12:33. His centering pass intended for Nick Bjugstad in front went off the stick of Werenski.

Provorov tied it 2-2 at 19:21 with a short-handed goal, scoring with a wrist shot from above the right face-off circle off a pass from Werenski. It was Provorov’s first short-handed goal in the NHL and extended his goal streak to a career-high three games.

“I saw an opportunity to jump up and just shoot the puck and it went in there,” he said.

WHEN: 5:00 p.m. MT

WHERE: Nationwide Arena – Columbus, Ohio

TV: SEG+, UtahHC+, Utah 16 | RADIO: KSL Sports Zone 97.5 FM, NHL App

After a thrilling 3-2 overtime win on Tuesday to finish out a four-game homestand, the Utah Hockey Club (22-22-9) opens a three-game road trip tonight against the Columbus Blue Jackets (26-21-7) at Nationwide Arena. Utah and Columbus last met seven days ago at Delta Center when Zach Werenski lifted the visitors to a 3-2 win in overtime. The Mountain Blue will face Columbus, the Carolina Hurricanes, and the Washington Capitals on the road trip before the 4 Nations Faceoff break.

ONE-TIMERS

• Dylan Guenther scored two goals, including the overtime winner, and an assist on Tuesday night in his return to the lineup after missing 12 games due to injury.
• Mikhail Sergachev tied a career high on Tuesday with his 10th goal of the season.
• The two wins against Philadelphia gave Utah its first season sweep of a team.
• Liam O’Brien and Jack McBain are tied for the team lead with four fighting majors each.
• Clayton Keller leads the team with 57 points (18G, 39A).

TONIGHT’S MATCHUP

Following a three-game win streak, the Blue Jackets have lost each of their last two games to the Dallas Stars and Buffalo Sabres. Bad luck has befallen Columbus, and a rash of injuries have struck an already injury-ravaged lineup. Top forward Kirill Marchenko suffered a broken jaw after a puck hit his face while sitting on the bench on Sunday against Dallas, and the Jackets’ top defense pair – Zach Werenski and Dante Fabbro – also experienced injuries in that game. All three missed Columbus’ last game against Buffalo.

Despite the pair of defeats, head coach Dean Evason’s team is just one point out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Blue Jackets score the eighth most goals in the league at 3.24 per game, but they also give up the seventh most at 3.30 per game.

WHO TO WATCH

UTAH: #11 DYLAN GUENTHER – After suffering a lower-body injury on Jan. 8 against the Florida Panthers, Guenther returned to the lineup on Tuesday and picked up his 10th multi-point and sixth multi-goal game of the season. Guenther is now tied with Clayton Keller for the team lead at 18 goals this season. The 21-year-old sniper now has two overtime-winning goals this season and three for his NHL career.

COLUMBUS: #90 KENT JOHNSON – After a goal against Utah on Jan. 31 and a beautiful backhanded goal two nights ago against the Buffalo Sabres, Johnson now has two goals in his last three games and points in eight straight contests (4G, 5A). The 22-year-old ranks fourth on the team with 35 points (16G, 19A) in 40 games.

LOOK BACK

Dylan Guenther stole the show on Tuesday when Utah took down Philadelphia 3-2 in overtime on the back of their young winger. After Rodrigo Abols scored his first NHL goal just two minutes into the first period, Guenther set up Mikhail Sergachev to tie the game at 1-1 in the second. 57 seconds later, Tyson Forrester tipped in a Claude Giroux shot to give Philly back the lead.

In the third, Guenther broke free after collecting a pass from Barrett Hayton and buried his first goal of the game to tie the score at 2-2. With the clock expiring in overtime, Guenther again broke free and fired a shot past Flyers goaltender Samuel Ersson to win the game for Utah.

Sergachev finished with a goal and two assists, Hayton picked up two helpers, and Philadelphia’s Ersson was strong in net with 39 saves on 42 shots. Karel Vejmelka stopped 18 of 20 for Utah.

LAST MEETING

Utah held a 2-0 lead in the third period last Friday but could not hold off a late surge by the Blue Jackets and fell 3-2 in overtime. Zach Werenski scored the overtime-winner for Columbus after a couple of flukey bounces aided the Jackets’ comeback. Alexander Kerfoot and Nick Schmaltz scored the two goals for Utah, and goaltender Karel Vejmelka stopped 20 of 23 shots. Utah outshot Columbus 33-23 in the game, and Utah held a 4.77 to 2.47 edge in expected goals according to Sportlogiq.

COMEBACKS

After the 3-2 overtime win against Philly on Tuesday, Utah now has 11 total comeback wins and seven third-period comeback wins. Utah trailed twice against the Flyers at 1-0 and 2-1 but overcame both to pull back to .500 and snap a five-game losing skid. Seven of Utah’s last nine wins have involved coming from behind.

Utah has 11 total come-from-behind wins this year; 10 of which have erased one-goal deficits, and one overcame a two-goal deficit. The seven third-period comeback wins this season are tied with the Anaheim Ducks for the second most in the league. Columbus is right behind Utah and Anaheim with six third-period comeback wins.

MIKHAIL SERGACHEV

Sergachev picked up his 10th goal of the season against the Flyers on Tuesday and has now tied his career high that he has reached twice previously with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2019-20 and 2022-23.

The 26-year-old now has 34 points (10G, 24A) on the season, good for 16th most amongst all NHL defensemen. His 10 goals are tied for the sixth most amongst NHL rearguards. Sergachev is also tied for the second most game-winning goals by a defenseman (three) and the most overtime goals by a defenseman (two). His 25:45 time on ice per game is second in the league behind only Columbus’ Zach Werenski (26:48).

LOOK AHEAD

Utah faces the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday at 11:00 a.m. MT to continue the road swing. When Utah last met the Canes, Karel Vejmelka stopped 49 of 50 Carolina shots in a 4-1 win.

As the NHL gets closer and closer to playoff time, the margin for error becomes ever thinner.

That’s especially true when you’re missing your top three scorers and both of your top-pair defensemen, as the Blue Jackets were Tuesday night in Buffalo. The Blue Jackets didn’t exactly play a bad game, but they made enough mistakes with the puck to fall into a two-goal hole before dropping a 3-2 decision to the Sabres.

“We made a couple of uncharacteristic plays for us as of late and brought some pucks back in the neutral zone and fed into their forecheck and consequently gave up a couple of goals,” head coach Dean Evason said. “But we played hard despite a couple of situations like that. Yeah, we pushed, we played hard. We gave ourselves an opportunity and just came up a little short.”

Of course, it’s natural to think what might have happened if the Blue Jackets had forward Kirill Marchenko and defensemen Zach Werenski and Dante Fabbro, but all three were out of action after suffering injuries Sunday in Dallas.

Add in long-term injuries to captain Boone Jenner as well as Sean Monahan, Yegor Chinakhov and Erik Gudbranson, and the Blue Jackets were without seven regulars in the Nickel City. Still, the NHL stops for no one, and the personnel losses meant opportunity for other players to step up into expanded roles to show what they could bring to the table.

The Blue Jackets have said they can’t fall into the trap of feeling sorry for themselves and that they still possess what it takes to win games. The frustration came from making enough lapses that the Sabres were able to take advantage.

“I didn’t think we handled it our best,” Kent Johnson said. “I think we have to do better the next game for sure. Obviously, there’s no excuses. I think we are confident in the guys we have in the lineup, so we just have to be better. I think just executing out of our zone, getting out of our zone, being a bit more simple, direct, on the same page. I think we know the things.”

The Blue Jackets know they’ll be without some of those top players for a little bit longer, though the hope is Werenski will be able to return sooner rather than later. Defenseman Ivan Provorov wore an “A” in Werenski’s absence on Tuesday and said the team remains confident it can bounce back starting tonight vs. Utah.

“I think we’ve proven that all year long,” he said. “Nothing changes in the way we think about ourselves, about our team and our capability.”

Know The Foe: Utah Hockey Club

Head coach: Andre Tourigny (Fourth season)

Team stats: Goals per game: 2.77 (24th) | Scoring defense: 2.92 (14th) | PP: 21.8 percent (15th) | PK: 82.3 percent (5th)

The narrative: After years of trials and tribulations when it came to finding a feasible, long-term arena solution in Arizona, the then-Coyotes headed to Utah this offseason. Fans in Salt Lake City were rewarded with a young, entertaining team that appears to be on the cusp of success after making the playoffs just once in their last 12 seasons in the desert. The squad isn’t quite there yet, but the top eight scorers are all age 28 or younger, showing the talent is starting to fall into place.

Team leaders: Clayton Keller may be one of the most underrated players in the league, as the 26-year-old wing leads the squad in all three major statistical categories this season with a 18-39-57 line. The No. 3 overall pick in the 2020 draft, Logan Cooley, is having a breakout season at age 20 with 15 goals and 43 points but recently landed on injured reserve with a lower body injury, while Nick Schmaltz has a 11-30-41 line. Another top draft pick, Dylan Guenther (ninth overall in 2021), is next on the team with 18 goals and 19 assists for 37 points.

In net, Karel Vejmelka has been one of the top netminders in the league this season, going 12-14-4 while posting a 2.46 goals-against average and .910 save percentage on the season in 30 games.

What’s new: Utah was hanging in there with a 16-11-5 record through Dec. 20, but the Club has just six wins in the last 21 games and sits six points out of a playoff spot going into tonight’s action. The recent injuries to such top players as Cooley and Guenther haven’t helped, and Utah still appears to be figuring out how to learn to win – their nine overtime losses are tied for second most in the NHL, as are their seven setbacks when leading after two periods.

Trending: Columbus posted a 3-2 overtime win in Utah on Friday in the first-ever matchup between the franchises. When the team was in Arizona, the Coyotes had won four straight games the past two seasons.

Former CBJ: Defenseman Ian Cole has posted a 1-12-13 line this season while playing for his ninth NHL team, while center Kevin Stenlund has held down the fourth line while chipping in seven goals among his 13 points.