Monday night in the NHL features a Central Division showdown, with the Winnipeg Jets heading to Salt Lake City to play the Utah Hockey Club. Welcome to NHL Predictions here at Last Word on Hockey, where we preview and predict the upcoming slate of NHL games around the league each day! In this article, we will preview and predict the matchup between the Winnipeg Jets and Utah HC. Be sure to check out all of our NHL Predictions throughout the 2024-25 season and follow along with your favourite teams.
NHL Predictions
Winnipeg Jets vs Utah Hockey Club
Head-to-Head: Jets 1-0 Utah
Time: 9:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST)
TV: TVAS; TSN3; Utah16; ESPN+
The Winnipeg Jets and Utah Hockey Club will meet for the second of four matchups this season, the first to take place at the Delta Center on Monday night. Their first meeting was a 3-0 shutout victory for the Jets back on November 5th. Nino Niederreiter scored twice in that game, Adam Lowry added a pair of assists, and Connor Hellebuyck made 21 saves to secure the shutout. Special teams were costly for Utah in that game, as they failed to score on their four attempts with the man advantage, while Winnipeg went one-for-two.
Utah’s premier scorer Dylan Guenther will remain out in this contest. He has been on injured reserve since January 14th with a lower-body injury.
Winnipeg Jets Win Streak Snapped
The Calgary Flames snapped the Winnipeg Jets three-game winning streak on Saturday, defeating the Jets 3-1 at Canada Life Center. The star of the show was rookie goaltender Dustin Wolf. The Calgary netminder out-dueled Eric Comrie and made 38 saves en route to an impressive road victory. It was a dominant performance from the Jets, who controlled all aspects of the game. Though, despite their 31 shots at five-on-five, their 74.44% expected goals for percentage, and owning a 13-3 margin in high-danger chances (both also five-on-five stats), they couldn’t solve Wolf more than their lone tally. Every now and then, a team will get “goalied”. The Jets got goalied on Saturday night.
Utah Hockey Club Hoping to Build Momentum
Utah got a much-needed victory over the St. Louis Blues on Saturday, skating away with a 4-2 win. Clayton Keller put his club on his back and led the charge with a goal and three assists to help Utah snap a three-game losing streak. Despite the win, Utah has dropped ten of their last thirteen games. They have plummeted down the Western Conference standings during that time. Their upcoming slate of games doesn’t get any easier for them either. Their next four games include two versus Winnipeg and solo games against Minnesota and Ottawa.
Prediction
This has the potential to be a look-ahead game for Winnipeg. Following their game on Monday, the Jets head to Colorado to play the Avs who have blossomed as a major rival of them over the last couple of seasons. With Utah scuffling, this smells like a dangerous trap game for Winnipeg. Having said all that, Utah has won just seven games on home ice this season. Well, something has to give in this one. Expect to see the Jets pick up a point in this game, but leave Utah feeling disappointed.
Prediction: Utah wins 4-3 in OT
Prop Bet of the Night
From watching Winnipeg versus Calgary, it was astounding that Nikolaj Ehlers didn’t record a hat trick or something close to it. The speedy Dane was all over the ice (in a good way) in that contest. His tough luck will be cashed in against Utah on Monday. Gambling sites have Ehlers at +240 as an anytime goal scorer. We think you can lock that in as a potential winner.
Main Photo Credit: Terrence Lee-Imagn Images
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The post NHL Predictions: January 20 Winnipeg Jets vs Utah Hockey Club appeared first on Last Word On Hockey.