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WEST VALLEY CITY — The Utah Grizzlies entered Game 3 already down two games to none in the best of seven series. As the series shifted back to their home ice at the Maverik Center they were looking to build any momentum they could, but that didn’t happen. The Utah Grizzlies fell to the Fort Wayne Komets on Wednesday night 3-1 and now trail 3-0 in the Chase for the Kelly Cup Playoffs.
“We played a really good game through the first two periods, but fell through in the third,” said head coach Tim Branham. “We missed a breakaway, a two-one and they scored on their opportunities and we didn’t.”
The first 40 minutes of the hockey game was all Utah as they capture the early one goal lead after Jon Puskar netted his second goal of the playoffs, but the last twenty minutes was all Komets. It started off with a goal by Shawn Szydlowski, who hammered home the first goal for the Komets early in the third period.
“We had a game plan going into it [third period] and we didn’t execute the game plan, we didn’t play smart on the first and then the second one we didn’t have a good penalty kill,” Branham said. “I think all around we can play much better defensively, for the whole game not just forty minutes.”
The first period started off fast as for the Grizzlies as the tradition lived on and the “fish hit the ice” as Jon Puskar scored the first goal of the night and his second goal of the playoffs less than three minutes into the game to put Utah on top 1-0.
Two other goals were scored by the visiting Komets the second goal came off a Matt Berry penalty who was sent to the penalty box for a delay of game call which the Komets capitalized and score a power play goal to take the lead for the first time of the night and the final goal was scored by Garrett Thompson who scored his sixth goal of the playoffs.
Now the Grizzlies will look to turn the series around this Friday night as they will look to keep the series alive as they now trail 3-0 heading into Game 4 and Branham still has a strategy heading into the potential final game of the year.
“We have to focus one game at a time, and we have to play a full 60 minutes and we haven’t played our best hockey yet.” You can follow David "Vito" Winkworth on Twitter @RealDavidVito for the latest news on the Utah Grizzlies and the world of sports.
