Michael Carcone leads UHC’s efforts

Michael Carcone’s tenacious performance epitomized the Utah Hockey Club’s overall game on Monday against the Dallas Stars.

The fourth-line forward had four shots, two goals, a block and a takeaway in 16:31 minutes of ice time in the 2-1 loss at Delta Center. Carcone was inches away from scoring in all three periods and played a determined defensive style – but he couldn’t find the desired result on the scoresheet.

Similarly, the Utah Hockey Club was able to contain and even dominate a strong division opponent for much of the evening, firing a season-high 35 shots on goal and clawing their way back into the game in the second period after a 2-0 loss.

But her comeback failed.

“I thought we played well. “That’s a good team over there and I felt like we outplayed them for the most part tonight,” Carcone said. “I thought we deserved better, but I feel like we say that quite a bit now. At some point things will just work out for us – stick with it.”

Carcone’s line of Alex Kerfoot and Kevin Stenlund picked up the pace for Utah, running with a certain edge and growl. The trio combined for seven shots on goal – the second most of any scorer – and were strong in the lead-up to the game, maintaining their energy throughout 60 minutes.

A lot of that has to do with Carcone’s growing confidence since securing a consistent lineup, he said. The 28-year-old winger was a healthy player for nearly a month before returning to the nightly rotation in early November.

He has now played 12 consecutive games and scored his first goal of the season on Saturday in Las Vegas.

“I think he brings a special element of speed to our team. “There isn’t a game where I don’t see Carcone pushing his D back, going around him, getting the puck deep into his zone and doing things like that,” head coach André Tourigny said.

Like Carcone, Utah came out with pace in the first frame, building on its stunning win on Saturday. The team created dangerous chances – particularly through Kerfoot, Carcone and Dylan Guenther – and controlled the neutral zone, which put the Stars in trouble for parts of the game.

Despite a high-profile opening, Utah had nothing to show on the scoreboard.

“The opportunities are there, I just didn’t take advantage of them,” said Carcone. “Could be 2-2, could be 3-2 if I put one of them away. I’m definitely putting pressure on myself and I need to start contributing in the way that I know I can.”

The Stars took a 1-0 lead in the second period while Clayton Keller was in the penalty box for his holding. Utah gave Evgenii Dadonov as much time and space with the puck as he wanted before the Dallas forward fired it past Karel Vejmelka from the bottom right circle at 7:07.

Jamie Benn chipped away at his team’s lead with less than a minute left in the middle stanza. The Stars won a faceoff in the defensive zone and pushed the puck to the other end of the ice, where Benn fired it home from the right side after a pass from Sam Steel.

Nick Schmaltz kept Utah in the fight in the final frame with his third goal in two games. After spending 23 games searching for his first goal of the season, Schmaltz has finally managed to make a contribution to the top scorers list that noticeably changes the look of the games.

“That’s what you expect from a player like him,” Tourigny said.

Matias Maccelli picked up the puck on the boards and threw it to Schmaltz, who ripped it out of the high slot to make the final score 2-1 at 6:57. Maccelli scored his first point since Nov. 15 with the assist on the play.

Schmaltz would be the lone scorer for Utah on Monday as the team failed to find a way to force overtime in a third period that still showed resilience and determination.

“I thought we had overwhelmed them all. I think they just held on and put the pucks out and we controlled the game for the most part,” Schmaltz said. “Struggled in the third round and just couldn’t find a way to get the next one.”

In general, Utah can be happy with its competition. But it’s the NHL and the feeling of a moral victory isn’t enough in the standings or in the locker room. These pros want to win and it’s up to them to find the game that puts them over the edge in games like Monday’s.

“It feels like we take one step forward and then two steps back,” Carcone said. “When we took that step forward, we came in and I thought we played a great game but we just can’t get results. As soon as we learn from it and play a little bit stingier, I think we’ll be good to go.”