Utah Hockey Club vs Pittsburgh Prediction 30 January 2025

🔊 Can Utah successfully start their home series? At the end of January, the team, being the underdog, secured several unexpected victories. Their opponent, the inconsistent Pittsburgh, is concluding a long and unsuccessful away series. Both teams are outside the playoff zone and are playing unconvincing hockey; however, in this match, they will try to please their fans.

📊 HEAD-TO-HEAD

The opponents met at the end of November last year. Back then, Utah's hockey players achieved a crushing victory on the road. The biggest contribution in that match was made by forwards Clayton Keller and Dylan Guenther. However, at the moment, Guenther is on the injured list and will not be able to help the team. Before the creation of a new franchise in Utah, the "Penguins" mostly defeated the team from Arizona, so they have an advantage in head-to-head meetings.

🔵 UTAH

Utah gives a mixed impression. The team can outplay Vegas and Colorado but is capable of losing matches against Anaheim, San Jose, and Seattle. The beginning of December was successful for Utah, but since then, they have been losing more than winning. The leader of the club for several years is forward Clayton Keller. The forward has 18 goals and 36 assists. Key defenders for Utah, Mikhail Sergachev and Sean Durzi, continue to be on the injured list, and this factor undoubtedly affects the team's results.

🐧 PITTSBURGH

The "Penguins" have been struggling for three consecutive matches and cannot score more than one goal per game. The team is in second-to-last place in the Eastern Conference and risks missing the playoffs for the third consecutive season. The situation for Pittsburgh is complicated by the recent injury of Evgeni Malkin, who is listed as "week-to-week" and will definitely not help the team in the match against Utah.

📌 PROJECTED LINEUPS

Utah: Vejmelka - Marino, Määtä - Schmaltz, Cooley, Keller

Pittsburgh: Nedeljkovic - Pettersson, Letang - Rust, Crosby, Rakell

🥅 GOALIES

The injury to Connor Ingram has allowed Czech goalie Karel Vejmelka to be Utah's main goalkeeper for almost two months. The Czech goalie has posted decent statistics, conceding an average of 2.54 goals per game. It is possible that Ingram will start in goal against the "Penguins." Connor made a good impression last season, playing 50 games and conceding an average of 2.91 goals per game.

Pittsburgh's goaltending position can safely be called problematic this season. Tristan Jarry's slump prompted management to send him to the AHL, leaving only Alex Nedeljkovic and young Joel Blomqvist in the lineup. The goalies have less than stellar statistics, conceding an average of 3.5 goals per game.

📝 EDITOR'S PREDICTION

Pittsburgh's problems are growing with each match. The team struggles against clubs from the lower part of the table and often cannot score more than one goal. Longtime leaders of the "Penguins," Sidney Crosby and Kris Letang, seem to be losing their positions, and one of the league's best offensive defensemen, Erik Karlsson, has not been showing his previous level since joining the team. The injury to Evgeni Malkin and the exhausting away series give reason to choose Pittsburgh's individual total under 2.5 goals as a bet.