Utah Down the Blackhawks in Four

Back to Back Western Conference Finals

The Utah Hockey Club have completed a clean sweep of the Chicago Blackhawks in the second round of the 2025 DCHL Playoffs.

Do you remember the lyrics “video killed the radio star”? Well, let me tell you, penalties killed the Chicago Blackhawks. Across the four games, Chicago was penalized 24 times, and Utah was able to capitalize six times (25%). Utah on the other hand, was penalized only 11 times, and did not allow a goal on the penalty kill.

Jake Oettinger was spectacular in the series, posting a GAA of 1.50 and SV% of 0.943. Aleksander Barkov was also at the top of his game, throwing the regular season monkey off his back, collecting four goals and two assists in the four games against the Blackhawks. The captain was unfortunately injured at the halfway mark of the third period after taking a hit from Adrian Kempe and falling awkwardly against the boards. Barkov is now listed as day-to-day and is hoping to be in the line-up for the start of the Western Conference Final.

Evan Bouchard was the hero of Game 4, scoring on the powerplay halfway through the first overtime in front of a packed home crowd. As handshakes took place between the two teams, you could hear the crown chanting” We Want Calgary”, a nod to the controversial 2023 DCHL Playoffs.

Utah/Arizona has now made it to the Conference Final in back-to-back seasons, and are hoping for a better outcome than last year after getting swept 4-0 by the Edmonton Oilers. Utah will have about a week of rest until they find out who they play next, as the Calgary and Vancouver series is tied at 2-2.