With both Sean Durzi and John Marino out with long-term injuries, the Utah Hockey Club quickly found themselves missing two of their top right-handed defencemen. Management needed to figure out how to fill each defensive position. The team acquired Olli Maatta in a trade with the Detroit Red Wings to help. However, Michael Kesselring stepped into the new role and is benefiting during their absences, which could lead to a career year.
Utah Has a Nice Ring to It
Michael Kesselring is one of three right-handed defencemen left on the roster besides veteran Robert Bortuzzo and rookie Maveric Lamoureux. Bortuzzo hasn’t played since November 5 against the Winnipeg Jets and remains a healthy scratch, which gives Kesselring the larger increase in ice-time. This indicates more responsibilities and expectations for the 24-year-old D-man.
The former sixth-round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft was acquired in a 2023 trade with the Edmonton Oilers. Kesselring’s current teammate, Nick Bjugstad, went to the Oilers in the deal. With the injuries on defence, his average time-on-ice rose to 19:20, up about four minutes from last year’s 15:47. While Utah’s 7-8-3 record doesn’t show it, Kesselring is proving he can play heavier minutes and provide a strong two-way game.
Kesselring Benefiting
With Durzi and Marino out, Utah needed to shake up their defensive pairings. The newly-acquired Mattaa is partnered with Mikhail Sergachev on the top pair. That sets Kesselring up with Juuso Valimaki on the second pair and Lamoureux with Ian Cole on the third. Despite the team being ranked 17th in goals allowed, Sergachev has been the standout of the Utah back-end. While Kesselring doesn’t block shots at the same rate as Sergachev, his 26 hits puts him third on the team.
So far, Kesselring has scored three goals and added six assists, good for second behind Mikhail Sergachev in scoring among Utah defencemen. Sergachev has four goals and eight assists with 25:29 of average ice-time and 2:45 of power-play time. Kesselring has done his fair share despite playing less, including only 44 seconds of power-play time.
In addition, Kesselring’s 32 shots on goal are tied with Sergachev for first among Utah defencemen. He’s on pace to break last year’s career high of 21 points that took 65 games to achieve. Breaking his career high in points while filling in for two key defencemen could earn Kesselring a pay raise once his contract expires.
Making the Most of his Opportunity
Struggling Utah had their biggest win of the season against the Carolina Hurricanes, who recently had an eight-game winning streak. Although Utah won because of backup goaltender Karel Vejmelka, Kesselring registered an assist on the game-winning goal and added another later in the game. Not only has Kesselring impacted the scoresheet for Utah, the team has played better while he was on the ice.
This season, Kesselring has a Corsi For % at Even Strength of 55.0%. Anything above 50% means Utah has controlled the puck more often when Kesselring is on the ice. This reflects well for Kesselring’s chance to record more points when Utah has possession of the puck more often. A quick puck-moving defenceman can help relieve pressure by making sure the puck leaves the defensive zone quickly to avoid lengthy shifts. That is why Kesselring’s game has been successful so far.
Despite being primarily a bottom-six defenceman, Kesselring has made the most of his ice-time. He stepped into the top-four of the defence and has excelled in the new position. It’s unknown if Kesselring will keep this momentum, however, he’s clearly benefiting from the elevated role that is solidified until Durzi and Marino return to action. Will it continue? The Utah organization and Kesselring sure hope so.
Main Photo Credit: Rob Gray – Imagn Images
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