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SALT LAKE CITY — Utah Hockey Club head coach André Tourigny knows he's asking a lot from Karel Vejmelka.
On Sunday in Chicago, the goaltender started his 17th consecutive game, the most of any goalie this season.
"There's no load management," said Tourigny last week. "We can rest him so we can play golf in April. He's our best player since a while, and he's a big part of what we're doing and we're fighting for our life. We believe in ourselves and we believe we are in the thick of the battle."
And he kept Utah fighting for at least another day against the Blackhawks. Vejmelka made 27 saves to help Utah to a 5-2 win over Chicago at the United Center. He made key stops on odd-man rushes and blanked the Blackhawks on all four power-play opportunities.
Chicago's second goal only came after he had made two stops, but the third rebound chance got past him.
"He was unbelievable tonight," said forward Kailer Yamamoto. "I don't think we're winning that game without him. He played remarkably all night, so a lot of credit to him. He's definitely the first star on our team."
That was a good sign for the team after some iffy performances last week by Vejmelka. He didn't have his best stuff in a 5-1 loss to Detroit and was pulled during Utah's 8-0 loss to Tampa Bay. It looked like he had run out of steam after such a strong season, but it appears he has caught a second wind.
"He bounced back," Tourigny said. "The game against Detroit, he was just OK; game against Tampa, we all know what happened. He came up with a huge performance in Florida and then was even better tonight. He showed his character, and we can rely on him."
That's good news, too, because Utah doesn't really have another option with Connor Ingram on an indefinite leave.
Utah sent Jaxson Stauber down to Tucson after he gave up four goals on 10 shots in Utah's blowout loss to Tampa Bay last week (Vejmelka was pulled in that game). The team called up Matt Villalta to replace Stauber, but that move was essentially rearranging backups because until Utah is mathematically eliminated, Vejmelka will be taking the net.
"He gives us a chance to win, and that's all you can ask for," forward Lawson Crouse said.
Utah forward Alex Kerfoot had a goal and two assists for the Utah Hockey Club in the win and Mikhail Sergachev added a goal and an assist. Utah also had some firsts with Nick DeSimone and Kailer Yamamoto picking up their first goals of the season.
DeSimone's tally gave Utah a 1-0 lead at 8:21 of the second period with a long-range shot from the blue line through traffic. That started a wild back-and-forth second period where five goals were scored. Utah also got goals from Sergachev Kerfoot in the period to enter the third up 3-2.
Yamamoto's first goal in a Utah Hockey Club uniform provided some breathing room in the final stanza. Yamamoto one-timed a rebound from the right circle off a Kerfoot shot to give Utah a 4-2 lead at 10:57 of the third period.
"It's awesome," Yamamoto said. "Guys are great in the locker room, being able to tuck that one in and see how happy everyone was for me. It was awesome."
That timely goal wasn't a surprise to his head coach. Yamamoto has spent most of the season in the AHL after signing a one-year deal after being invited to training camp, but he's had years of NHL experience.
"He's a proven NHL player," Tourigny said. "He went to the (AHL) and had a perfect attitude, produced, was a good example on there, and now having his chance with us. Really happy for him."
Logan Cooley also scored his 22nd of the season for Utah to cap off the win.
With 78 points, the team has now surpassed the number of points it had last season in Arizona. The team, though, is 9 points off the playoff line with eight games left and will likely need to win all eight to even have a prayer at catching either Minnesota or St. Louis for the final playoff spots.
"We got to win as many games as we can, and it takes one at a time," Crouse said.
