Goodbye Grizzlies: A Review of Utah's Final Season

For their final season in the Beehive State, the Utah Grizzlies had a hard fought but rather unsuccessful end of the road. Entering the year amid rumors of a potential sale and relocation, the Grizzlies spent much of the season fighting uphill in the rugged Mountain Division while also trying to establish a younger core that could define the organization’s future. Utah finished with a record of 30-32-9-1 in 72 games, struggling defensively for long stretches while still producing enough offense to remain competitive on many nights. The club allowed significantly more goals than it scored, a statistic that reflected inconsistent goal-tending and defensive-zone breakdowns that haunted the team throughout the winter. Despite the standings, several individual performances gave fans reasons for optimism. **The Stars of the Show** The breakout star of the season was rookie forward Daniyal Dzhaniyev, who emerged as Utah’s offensive engine. Dzhaniyev led the club in scoring with 73 points (24 G, 49 A) and was eventually recognized as the ECHL Rookie of the Year after an explosive first year. His creativity on the power play and ability to generate offense off the rush made him one of the league’s most entertaining young forwards.

INTRODUCING YOUR 2025–26 ECHL ALL-ROOKIE TEAM 👏

G - T.J. Semptimphelter (#35)

D - Brent Johnson (#51) D - Ben Meehan (#7)

F - Jackson Jutting (#9) F - Ryan Kirwan (#45) F - Danny Dzhaniyev (#26)

📝: pic.twitter.com/oyWr9GWWIS

— ECHL (@ECHL) April 15, 2026 Alongside him, Reed Lebster provided consistent finishing touch throughout the season, surpassing the 30-goal mark and establishing himself as Utah’s top pure scorer. His chemistry with Dzhaniyev became the team’s biggest offensive weapon, especially during stretches when secondary scoring disappeared. The goal-tending situation, however, never fully stabilized. The Grizzlies cycled through several goalies over the course of the year, and while there were occasional standout performances from players such as Dylan Wells and Dryden McKay, the club struggled to find consistency in net. Utah frequently found itself needing to score four or five goals simply to have a chance at winning. **Addressing the Elephant off the ice** One of the defining storylines of the season existed away from the ice. It was announced at the beginning of the season that after 24 years in West Valley City, the Grizzlies would be moving to Trenton, New Jersey. The Utah Grizzlies announce that the 25-26 season will be their final campaign in West Valley City.