The Mammoth send a message to the league with a demolishing of Chicago at home
Last night was an absolute masterclass in NHL team building, courtesy of Bill Armstrong. The Mammoth had 14 players on the scoresheet yesterday, with one of the most well-balanced attacks and overall gameplay this team has ever seen. Oh, and the team posted their first home shutout, which also happened to be the first ever opening-night shutout.
Sadly, full replays for me are unavailable, as ESPN+ is not something anyone should have to put up with. A normal write-up would give you more of a breakdown of play by play, but that should resume next game.
With that said, I will get to the good and bad below, as usual, but there are so many good takeaways that I couldn’t possibly get to them all. So, I’ll give an honorable mention for this game, because they deserve it!
3 GOALS (THE GOOD):
Rocket Richard? During the Blue Carpet event, Dylan Guenther passed me. As he looked up, I said “You’ll get the Rocket Richard this year, right?” He chuckled. Then, he opened the scoring for Utah for the third straight year – netting the game-winner – and adding another later in the game. Don’t look now, but Guenther is on pace for 168 goals, which would be a Utah Mammoth goal scoring record.
Guenther looked hungry all night, though he only managed a total of 14 minutes of ice time. 2 goals in that span puts him on pace for 8+ goals per 60 (a stat normally provided by the NHL app, which is not working. Thankfully, I have a calculator…). While an unsustainable pace, things are looking really solid for Gunner. Is he going to break 50 this year? On my podcast, I didn’t think so initially. After watching his eyes and intensity yesterday, I’m convinced I was wrong.
At this pace, goal 50 would be a Thanksgiving treat… New Blood There were several additions to the Mammoth this offseason. I did a 10 minute video about Anders Lee and his skills and abilities. Those were on full display on goal 4, with an unfathomably skilled play to tip a puck, through multiple lines of traffic, right under the crossbar. I’ve seen him for more than 10 years on the Islanders, and he still amazes me every time.
Fun fact: despite going to Islanders game for years, and despite them playing at the Delta Center twice, that was my first ever “in-person” Anders Lee goal. I may have teared up a little.
Vincent Trocheck also made significant impacts yesterday as well. Trocheck went 9 and 2 on the dot, a staggering 78% win percentage. Most impressively, he got that percentage while taking the most draws on the team. Jack McBain had 100% win rate on 3 draws, but closing in nearly 80% on more than 10 is stellar. Couple that with an assist and Vinny made quite a debut. To compare game effectiveness, Lee was 0% on the faceoff dot. Whatta bum.
Andrew Peeke, the third and final pickup to play yesterday also had fantastic contributions to the game. Peeke, an agitator that Utah sorely needed, notched his first point on the Anders Lee tip, threw a couple of big hits, drew a cross-checking penalty leading directly to the Keller PPG, and led defensemen in blocked shots. Paired with Dmitri Simashev, the pairing had the best statistical rating of the night.
It’s one game in, but did GMBA win the offseason? Gritty May be the Flyers mascot, but that’s the Mammoth identity from the get-go. The team led in possession time, yet somehow ended up winning the hits battle as well. Utah registered 42 hits, which is double what they averaged last year in total. Mind you, again, this is with the team leading possession stats. That’s unheard of.
Mackenzie Weegar led all skaters with 7 hits, tying the high-water mark of hits of last year (Jack McBain – 7) and he did so in the first game of the year. Trocheck and Michael Carcone, last year’s whirling dervish, led forwards with 6 each.
After a physically punishing series against Las Vegas in April, one in which the Mammoth led all NHL teams in the post-season with 40+ hits per game, having this physicality show early is a big, glowing Mammoth shaped neon sign that reads “You might beat us, but you’ll pay a price every inch of the ice”.
And some more:
1) Defensively, the Mammoth held Chicago to just 15 shots, including just 2 in the second period. I had told my wife I expected about 18, and they were even better than my best expectation.
2) Balanced offensive lines didn’t rely on a single player yesterday. Nick Schmaltz led forwards in ice time with just over 18 minutes. Last year, the top line of Schmaltz, Clayton Keller, and Lawson Crouse averaged roughly 19 minutes per game. Even the 4th line averaged more than 12 minutes.
3) 72.2% face-off percentage is the highest ever for the Mammoth. Previously, the Mammoth’s best face-off percentage was 66.1%, also against Chicago, back in March.
4) Logan Cooley heavily supplemented that success by going 7/10 at the dot. Previously, he had two better games (5/6 against Montreal in 2025, 4/4 against LA in April) but this is the first time he’s won this high a percentage with this many draws.
5) 19 players were on the ice last night, and 14 of them scored a point. Karel Vejmelka was not one of them, unlike Igor Shesterkin from the Rangers. Whatta bum.
3 CHIRPS (THE BAD):
Shutout? Hey, you know having a shutout is an amazing thing. How in the world can this be a chirp? Well, in a game where everything went right, it’s nitpicky at best.
Rebound control from Vejmelka was a little off, and he did swim a little more than I would have liked in the crease. He did make a play behind the net, I believe in the 1st period, where he was out of position and rescued by the defense. However, you can’t argue with setting yourself in the history books as the first shutout at home ever. So, Veggie, swim away if it means you’ll get a few more shutouts this year (but please stay in the crease a little more). Mari…oh no I absolutely love the JohnMarino signing. I absolutely love John Marino as a player and a defenseman for Utah. However, I saw a few things that caught me off guard that seemed a little out of place for him last night. Marino is great at reading plays, but there was one that stuck out in my mind in the 2nd period. With great offensive pressure, the puck squirted out towards the blue line. Marino had time to collapse on the puck and sustain pressure. Instead, he was unsure and ended up backing away from the play. It was an insignificant play in the grand scheme of the game, but the decision-making wasn’t as crisp as last year. Again, nitpicky here, but I’d like to see that mental aggression ramp up if he can do so. 27. This is a sacred number in the Your Favorite Hockey Guy household. Anders Lee, for a decade, was 27. He was the captain of the Islanders. 27 is the year I told my wife we were going to be Western Conference Champions or better. 27 could have gotten us a 2nd round pick.
Instead, we are treated to another year of Barrett Hayton. Hayton, who forced one of my historical favorite players to change his number, proved why he was worth a 2nd round pick by picking up a late 2nd period penalty, killing a few drives with poor passing plays, and generally unable to put the puck on net in any meaningful way.
We could have had a 2nd rounder for him. That would have allowed Trocheck to play at the C position. It would have allowed us to put in stronger offensive players in the top 9. It would have given Lee his jersey number.
We’ll see if he can make the number proud, but I’m hoping 27 is the year we can finally put the Hayton experiment to bed.
Next up:
Saturday night, the Mammoth take on the Columbus Blue Jackets in Columbus. Puck drop 5PM local, with the game actually broadcast on a channel that isn’t absolutely atrocious at hockey commentary (SEG+ and Utah 16)
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