Cooley ‘on a mission’ with Mammoth in 1st Stanley Cup Playoff appearance

LAS VEGAS -- Logan Cooley did not ease into his Stanley Cup Playoff debut. The 21-year-old forward was the best player on the ice in the Utah Mammoth’s 4-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 1 of the Western Conference First Round at T-Mobile Arena on Sunday, showing speed, skill and physicality.

“He was on a mission,” coach Andre Tourigny said. “He was really good.”

Cooley scored the first goal in Utah playoff history, ripping a one-timer from the right circle with 11 seconds to go in the first period for a 1-0 lead. He led the Mammoth in shots with five, led their forwards ice time at 19:59 and threw four hits too.

A reporter told Cooley it might have been the meanest game he’d seen him play. Is that a side of him the fans haven’t seen? Are we going to see more of it in the future?

Game 2 of the best-of-7 series is here Tuesday (9:30 p.m. ET; Utah16, SCRIPPS, ESPN2, TVAS2, SN, CBC).

“It’s the playoffs,” Cooley said. “You’re playing for the Cup. You’re doing whatever you can to help your team win, and if that is physical or scoring, playing good defensively, (you’ll do) whatever the team needs, and I think that’s our mindset in this locker room too. It’s all about the team focus and trying to win games here.”

No one should be surprised.

The Arizona Coyotes selected Cooley with the No. 3 pick of the 2022 NHL Draft. At 19, he had 44 points (20 goals, 24 assists) in 82 games in 2023-24 and finished fifth in the voting for the Calder Trophy, which goes to the NHL rookie of the year.

The NHL established a new franchise in Utah on April 18, 2024, and the team bought the Coyotes hockey assets. At 20, Cooley had 65 points (25 goals, 40 assists) in 75 games for the Utah Hockey Club.

Although he missed 28 games with a lower-body injury from Dec. 6-Feb. 4 this season, he had 43 points (24 goals, 19 assists) in 54 games for the rebranded Mammoth. That projects to about 65 points (36 goals, 29 assists) over a full 82-game schedule.

“I think he is a player that’s ready to take that step onto center stage here in the playoffs and be a guy that commands a lot of space out there,” defenseman Nate Schmidt said. “He really makes a lot of plays for guys and creates space for people. I love his game. It’s nasty around the puck. He’s not someone that’s going to shy away from it, and that’s what I love about him.”

Cooley seems to love playing Vegas.

He has 12 points (eight goals, four assists) in nine regular-season games against the Golden Knights, more than he has against any opponent but the Nashville Predators, against whom he has 13 points (five goals, eight assists) in 11 games.

In Utah’s two seasons, Cooley has 10 points (seven goals, three assists) in six regular-season games against the Golden Knights. The only player in the NHL with as many points against them in that span is Los Angeles Kings forward Quinton Byfield, who has 10 (four goals, six assists) in eight games.

On Nov. 24, Cooley became the first player in Utah history to score four goals in a game and set an NHL career high with five points, and he did it in a 5-1 win against, of course, Vegas.

The playoffs are supposed to be different. Teams like the Golden Knights, who won the Stanley Cup in 2023 and are loaded with playoff experience, are supposed to take time and space away from players like Cooley. They’re supposed to intimidate them physically.

But that didn’t happen in Game 1.

“It’s huge,” forward Lawson Crouse said. “‘Cools’ is one of the biggest competitors I know. He’s done that all season long, ever since I’ve known him and played with him. He’s a battler and definitely a guy that you want to follow. When he’s playing like that, it’s encouraging and energizing for the group.”

Cooley said teams try to wear down opponents in the playoffs, and he acknowledged that it’s no fun when guys are grabbing and bumping him. But he said the Mammoth simply need to return the favor.

He considered the loss Sunday a learning experience, a building block.

“A lot of us, it’s our first playoff game,” said Cooley, one of seven Mammoth players who made his playoff debut. “To get that under your belt, get settled in, it feels good. Obviously, we’d like to get the win, but (it’s good) just to get your feet wet a little bit and know how it is and what we need to do to beat them and get Game 2, so I’m excited for that part, and it’s going to be exciting to get ready to get back at it.”