It was only the first game of the First Round, but Sunday night showed how close of a battle it will be between the Mammoth and Golden Knights. It was also the first time several Utah players participated in the NHL playoffs. Game 1 allowed these players, like center Logan Cooley, to get their feet wet and know what they can expect Tuesday night.
“Right from the start, I knew it was going to be physical, a super-fast game. Not a lot of room out there and I think early on, we did a good job of applying our game, playing our style, and maybe let off a little bit towards the third (period) and it cost us. But, you know, it’s a long series and we just got to regroup and clean up a few things.”
Veterans like defenseman Nate Schmidt, will be important for this group as players gain more experience. One way Utah’s veterans will help is keeping the team on track after losses, and reminding the group that there’s time for them to adjust and find success.
“This is a long series, that’s what we planned on it to be,” veteran defenseman Nate Schmidt explained. “There’s a lot of lessons to be had tonight. Our effort was there. There was some momentum swings, that’s the playoffs … There’s things to build on for Game 2 and I think some of our guys tonight got a taste of what it’s like and all the emotional parts of it and the (excitement) that is playoff hockey. I’m excited for it to be a long series and for Game 2.”
It may have been Cooley’s first NHL playoff game, but the center delivered. Cooley played 19:59, scored the game’s opening goal, had five shots and four hits. He generated chances, brought a higher level of physicality, and had a strong performance under the bright lights of the NHL playoffs.
“I think he is a player that’s ready to take that step on the center stage here in the playoffs,” Schmidt said of Cooley. “And be a guy that commands a lot of space out there and he really makes a lot of plays for guys and creates space for people, and I love his game. I love that he’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. That’s what I think, you know, as we go on here, he’s going to just show more and more and just some young legs that are willing to do that dirty work, which is something that, is really important this time of year.”
For Cooley, it’s all about focusing on the team’s goals and game plan. He wants to bring whatever he can to make a difference.
“It’s the playoffs, you’re playing for the Cup, you’re doing whatever you can to help your team win,” Cooley explained. “If that is (physicality) or scoring, playing good defense, 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.”
The Mammoth had two injured players rejoin the lineup, defenseman Sean Durzi and forward Jack McBain. Durzi missed the regular season finale with an upper-body injury while McBain’s lower-body injury has kept him on the sidelines since the start of the month.
Durzi played 15:04 on Sunday, had an assist, one shot, and one block. McBain played 9:06, won 50% of his faceoffs, and had two hits. In addition to what they bring on the ice, both players are significant parts of this team off the ice.
“(McBain's) such a force and Durzi does a lot of good things with the puck,” Schmidt said. “I think both guys always add a little extra element to our game, whether it’s with their (talking) or whether it’s with their bodies, so it’s always nice getting your guys back in after a little bit of a hiatus.”
“(It was) huge. McBain’s such a team-first guy, playoff player," Crouse said. "The way he plays, he’s hard, he’s heavy on pucks, he’s unselfish and just a great teammate. He’s always there to pick people up when they’re down, just really gives everything he can each and every night.”
As the Mammoth look to even the series on Tuesday, staying even keeled through momentum swings will be key. Playoff wins can be determined by one singular play, and if Utah can survive the lows and capitalize on the highs, it’ll help the Mammoth secure wins in the postseason.
“Finding ways to gain that momentum back includes, the next guys that go over got to try to grab it back as fast as they can because that’s the name of the game,” Schmidt said. “When we were rolling in the first, they were all over the second. You could tell each team wanted to grab it back. But sometimes, if you have a good grasp on it, it’s you don’t want to relinquish that. And it’s something that, like I said, there was a learning curve for our guys, a learning spot for our team and I’m excited for what our guys will bring in Game 2.”
“I think at this point, as a coach, what you need to do is make sure your team is in the right mindset,” Tourigny on supporting this team as their coach. “The right approach, they’re in control, and they control their performance, which I’m proud of the way they played in that sense. I think we’ll learn a lot through the series, no doubt about it. But I think as a first game, although I’d love to win the game no doubt about it, but I think we pushed back after they took the lead. We stayed in control. The guys were calm on the bench, or even keeled. We didn’t act like we were a young team or a team who has a lack of experience. It was reverse. I felt we were in control.”
Game 2 of the First Round series between the Mammoth and Golden Knights is on Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. MT. You can watch on ESPN, Utah16, or Mammoth+.
Additional Notes from Tonight (per Mammoth PR)
- Logan Cooley has become the sixth player in NHL history to tally a point on a franchise's first regular-season goal and a franchise's first playoff goal, joining Cy Denneny (OTT), Bill Cook (NYR), Wayne Gretzky (EDM), Mike Rogers (HFD) and Greg Johnson (NSH).
- Sunday night was veteran Nate Schmidt’s 100th career playoff game. He’s had postseason appearances with the Washington Capitals, Vegas Golden Knights, Winnipeg Jets, Florida Panthers, and Utah Mammoth.
- It was a very physical game as there were 82 total hits in Sunday’s contest. The Mammoth had 30 of those hits while Vegas had 52.
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