O’Brien played his first game in two months and scored his third of the season in the third period. In addition to his goal, he led the Mammoth with six hits. ‘Spicy Tuna’ helped bring physicality in the absence of center Jack McBain who is week-to-week with a lower-body injury.
“Heck of a goal by (O’Brien) there too,” Keller said of his teammate. “That was unreal. He’s such a great teammate, great guy, and he grinds every single day. That’s awesome to see too.”
In addition to O’Brien, defenseman Nick DeSimone also drew back into the lineup as blueliner MacKenzie Weegar is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. DeSimone had an assist in the win and played 15:54 in his first game since Mar. 10.
“I’m sure everyone on the team can’t say enough good things about (DeSimone),” Marino shared. “He’s been doing it the whole year, in and out of the lineup, and when he comes in, he can play 20 minutes and make it look pretty easy. He’s super undervalued and we’re just glad he’s on our team.”
Both players were able to have impacts, despite not playing recently. This shows the depth that the Mammoth have, something that continues to be incredibly valuable.
“Both of those two guys, I trust them,” head coach André Tourigny said. “They play the right way, they’re good pros. They stay ready, (no matter) how long they (haven’t) played. They jumped in and it was a must-win (game) for us and I think they contributed.”
"We have a deep lineup and anyone that steps in is a great player and someone that knows our systems well and can contribute,” Keller said of his teammates stepping in. “O'Brien and DeSimone stepped in tonight and were great for us. Two great teammates, great guys. If they’re in the lineup, (or) they’re not, they’re just the same person. They come to work every single day and it’s good to see them in the lineup and contribute.”
Similar to Thursday’s win in Seattle, the Mammoth didn’t have the strongest start. However, the team continued to get better as the game went on and found their game in the second and third periods. Utah pulled ahead in the final nine minutes of regulation with a pair of goals. This helped secure the multi-goal win for the visitors.
“Slow start in the first period,” Tourigny reflected. “In our battle level, our intensity. I liked the way we responded in the second. We played better, and even better in the third. I think effort wise and everything, pace, was much better … I liked the fact (that we) pulled away and we found a way to get the two points.”
With the playoff race as tight as it is, Saturday’s win helps Utah stay in the hunt for the franchise’s first postseason appearance.
“That’s huge,” Marino said of the two road wins this week. “It’s still a tight playoff race too. Obviously nothing guaranteed yet, and every game’s going to be huge, especially tonight.”
“Everybody is winning, so we need to win,” Tourigny explained. “At the end of the day, we want to play game 83. In order to do that, we need to win games. You're not going in because anyone let you in. We need to keep winning games. It's not over, there's a lot of hockey left, and we have to keep winning."
The Mammoth will return home for a three-game homestand. Utah will host the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday. Buy your tickets here!
Additional Notes from Tonight (per Mammoth PR)
- Associate Captain Lawson Crouse has recorded his eighth multi-point game of the season, giving him six points over his last six games (4G, 2A).
- Marino became the second Utah defenseman to record 30 assists in a single campaign.
- Guenther has posted four goals and eight points over his last four games, with three multi-point efforts over that span. His 15 goals since the start of February (21 GP) are tied for the second-most in the NHL.
- Utah’s power play has scored in five-straight games and gone 9-for-17 over that span. That’s a 52.9% conversion rate and the third-longest streak in franchise history.
- Yamamoto found the scoresheet in all three games against the Canucks this season (1G, 2A).
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