Utah Falls to Colorado in First Preseason Game

DENVER – In their first preseason game of the 2026-27 season, the Utah Mammoth fell to the Colorado Avalanche, 4-1. Yegor Borikov had Utah’s lone goal in the second period. Gabe Smith and Artem Duda assisted on the tally.

After a slower first period, in which the home team had control, the Mammoth continued to improve, especially in the second period. Sunday was Utah’s first preseason game of the year, and after three straight days of practice, there was a limited amount of time to prepare. However, the Mammoth improved throughout the game and continued to push.

“We didn’t play with pace, we were slow (with) reactions,” head coach André Tourigny explained following the loss. “I thought we got better after the first period. I liked the effort the guys did to get back at it. I think it’s early in the season and I think we had three long practices, today maybe a little bit tired, maybe not the same spark. But, I like the fact we played better after the first period.

“…a few mistakes but there’s a lot to take (from) that game,” Tourigny continued. “Good teaching (moments), stuff to improve.”

“I think it took us probably until the second period to find our game and our legs and kind of get into it,” Nick DeSimone shared postgame. “But from there, I think we started getting to our forecheck and moving pucks and everything started to work a little bit better. Obviously, not the result (we wanted), things didn’t go our way and everything, and definitely have to be better. But I think we kind of started to get there in the second period and the rest of the game.”

After a close score through the first 40 minutes, Colorado scored twice in 35 seconds to start the third period, and took a two-goal lead. Another goal late in the final frame sealed a 4-1 win for the Avalanche. Beckett Hamilton, Gavin Brindley, Brock Nelson (PPG), and Taylor Makar scored for Colorado. 

Sebastian Cossa and Michael Hrabal made their Mammoth preseason debuts in Denver. Cossa played the first two periods of the game and stopped 11 of the 12 shots he faced. The recently acquired goaltender impressed when he kept Colorado from scoring in the first period, especially as the Avalanche were in control for the majority of the opening frame.

“Really good job,” Tourigny said on Cossa. “They had a lot of traffic, put pucks through traffic, and he found a way to see the puck and get a piece in front of it. I think it was a really good viewing.”

“It was great. He’s massive,” DeSimone said of Cossa and his performance. “I’m sure he was probably happy to kind of get in there and see some pucks. I thought he was great.”

Hrabal, who just finished his college hockey career and degree this spring, played the third period. He was put under pressure throughout the final 20 minutes, especially as it was a heavy special teams period with eight third period penalties. Hrabal finished the night with two saves on five shots; however, one of the three goals he allowed was when the Mammoth were shorthanded.

Another bright spot was Utah’s performance at the dot as the Mammoth won 69% of their faceoffs against the Avalanche. Vincent Trocheck, who took the majority of Utah’s faceoffs, went 7-for-10. Prospects Caleb Desnoyers and Gabe Smith also found success as Desnoyers went 4-for-6, and Smith went 3-for-4.

“Really good job,” Tourigny said of Trocheck's performance at the dot. “I think Desnoyers as well won a few good faceoffs. Obviously learned a lot. Lost a few important ones and I think that’s good for the experience.”

Tourigny also discussed how impressed he was with Borikov following the game. In addition to his goal, Borikov had four hits and played 12:57 against the Avalanche.

“I really liked the game of Borikov,” Tourigny said. “I think he played a solid game, not just his goal. I think the way he controlled the puck and the pace he had in his game, that’s positive.”

Although the result wasn’t what the Mammoth wanted, Sunday’s game allowed Utah to evaluate young talent, work through special teams, and take moments to improve on going forward.

“It’s the first preseason game, I think we had an effort,” Tourigny shared. “The guys pushed back. We progressed on different stuff in our structure. There’s a lot of positives out of that game.”

Final Stats from Tonight

Shots on Goal: UTA 24, COL 17

Face-off %: UTA 69.4, COL 30.6%

Power Play: COL 1/5, UTA 0/3

Hits: UTA 28, COL 17

Blocked Shots: UTA 16, COL 3

Upcoming Schedule

• Sept. 22: UTA vs LAK

• Sept. 24: UTA vs VGK

• Sept. 26: COL vs UTA – Get Tickets Here!