Dylan Guenther scored two breakaway goals in the game for his first multi-goal game of the season. His first goal opened the scoring 11 and a half minutes into the game, while his second was a quick response to Florida’s third consecutive goal at the start of the second period. Guenther has 13 goals this season and three in his last two games.
“I try to use my speed and get above guys,” Guenther said of his goals. “They’re man-on-man pretty much all over the ice, so try to beat my guys up the ice.”
Jack McBain scored his third of the season to tie the game, 3-3, in the second period. The forward was camped out net front and McBain converted on Sean Durzi’s initial shot. In addition to his goal, McBain brought a strong physical presence as he does game after game. McBain played alongside Michael Carcone and Daniil But, who was added to the line for tonight’s game.
“He did really good,” Tourigny said of McBain. “That line played really good. (But) played a solid game, (Carcone’s) been his old self and (McBain) as well. I’m really happy about the result of that line. They compete, they played direct, they played fast, they communicated a lot on the bench. If you look at that line, the body of work and the change of match-ups at some point in the game, they were matched up against (Florida’s) top-six, an elite top-six. They did a good job.”
After slower starts in recent games, the Mammoth were focused on using their speed and bringing urgency. The home team did that and had a strong opening frame against a relentless Florida team.
“I thought it was good,” McBain said of the first period. “I thought we were generating throughout the lineup. A lot of guys had good games, and I think when we’re playing like that, we’re definitely tough to play against.”
With 52 seconds left in regulation, Anton Lundell scored his eighth of the season and put the Panthers ahead, 4-3. Utah pulled Vejmelka and played with the extra attacker; however, the Mammoth were unable to score the equalizer. Utah is 14-15-3 with the loss as the team looks to find the win column in these tight, one-goal losses.
“I think shoot a few more pucks,” Guenther said on the close losses. “Be comfortable in those situations. When the game is tied, I don't think we have to get on our heels. Just keep pressing, keep attacking them. It's unfortunate, but we play again in two nights, so make sure we get one to close it out.”
“Yeah, you have to find ways to win,” McBain reflected. “I think, when you look around the league, good teams find ways to win hockey games, even when they don't have their best or they're close games. That’s something as a group (that) we (have) to figure out. Obviously, it's been a challenging stretch, we know we have it in this group and in the locker room, so we are just trying to figure it out.”
The Mammoth will wrap a three-game homestand with a game against the Seattle Kraken on Friday night.
Additional Notes from Tonight
- Dylan Guenther scored two goals tonight, marking his first multi-goal game of the season and the eighth of his NHL career. His 13 goals this season now trail only Logan Cooley (14) for the most on the team (per Mammoth PR).
- Guenther has found the scoresheet in each of his last four games at Delta Center (11/24-12/10; 4G, 2A), tied for Utah’s longest home point streak this season (per Mammoth PR).
- Barrett Hayton registered a career-high eight shots on goal tonight (previous: , 3/7/25 at CHI), tying the single-game franchise record previously set by Dylan Guenther (3/12/25 vs ANA) and Clayton Keller (11/22/25 vs NYR). Hayton’s six shots in the first period also established a new franchise record for a single frame (previous: 5; five instances) (per Mammoth PR).
Upcoming Schedule
- Dec. 12: UTA vs SEA
- Dec. 14: UTA at PIT
- Dec. 16: UTA at BOS
