Utah Hosts Nashville in Return from Break

THE DETAILS

WHO: Nashville (16-17-4) vs Utah (18-18-3)

WHEN: Dec. 29, 2025 – 7:00 p.m. MT

WHERE: Delta Center

TV: Utah16, Mammoth+

RADIO: Mammoth App, NHL App, NHL.com, KSL Sports Zone (97.5FM/1280AM), KSL Sports App

MORNING SKATE NOTES

• Goaltender Karel Vejmelka is on the IR with an upper-body injury retroactive to 12/23. Vejmelka is available to come off the IR starting tomorrow as a player needs to be on for seven days before returning to the regular roster.
• Goaltender Matt Villalta was recalled from the Tucson Roadrunners and participated in morning skate.
• There was full attendance at morning skate and head coach André Touirgny said “the rest of the lineup will be the same, same lines, no change.”

Back to Work

After five days without a game, Utah has its first game back from the holiday break and final game of 2025. The break came at a good time for the Mammoth who finished a set of 21 games in 37 days.

“When you have that kind of break, you get out of sync a little bit, and you need to get back at it as early as possible,” Tourigny shared. “For us, we’ll be early in the game to keep our game simple … trying to make sure we’re predictable for each other and we go with simplicity. Simpler will be better early.”

Strong Defensive Effort

The Mammoth have seen all players buy-in to a strong defensive system and as a result, Utah is allowing the second-fewest shots on goal per game and the 11th fewest goals against in the NHL.

“The boys did a really good job of buying in, and pace, and the battle level and the slot protection we need to be able to win games on a consistent (basis) and be in the game with every game, (whoever) is the opponent,” Tourigny explained.

"I think it's just a collective buy-in,” Alexander Kerfoot shared after skate. “Everyone up and down the lineup is doing the right things and what we're talking about is being above guys and playing with structure and limiting turnovers."

Having a strong defensive game and good positioning down low will be key against the Predators.

“Tonight will be a good test,” Tourigny also shared. “Nashville is really good in front of the net. They create a lot of rebound offense and stuff like that. So our box out will be important, their (defensemen) are super active so that will be the two main focus for us defensively.”

THE PREVIEW

Tonight’s Matchup

Utah

• Utah enters Monday’s game with a 18-18-3 record, and the Mammoth are 4-6-0 in their last 10 games. The team has four wins in their last seven games.
• The Mammoth fell 1-0 to the Colorado Avalanche in their most recent game.
  • Utah played a great game against the NHL’s best team; however, a strong performance from Colorado goaltender Scott Wedgewood kept the Mammoth from scoring on any of their 32 shots.
  • Vítek Vaněček stopped 25 of the 26 shots he faced in the game.
• Dylan Guenther’s 16 goals lead the Mammoth as does Mikhail Sergachev’s 21 assists. Captain Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz are tied for the team-lead with 32 points each.
• Karel Vejmelka, Utah’s starting goaltender, was placed on IR (retroactive to 12/23) with an upper-body injury. The team recalled Matt Villalta from Tucson. The other half of Utah's goaltending tandem is veteran Vítek Vaněček who has a 2-8-1 record through 11 games played. He has a 2.81 goals against average and a .882 save percentage.
• Monday’s game is the Mammoth’s final home game in 2025. The team hits the road for a three-game east coast swing. Utah will play the New York Islanders, New Jersey Devils, and New York Rangers before returning home.

Nashville

• Nashville enters Monday’s game with a 16-17-4 record, and the Predators are 6-4-0 in their last 10 games. The team has won three of their last four games. Currently, Nashville is sixth in the Central Division with 36 points.
• The Predators fell to the St. Louis Blues, 3-2, in the team’s first game back from the break.
  • After trading goals in the first 12 minutes, St. Louis’ Pavel Buchnevich scored twice to give his team a 3-1 lead early in the third period. Nashville’s Fedor Svechkov scored a shorthanded goal with eight minutes left in regulation, but the Predators were unable to find the equalizer.
  • Juuso Saros stopped 17 of the 20 shots he faced in the loss.
• Filip Forsberg’s 16 goals lead the team while Ryan O’Reilly’s 21 assists and 32 points are team-highs. Steven Stamkos is second in goals (15) while Luke Evangelista is second in assists (20) and points (25).
• Saros is Nashville’s starting goaltender. He has a 14-12-3 record, a 2.92 goals against average, and a .898 save percentage. Justus Annunen makes up the other half of the goaltending tandem. He has a 2-5-1 record, a 3.43 goals against average, and a .871 save percentage.
• Monday is the second game of a six-game road trip for the Predators. After Utah, the team will play Vegas, Seattle, Calgary, and Edmonton before returning home.

By the Numbers

• Utah is holding teams to the second-fewest shots on goal per game in the NHL (25.1). In addition, the Mammoth are allowing the 11th fewest goals per game, on average, in the league (2.87).
• Nashville has the seventh-highest win rate with faceoffs (52.1%). O’Reilly has won 55.9% of his faceoffs this season which is 17th in the NHL (must take 15% of team’s faceoffs to qualify).
• Both teams have a strong penalty kill. Utah is eighth in the NHL with an 82.9% kill rate while Nashville is 11th with an 82.1% kill rate.
• The Mammoth are tied for the eighth-most third period goals with 44 while Nashville is tied for 11th most in the final frame with 43.

Against Nashville This Season

• This is the second of four games between the Mammoth and the Predators this season. Monday is the first of two games at Delta Center this season.
• In the first game, Utah beat Nashville 3-2 in overtime. Dylan Guenther scored 2:56 into overtime to secure two divisional points. Jack McBain and Logan Cooley also scored for the Mammoth in the win.

Season Series

• 11: UTA vs NSH – Game Recap
• 29: NSH vs UTA
• 24: UTA vs NSH
• 9: NSH vs UTA

Upcoming Schedule

• Jan. 1: UTA vs NYI
• Jan. 3: UTA vs NJD
• Jan. 5: UTA vs NYR