Crouse got the Mammoth off to a quick start with two goals in the first period, his 18th and 19th of the season. The associate captain is one goal away from his fourth 20-goal season over the last five years. In addition to his two goals, Crouse tallied an assist on Schmaltz’s first goal of the night for his second three-point performance of the season.
The veteran forward noted the importance of tonight’s game, and talked postgame about being connected as a group to do everything possible to earn the crucial two points.
“Our determination,” Crouse said of the team’s strengths against the Kings. “They had their pushes throughout the game, Obviously, they tied it up late. Kind of had the puck for a lot of that OT, but just our coverage and our willingness to do whatever it takes.”
Schmaltz’s 25th of the season broke a deadlocked game in the second period. It was a play of determination as Schmaltz hit his own rebound out of the air into the back of the net to score what was one of the prettier goals of his NHL career.
“That was pretty cool,” Schmaltz smiled. “Anytime you can do something out of the air like that, it’s pretty special. I feel like I was due for one, so happy to get that.”
It was a close game throughout, and Utah had to stay calm through LA’s momentum swings. After each of Crouse’s first period goals, the Kings responded with a goal of their own within a minute. The first four goals of the game were scored over a span of two minutes and 43 seconds. LA shifted momentum their way late in the game when Artemi Panarin tied things up, 3-3, with three and a half minutes remaining. However, through all of this, the Mammoth remained focused and believed in themselves.
Schmaltz ultimately finished the game by scoring his third career overtime goal to win the game for the Mammoth. Schmaltz faked the pass, saw an opportunity to score, and tallied his 26th of the season. In addition to tying his career-high in points (63) with that goal, Schmaltz’s 26 goals are second on the team behind only Dylan Guenther (34).
“They had a push there in the third, we knew that was going to happen,” Schmaltz said. “At this time of year, I feel like every game's super tight, so we didn't really hold our heads down when they tied it up, we just took it to overtime. Huge two points for us.”
“The way our team reacted to it, that for me showed how determined we were,” Tourigny said of LA’s third goal. “How in our bubble we were at the right place in our mind. And right away, the next shift was, ‘okay, let’s play hockey.’ Did not shake us, did not put a doubt in our head. Obviously it’s not what we wanted, but it did not have an effect on us where we were deflated. We pushed back, and we had opportunities after, so I think that showed how determined we were in the game.”
Defenseman Nate Schmidt did not return after the second period due to illness, per Tourigny. Schmidt played 10 shifts in the first period, and only five in the second. Utah’s defensive core switched through different combinations to fill in for Schmidt’s absence and pushed through adversity with only five defensemen for half of the game.
“Schmidt was sick, so Schmidt could not finish the game and (the d-core) finished at five and they were strong,” Tourigny reflected. “Played really well. So, really proud of our d-core.”
Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Kings had huge playoff implications. Going into the game, Utah has a six-point lead over LA; however, the Kings had a game in hand. Although the Kings picked up a point with the overtime loss, the extra point puts Utah seven points ahead of the Kings and five points ahead of the Nashville Predators who are in the second wild card spot.
“Huge,” Crouse said of the win. “Obviously, this is a team that's right on our heels, and we face them two times within a week. Great start tonight. Got to follow-up with it.”
“It's awesome,” Schmaltz said of playing meaningful games. “It's way more fun playing these games then knowing you're going to tee it up at the end of April or whatever it may be. Super exciting to be in this position that we put ourselves in. We got some work to do left, but we put ourselves in a good spot.”
With two points tonight, the Mammoth are the fifth team in the Western Conference to reach 80 points. Utah has 11 games left in the regular season. The Mammoth’s homestand continues on Tuesday against the Edmonton Oilers. Tickets are available here!
Additional Notes from Tonight
- Center Logan Cooley played his 200th NHL game tonight. Through this first stretch of his NHL career, Cooley has scored 62 goals and contributed 77 assists for 139 points. In his 200th game, Cooley played 16:22 and had three hits.
- Crouse is six goals, four assists, and nine points away from setting a new career-highs in those categories. Tonight was his seventh multi-point effort this season, and second three-point night during the 2025-26 campaign.
- It was a physical game as the Mammoth had 31 hits and the Kings had 30. Jack McBain led the way with nine while Michael Carcone was second with six.
- This is the first of two games in seven days between the Mammoth and the Kings. LA will host Utah on Mar. 28 to wrap up the season series.
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