Utah had a strong special teams effort in the win. Dylan Guenther’s power play goal was his second in three games. The penalty kill went 4-for-4 and kept Seattle from scoring with a 5-on-3 advantage for 1:40.
“It's not just producing; it’s producing when you need a goal,” Tourigny shared. “It’s when it’s a key opportunity. That they did on the power play. On the flip side, the PK was unreal. Five-on-three like that, when you lead by one, lose the lead after, but we're leading by one at the moment. That was huge. (Karel Vjemelka) was rock solid, but the entire PK unit was rock solid. There were block shots, good reads, good sticks, and good clearings. There was a lot of good stuff.”
“That’s huge. 5-on-3 for a minute and 40 seconds is no joke,” Schmaltz said of the penalty kill. “It’s usually your goalie that’s your best penalty killer in those situations, and (Karel Vejmelka) was great. He made some crazy saves with guys ringing one-timers off his head and whatnot. He was great.”
As Schmaltz said, Vejmelka was a force while shorthanded. The netminder stopped six shots on the PK and 33 of the 36 shots he faced tonight. Vejmelka now has 13 wins this season.
In addition to Vejmelka’s timely saves, there were multiple players with strong individual performances, including Schmaltz. With Logan Cooley out of the lineup, Schmaltz has switched from wing to center. With increased responsibility on and off the ice, the forward has stepped up.
“He works so hard,” Tourigny explained. “Sometimes it goes under the radar. He's always at the net offensively. He drives that line, no doubt about it, in the sense that he is at the net all the time. He does all the dirty work, and he’s elite defensively. He's always the first guy back, and he's playing down low. He will sleep well tonight, and I guarantee that. He works really hard.”
The Mammoth had eight players on the scoresheet in tonight’s win including two players with three-point efforts: Kevin Stenlund (3A) and Schmaltz (1G, 2A). Schmaltz, Kailer Yamamoto, Dylan Guenther (PPG), JJ Peterka (EN), and Lawson Crouse (EN) all scored for Utah. Mason Marchment (2) and Ben Meyers had Seattle’s goals.
Additional Notes from Tonight (all per Mammoth PR)
- Stenlund posted the first three-assist game of his NHL career tonight, matching his single-game scoring high.
- Peterka scored his second game-winning goal of the season tonight, giving him eight points over the last seven contests (4G, 4A).
- Crouse scored a goal tonight, giving him four goals and five points over the last seven games.
Utah heads out on a three-game road trip and will look to build on improved play with stops in Pittsburgh, Boston, and Detroit.
Upcoming Schedule
- Dec. 14: UTA at PIT
- Dec. 16: UTA at BOS
- Dec. 17: UTA at DET
