MORNING SKATE NOTES
- Head coach André Tourigny confirmed the lineup will be the same
- Utah will focus on winning their battles and getting inside positioning against a heavy Boston team
Bring the Battle
In recent games, the Mammoth have found a strong net front presence and have brought a higher level of energy. Both will be key against the Bruins who are a heavy, intense team to face.
“We need to find a way to get inside and to have the same mentality we had the last couple games,” Tourigny shared. “As well as winning those loose puck battles, that will be a good challenge. I think we're ready for it.”
“Boston is really good in battles,” Alternate captain Mikhail Sergachev shared on the Bruins. “They’re a heavy team, they play hard. We want to work them tonight. (If) we work harder than they are, we’re going to have a good chance to win.”
Winning loose puck battles will be one way Utah’s power play can maintain possession and sustained o-zone time on the man-advantage. The Mammoth have improved their power play and have five goals over their last seven games.
“I think we need to keep doing what we’re doing,” Tourigny said of the power play. “I like the movement we’re creating, we’re taking more shots, we have quality shots, we have shot volume. We have a little bit of everything. But everything starts with your loose puck recovery. If you don’t win the battle, you’re always one and done every time you don’t score on your shot. They get a clear and now you lose momentum. So the way we win battles on the power play changes everything.”
Special Teams Battle
As the Bruins have the fifth-best power play in the NHL and the Mammoth will need to remain disciplined and limit their penalties. If Utah goes shorthanded, the league’s seventh-best penalty kill will go to work. Sergachev, who is on the penalty kill, discussed how the team has found consistent efforts out of their PK.
“The guys know their assignments,” Sergachev explained. “They play hard on the PK. We try to change quick, like 30-40 seconds, we give the others guys a chance to go kill it and have energy. It's all about energy. If we're energetic and refreshed, I think we're the best at it."
