It was a tight game from opening puck drop until the final whistle. However, Utah rose to the occasion and executed at a high level under pressure. The Mammoth’s composure was key in the win.
“I think we were poised, but had intensity,” head coach André Tourigny said postgame. “It's always that you want to be calm, but you want to be intense. You want to be patient, but you want to be aggressive. It's the same as wanting to be poised, but you want to be urgent. So, I think we achieved that. The boys were in control, but really intense. They were urgent, but in control with some good poise.”
With neither team conceding much, it was a game of persistence and patience. However, Utah’s patience paid off late in the middle frame. Schmaltz scored his 17th this season when he tipped in John Marino’s pass with seven seconds left in the second period.
Dallas responded with a power play goal two minutes into the third period and tied the game with Mikko Rantanen’s 19th of the season. However, the Mammoth took back their lead two minutes later.
Marino’s shot hit the crossbar and bounced in behind Dallas goaltender Jake Oettinger. The defenseman’s fourth goal this year gave the Mammoth back their lead. Marino has been a consistent presence on the scoresheet as the defenseman has six points (2G, 4A) in his last six games (per Mammoth PR).
Utah defended a one-goal lead for just shy of 16 minutes, and kept Dallas from scoring a 6-on-5 goal when they pulled Oettinger for the final 3:22. As they did all game, the Mammoth remained calm in the final minutes.
“I think everyone didn't panic too much,” Marino reflected. “Whether the guys were out there, tired, everyone on the bench, no one was screaming, shouting, everyone was pretty comfortable with the situation. So, we learn from that and go forward.”
Coming into this Central Division matchup, Dallas averaged the fourth-most goals per game in the NHL. However, Utah held their opponent to one power play goal. It was a strong defensive effort against one of the league’s best offenses.
“I think just try to limit their time and space,” Schmaltz said. “They’ve got a lot of good players over there, so just pressure them, try to make them make plays under pressure. Obviously (Karel Vejmelka) made some big saves for us down the stretch, and (Stenlund) and those guys were stuck out there for a while, but they did a great job. We won some big draws, and it was a heck of a team effort.”
A goaltender is often referred to as the last line of defense and Vejmelka proved he was that once again. Utah’s starting netminder stopped 26 of the 27 shots he faced. Vejmelka now has 22 wins this season, and leads the NHL in that category. He has allowed two or fewer goals in six of seven games to open this calendar year, and earned a 6-1-0 record, a 1.85 goals-against average, and a .929 save percentage in 2026. His current five-game win streak at the Delta Center is a new career-high.
Another key to the win was Utah’s success at the faceoff dot. The Mammoth won 43 of 64 faceoffs (67.2%) against the sixth-best faceoff team in the NHL. Several centers stood out with their performances. Barrett Hayton won all 11 of his faceoffs, Schmaltz won 12 of 19, and Kevin Stenlund won 14 of 22.
“I think, first, prep,” Tourigny said of the team’s success with faceoffs. “Second, intensity and focus from our players, help from the trench guys and Mads (John Madden) did a really good job to prep the guys on faceoffs. We knew Dallas was a top team in the league, top five on faceoffs, and they run a lot of plays through it, and they generate a lot of possessions. I think the guys were tuned in and did a really good job.”
The Mammoth are happy with their success; however, the team is focused on remaining even keel and will keep pushing.
“We needed two points, we need to keep winning,” Tourigny shared. “Obviously, against our division, it's always bigger, but I don't think we're at the point yet where Dallas is. So for us, we need to keep focusing on what we have to do, keep performing. We played a good game on both sides of the puck, offensively and defensively. That team was tough to play against. The process was good. The performance is good. Let's bottle that up and keep going.”
