Utah Wraps Homestand with Game Against Montreal

THE DETAILS

WHO: Utah (12-8-3) vs Montreal (11-7-3)

WHEN: Nov. 26, 2025 – 7:30 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

• Defenseman Sean Durzi is back in the lineup for his first game since Oct. 11 and he’ll play with Ian Cole. Dmitri Simashev will not play tonight.
• The lineup remains the same from the last game.

Durzi’s Back

After missing 21 games with an upper-body injury, Durzi is back in the lineup. His d-partner discussed his impact following morning skate.

“Offensive touch,” Tourigny said of Durzi’s impact. “It’s puck movement, his shot, his read of the play offensively. But as well, I think he brings a lot of passion to the game. He brings a lot of energy. He’s a really competitive kid. He wants to make a difference, so we’re happy to have him back.”

“He’s a great player,” Cole said of Durzi. “Highly skilled, likes to get up and go, and go in the offense, and go roam and do his thing. We want him to do that, those are all things we want him to do. He’s a great leader for us. He’s a great piece of the puzzle … he is a huge asset for us and we’re thrilled to have him back.”

Limiting Their Opportunities

When these teams played in Montreal, it was a close battle of speed and skill. However, the Canadiens were opportunistic with their offense in the third period to secure the win. Cole discussed how the Mammoth need to play against their opponent tonight.

“Lots of skill, fast, likes to make plays, that’s Montreal in a nutshell,” Cole explained. “A very good team, had a great start. We were a little disappointed in how we reacted to the last game we played against them. We thought we had a good start to the game, and then we kind of let it fall by the wayside and deviated from that. I think for us, it’s not deviating, it’s staying the course. It’s knowing what they like to do, how they like to play, and trying to shut that down. Inevitably when we get turnovers, attack back the other way.”

THE PREVIEW

Tonight’s Matchup

Utah

• Utah enters the final game of their homestand with two straight wins. The Mammoth are 7-2-1 on home ice this season and have points in six of their last seven games.
• Logan Cooley’s four-goal performance led the Mammoth to a 5-1 win over the Vegas Golden Knights Monday night.
  • Dylan Guenther opened the scoring with 5:06 left in the opening frame, and 1:17 later, Cooley scored his first of the night. Guenther, Cooley, and defenseman Nate Schmidt all factored into the first two goals.
  • Vegas pushed back in the second period; however, Cooley took over in the third. He scored three more times in the final frame. One of Cooley’s empty net goals was shorthanded while Vegas had a 6-on-4 advantage.
  • Karel Vejmelka was key with timely saves, and stopped 33 of the 34 shots he faced. Utah’s starting goaltender has 10 wins this season.
• Cooley leads the Mammoth with 13 goals and is second on the team with 21 points. Nick Schmaltz, Mikhail Sergachev, and Clayton Keller 12 assists are tied for the team-lead. Schmaltz’s 22 points are a team-high.
• Vejmelka has played 17 games this season and has a 10-5-2 record. Utah’s netminder has a 2.76 goals against average and a .891 save percentage. Vítek Vaněček has a 2-3-1 record through his six games. He has a 2.85 goals against average and a .873 save percentage.
• Wednesday is the final game of a four-game homestand. The Mammoth hit the road for a six-game road trip which starts in Dallas on Friday.

Montreal

• After a few days off to start the week, Montreal kicks off a three-game road trip against the Mammoth. The Canadiens are 5-2-2 on the road this season but are 1-3-1 in their last five games.
• The Canadiens snapped a five-game losing skid with a 5-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday.
  • Noah Dobson and Josh Anderson each scored twice in the win, while Lane Hutson also scored in the win. Jakub Dobes stopped 24 of the 26 shots he faced and ended the night with a .923 save percentage.
• Cole Caufield leads Montreal with 13 goals and is second on the team with 22 points. Nick Suzuki’s 18 assists are a team-high, as are his 23 points. The Canadiens have nine players with 10 or more points through the first 21 games of the year, and 13 players with two or more goals through that span.
• Goaltenders Sam Montembeault and Jakub Dobes have split games evenly this season. Montembeault has started 11 games and played in 12. He has a 4-5-1 record, a 3.71 goals against average, and a .852 save percentage. Dobes has started 10 games and played in 11. He has a 7-2-2 record with a 2.88 goals against average and a .895 save percentage.
• After Wednesday’s game against the Mammoth, the Canadiens have a back-to-back against the Vegas Golden Knights and Colorado Avalanche over the holiday weekend.

By the Numbers

• Logan Cooley’s four goals in a single game set franchise history on Monday. He also became the first player in the NHL to notch four tallies in a game this season.
• The Mammoth’s penalty kill success continues. Utah’s PK is sixth in the NHL (84.1%) and has killed off 29 straight penalties, in regulation.
• Cooley and Montreal’s Cole Caufield each have 13 goals this season and are tied for the sixth-most goals in the NHL (as of Tuesday).
• Montreal’s defensemen get involved in the team’s offense. The Canadiens blueline has contributed 12 goals (9th in NHL) and 49 assists (2nd) for 61 total points (3rd).
• In addition to their defensive core’s contributions, the Canadiens are averaging the fourth-most goals for per game in the NHL (3.43).

Against Montreal This Season

• This is the second and final game between the Mammoth and Canadiens this season, and the first at Delta Center.
• Utah lost the first matchup, 6-2, in Montreal. Kailer Yamamoto and Lawson Crouse had the Mammoth’s goals in the loss.

Season Series

• Nov. 8: UTA at MTL – Game Recap
• Nov. 26: UTA vs MTL

Upcoming Schedule

• Nov. 28: UTA at DAL
• Nov. 29: UTA at STL
• Dec. 1: UTA at SJS