3 Takeaways From Mammoth’s 3-2 Win Over Rangers

Entering the second period tied at one, Artemi Panarin scored on a breakaway to put the Rangers up by a goal. It was time for the Mammoth to respond. Kailer Yamamoto stole a puck that got away from the Rangers and got to the front of the net, but couldn’t put it in. Clayton Keller then roofed a rebounded shot. It took a couple of seconds, but the league and team realized the puck had gone into the net to tie the game at two.

It cannot be emphasized enough how well Yamamoto has played every time he is placed in the lineup. He is a great offensive weapon that should be in the lineup consistently. He hasn’t had a bad game in a while. It would be a mistake if head coach André Tourigny went back to Liam O’Brien for Monday’s game.

The entire offense looked motivated, more than they had in a while. While the first period yielded some mixed results, the Mammoth were the better team most of the game. They capitalized on rebounds, took shots, and looked more cohesive.

“Competing harder,” Peterka said. “That was the message over the last couple of days. We got a little away from that over the last couple of games, and I think today we did a much better job of getting to the shooting line and getting second chances. That gave us a win.”

The Mammoth also looked way faster than the Rangers. Other than the Panarin goal, they outpaced their opponents. You saw that with the Yamamoto goal. It was the way the Mammoth played for most of the game.

This is the way the Mammoth’s forward group needs to play from here on out. Consistent pressure, loads of shots, and continued hard work. It looked like everyone on the ice desperately wanted a goal during each shift. You have to love that hunger. Now, if only they can get their power play working.

Nick DeSimone Gets the Game Winner

If you had to guess who ended up scoring the game-winning goal on Saturday, Nick DeSimone probably wouldn’t have been your first guess. Although with his recent play, maybe he was more predictable than, say, a couple of weeks ago. The defenseman’s excellent play continued on Saturday with his goal in the third period.

With around 12 minutes left in the third, Logan Cooley tried chipping the puck to Dylan Guenther in front of the net. However, a Rangers player quickly stole it and tried to clear it. It wound up on the stick of DeSimone, who blasted it into the back of the net for the Mammoth’s third goal of the game.

That goal ended up being the game-winner for the Mammoth as they held on for a 3-2 win. DeSimone is now up to three points in seven games this season and is a plus-one.

Saturday was a big game for DeSimone. He had his birthday just a couple of days ago. It felt like he was due for a goal. Despite being used as an extra defenseman for most of his career, he didn’t just score any goal. It was one of the biggest goals for the Mammoth this season to help stop the losing skid.

“It’s my job to be ready whether I am playing or not playing,” DeSimone said. “Just being in a good mood, being grateful for every day, and showing up. If I’m playing, I just try and do what I can to help.”

DeSimone’s emergence as one of the most reliable blueliners this season so far has made the Mammoth’s defense quite a predicament when Sean Durzi returns from injury sometime in the next week or so. Who comes out? It’s hard to say DeSimone with the level of play he’s been providing the Mammoth with.

You’re obviously not taking Mikhail Sergachev and John Marino out. Schmidt and Ian Cole are more than likely staying in thanks to good play as of late. That leads to Dmitri Simashev, but is keeping a 20-year-old top prospect in the press box a good move?

Having too many defensemen is a good problem to have. It gives the Mammoth options if someone starts struggling. DeSimone has shown that it is fully possible by taking Olli Määttä’s spot with his great play. As of right now, no one can argue how well DeSimone is playing. He rightfully deserves a spot in the lineup.

Finally…a Win

For the first time since Oct. 26, the Mammoth have beaten a team other than the Sabres. It took nearly a month, but the long drought is over. 

On Thursday, after the terrible loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, Tourigny mentioned some of the things that he wanted his team to get better at going into Saturday. That included five-on-five play, pace, and intensity. It feels like the Mammoth improved in all of those categories against the Rangers.

“Good team effort throughout the whole game,” Peterka said. “Even when we went down tonight, we found a way to get back in the game and stuck to the game plan.”

The Mammoth were locked in. Players like Karel Vejmelka, who had struggled for the last little while, put on their best performances in November. It was clear they were hungry for a win.

“Everyone bought in tonight,” DeSimone said. “Every guy was playing out the game, and we just stuck with it for the whole night, and we got rewarded for it.” 

The Mammoth outshot their opponents 34-22, and as mentioned before, it felt like they were in control during the final two periods. That has not been a common feeling around this team for the past little bit. 

Their penalty kill also came up big, killing off the two penalties they took. On top of that, during the final couple of minutes, they fended off a good Rangers attack despite their inability to score into the empty net.

The one area where the Mammoth could’ve improved was in faceoffs. They went 19 for 59 in the category, which isn’t a good percentage. Beggars can’t be choosers, though. I’m sure everyone would rather have a good 60-minute effort, a bounce-back performance from Vejmelka, and improvements in most of the categories Tourigny wanted to see get better.

Overall, Saturday night’s game was way different from the past couple of games the Mammoth have played as of late. The team was having fun. They were enjoying themselves on the ice. It’s something we haven’t seen from them in a while. 

“Saturday night against the Rangers, two points, what a beautiful night in Utah,” Tourigny said. “I cannot be more proud of the battle level, the way we drove the net, the way we moved the puck quickly, and we won battles forward. There’s a lot of guys I’m proud of. There’s a lot of guys who could have, and should have been on the ice in the last minute of play. It was fun to coach that game.”

Now the game is over, and the Mammoth face their next big challenge. Keeping this effort consistent. That hasn’t happened since their seven-game winning streak. The other thing that hasn’t happened since then? Winning back-to-back games.

It needs to happen. The Mammoth are lucky they are still in a playoff spot, currently occupying the second wild card spot in the Western Conference with 25 points. The points they accumulated during their long winning streak have helped them stay afloat. However, if the Mammoth keep losing, that won’t be the case for long.

Off the ice, the players have already switched their focus to Monday’s game. They know they have to win this one. It’s been too long since the Mammoth have been consistent. It’s time to rewrite that narrative.

“I’m happy about the way we played, but at the same time, it’s midnight rules, great, celebrate, good job,” Tourigny said. “But it doesn’t mean anything anymore; we just have two more points. We need to be ready for the next game in front of our fans against Vegas, and have a bounce-back game.”

Saturday’s win was great for the Mammoth, putting them back in the win column for the first time in 10 days. It was especially great getting the win on the team’s Hockey Fights Cancer Night. However, using it as a stepping stone to start a new win streak is the Mammoth’s real goal here. Winning is great. Consistently winning is better, and that’s what the Mammoth need to do here to get back into a divisional playoff spot.

The Mammoth will take on the Knights on Monday. The Knights are 10-4-7 this season and are coming off a 4-3 overtime loss to the Anaheim Ducks. These two teams last met on Thursday, where the Mammoth lost 4-1.