Make that three consecutive overtime losses for the Utah Mammoth. Oh, and all three have ended with a final score of 3-2.
For those who are new to hockey, an overtime loss still awards the losing team a point in the standings, so it’s much better than losing in regulation — but that doesn’t make them any less heartbreaking for the players.
Here’s the story of the Mammoth’s overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday.
Quick catchup
San Jose Sharks: 3
Utah Mammoth: 2
Remember the name Macklin Celebrini — not that forgetting it will be possible for Mammoth fans, who witnessed his second hat trick of the season.
Celebrini caught the Mammoth sleeping, scoring twice before the first commercial break. The scoreboard showed 2-0 the majority of the night, until JJ Peterka broke loose.
Peterka scored on a breakaway with 10:35 to go in the third period. John Marino put the puck in the net shortly thereafter, though the goal was waved off for goaltender interference — despite a Mammoth coach’s challenge.
But it didn’t matter. The Mammoth killed off the ensuing penalty and Peterka struck again with 2:51 to go, sending it to overtime.
For a moment, it seemed as if Peterka would finish off his hat trick in overtime. But he’d jumped the gun on his line change, causing a too many men penalty to cut his breakaway short.
Power plays in overtime are played at 4 on 3, which creates much more open ice for the team on the offense.
Translation: they almost always result in goals.
That was the case here, as Celebrini fired one top shelf from distance to win it for the home team.
“We fought back, but it’s way harder when you chase the game,” Peterka said.
Takeaways
Utah just ‘didn’t start on time’
NHL players consistently talk about how hard the second half of a back-to-back scenario is. And a flight in between doesn’t make it any easier — even if it’s only an hour and 20 minutes like the one the Mammoth had Tuesday morning.
The majority of the game, Utah was on the ball. Goals were as hard to come by as they always are, but outside of the first six minutes, the team was fine.
This one was simply a story of losing focus at the beginning.
“(I’m) not happy because we didn’t start on time,” said Mammoth head coach André Tourigny. ”We need to find a way to win games — especially those games.“
“That’s hockey for you,” said Sharks forward Will Smith, who tallied two points in the game. “I mean, there’s going to be a lot of ups and downs, a lot of emotion swings, but it’s all part of it. ... It’s a long 82-game season, so there’s going to be some crazy games.”
Utah’s PK is still strong, but their scorers need to get going again
As mentioned, 4-on-3 power play goals are almost a given. But even with that, Utah’s penalty kill operated at 80% on Tuesday.
Celebrini’s overtime marker was the first power play goal they’ve allowed since Oct. 26 against the Winnipeg Jets.
There’s little question about Utah’s defensive game (although the goaltending could generally be better). They’re simply not scoring enough goals.
It was only a couple weeks ago that Logan Cooley and Nick Schmaltz were competing for the league lead in goals. Clayton Keller scored 90 points last year. Barrett Hayton is a proven 20-goal scorer.
All it will take for Utah to start winning again is those guys getting their confidence back.
Should Utah have challenged Marino’s non-goal?
A quick note on Utah’s failed coach’s challenge: It was absolutely the right thing to do.
It was a 50/50 call, so if you’re up by a goal or two, you don’t take that risk. But goaltender interference rulings in the NHL are some of the hardest things to predict, so when you’re down by one with less than seven minutes left, it might be worth the reward.
The goal was ultimately disallowed and the Mammoth had extra penalty because of it, but given that they killed the penalty and scored shortly thereafter, nobody in the organization should be losing sleep over it.
Goal of the game
JJ Peterka’s breakaway
It’s well-documented that Peterka grew up speed skating competitively. Time and time again, that skill helps him in the NHL, as it did on Tuesday.
He now has four goals in his last four games — easily the most impactful offensive player in Utah’s lineup over that span.