It’s been a weird winter.
The Utah Mammoth left a snowless Salt Lake City in their light jackets on Friday, and landed in a snowy, icy Nashville. The weather was bad enough there to change the start time of the Mammoth’s game against the Predators on Saturday — mostly because Nashville isn’t equipped to handle snow and ice the way more wintry cities are.
Even with the improved start time, many fans chose to skip this game, leaving enough room for the upper-bowl fans to migrate to the lower bowl at no additional cost — and even then, there were still plenty of empty seats.
I guess it’s fitting for the “Ice Age” game.
In the end, the Mammoth won again, extending their point streak to nine games.
Quick catchup
Utah Mammoth: 5
Nashville Predators: 2
Steven Stamkos has scored hundreds of goals on power play one-timers from the left face-off circle — the area Mammoth fans recognize as Dylan Guenther’s spot (though Stamkos and Alex Ovechkin have been doing it since Guenther was playing Timbits hockey).
Stamkos added another to his lengthy portfolio on Saturday, opening the scoring less than four minutes into the first period, but the Mammoth have learned to overcome early setbacks.
In their last three games, they’ve allowed four goals in the first five minutes, and they managed to win all of them.
“I think we’ve done a good job of sticking with it,” said Barrett Hayton in an interview with a Mammoth broadcaster. “That’s something we talked about a little bit ago, staying even-keeled and staying with them for 60 minutes.
“That being said, I don’t think we want to have those starts.”
Utah struck thrice in the second period, allowing one goal against in the process but still holding a 3-2 lead heading into the final frame.
Hayton added an insurance goal on a third-period power play, followed by an automatic goal awarded to JJ Peterka, which we’ll dive into in a minute.
With their 5-2 win, the Mammoth’s point streak extends to a franchise record nine games. They’re also on a five-game win streak. Their next three games will be true tests, as they’re all against teams they have yet to beat this season.
Tidbits and takeaways
Block by block
Early in the first period, Mikhail Sergachev made an impossible shot block, sticking his leg out behind him to take a sure goal away from Michael McCarron.
Later in the same period, Michael Carcone blocked one with the palm of his hand — one of the least-padded areas of a hockey player’s body. Like Sergachev’s block, it would have gone in the net had he not made that sacrifice.
The difference in this game was two goals, excluding the empty-netter. Shot blocks don’t get nearly as much attention as goals, but those two in particular were equally important to the Mammoth’s success on Saturday.
Both players will get their flowers either way, as Carcone scored a sweet goal and Sergachev contributed three assists, but don’t forget what they did in their own zone.
How good is Kailer Yamamoto?
In his heyday, Kailer Yamamoto was a half-a-point-per-game guy or better with the Edmonton Oilers. Ever since he left Alberta though, his production hasn’t been nearly at that level — which caused him to spend most of the 2024-25 season in the minors and much of the current season in the press box.
The difference is that in Edmonton, his most common line mates were Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins — two first-overall picks and a third player who, in hindsight, should have gone first.
When Yamamoto went to Seattle, he played with Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, Tye Kartye and Devin Shore — two undrafted guys and a career journeyman.
His ice time also dropped from a 16-minute average to about 12.
With Utah, it’s been the same story as in Seattle: When Yamamoto does get in the lineup, he’s usually tacked onto the fourth line and he sees less than 12 minutes of ice time per game, on average.
Of course, every NHLer would be better with McDavid and Draisaitl as their line mates, and everyone’s production will increase with more ice time, but through little fault of his own, Yamamoto went from an NHL power play guy to a consistent healthy scratch.
Lawson Crouse was ill on Saturday, so Yamamoto got into his first game in 13 days. Rather than messing with the other lines to compensate for Crouse’s absence, Tourigny opted to put Yamamoto with Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz on the top line — and it worked beautifully.
Yamamoto scored two points, including the game-winning goal, earning the honors as the first star of the game.
“Kells and Schmaltzy are two unbelievable players,” Yamamoto said afterward. “Very easy to play with, read off of and stuff like that.”
Tourigny understands the type of role a player like Yamamoto needs to be able to succeed, but there’s not always room for him on the top lines.
“I always say to Yammy he can play top-six anytime we need it, but when we have our top six, it’s tougher,” Tourigny said. “He proved it again today. He jumped in the top six, made impact plays at key moments.
“He was a chain connector on that line. The guys like to play with him. He’s a really good player, and he showed it today.”
JJ Peterka’s automatic goal
Peterka did not take a single shot on net in Saturday’s game, but he did score a goal. How does that happen?
An odd but important rule came into play.
Late in the third period, Peterka found himself with the puck on his stick and a clear path to the empty net in front of him.
As he continued toward the open cage, Predators forward Michael Bunting made a desperate attempt to stop him, hauling him down to the ice — a penalty Bunting had to take to prevent a goal.
Referee François St-Laurent initially put his arm up to call the obvious penalty, but realized within seconds that it happened during a breakaway on an empty net, which makes for an automatic goal.
The puck never actually went in, but in this case, it doesn’t matter. Table 12, located on page 143 of the NHL rulebook, clearly states that any foul from behind when a team has pulled the goalie for an extra attacker results in an automatic goal.
Goal of the game
Clayton Keller’s snipe
It may be cold in Nashville, but Keller is red-hot. His goal on Saturday extended his point streak to four games, with three goals and seven points over that span.
In his last eight games, he has 14 points.
On Saturday, he scored this one from a tough angle on one of the league’s better goaltenders.