Mammoth end Wild’s 6-game winning streak in decisive fashion

The Utah Mammoth showed on Friday that they can beat excellent teams.

Their game against the Minnesota Wild at the Delta Center ended with a 5-2 score in their favor as they hosted a Wild team that has the fourth-best record in the NHL.

Perhaps fatigue played a factor (the Wild played their hearts out in Colorado the night before), but it takes a good team to end anyone’s six-game winning streak.

“We didn’t give them any chances,” said Utah head coach André Tourigny after the game. “I think there’s a moment earlier this year where we played against a team who were back-to-back and we didn’t have that much aggression. ... Tonight — not just tonight, in the last couple of back-to-backs we played against teams like that — we made sure we were really aggressive and we jumped at them.

“And that doesn’t guarantee you will win, but it guarantees you will bring them in deep water and see if they can swim.”

Tidbits and takeaways

A wealth of praise

Utah’s win was a full-team effort. Tourigny gave credit to plenty of guys after the game. Here’s a soundbite on each of them.

On Mikhail Sergachev: “I have to talk about Sergy. I think he was a beast out there.”

On the first line as a whole: “If you look the way they contribute, they have that sense and they can hunt pucks and create turnovers and get good on the forecheck and stuff like that. ... They’re hungry. They want to go at it. They stay on top of their opponent.”

On Logan Cooley: “I think what makes that kind of player special is he’s not just fast; he’s smart, so he can change direction, he can jump in the hole, he sees the space, he can be elusive, he can make you think he’s going (here) and then he’s going there. So, that makes him special. ... You add the IQ to that, that’s what makes the difference.”

On Lawson Crouse: “I don’t have enough time to express how much I respect this guy. ... Everybody stumbles in life. It’s how you react to adversity, and that’s why he’s one of our leaders and we’re really proud of him.”

On Clayton Keller: “His desire, his compete and his desire to stay on top of it and to do everything to win, not just using his skill, but using his work ethic and everything. So, he played a really solid game.”

Tourigny also mentioned that goaltender Karel Vejmelka had a standout game.

There’s something about the Wild

Despite the fact that they’re in the same division as the Mammoth and despite the fact that they’re one of the best teams in the league, the Wild have yet to win a game in regulation against the NHL’s newest franchise.

Before the game, Tourigny pointed out that his team never takes anything for granted when it plays the Wild — and that became clear as Friday’s game went on.

By the time the final buzzer rang, the Mammoth had 38% more shots than its opponent, and the score speaks for itself.

“Above the score, it’s the way we played, the way we pressed,” Tourigny said. “It was not perfect. We gave up way too many odd-man rushes, stuff like that, but ... we forced a lot of errors on the other side because we were really aggressive and we were instigating a lot of pressure and a lot of contact.”

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In six games against the Wild since the move to Utah, Keller has tallied five goals and 12 points. At first, it seemed like he was trying to prove himself to Wild GM Bill Guerin, who left him off Team USA for last year’s 4 Nations Face-Off, but it’s been less than a week since the pair — along with four other members of the Wild — won gold at the Olympics.

Surely, Keller has nothing left to prove to Guerin, but that didn’t stop him from adding a goal and three points in this contest.

“Are you surprised?” Crouse joked after the game. “It seems like it doesn’t matter what team we’re playing, he’s picking up points.

“He’s a lot of fun to play with, and I think a lot of credit goes to Schmaltzy. They play so well together. They read off each other. It’s just a lot of fun to play with and a lot of fun to watch.”

Goal of the game

Logan Cooley’s shorty

A few of Utah’s goals were worthy of recognition, but Cooley’s short-handed tally was especially nice.

It began with Mikhail Sergachev’s read in the defensive zone. He saw that Jared Spurgeon’s pass was behind the intended recipient, so he stepped up to intercept it.

A few moments later, it was in the back of Minnesota’s net.