Injuries Keep Coming as Mammoth Lose Nick Schmaltz and Game to Golden Knights

Head coach André Tourigny did say pregame that when you expect something to happen, nothing usually happens. Most were expecting a close, physical game on Wednesday between the Utah Mammoth and the Vegas Golden Knights, a rematch of the teams’ first-round playoff series against each other in the spring.

However, it was instead a game that the Golden Knights ran away with starting in the second period, and a very injured Mammoth squad couldn’t do much other than keep within a goal or two of their opponents, losing 5-3. They leave Sin City, set to play their next five games at home after playing 13 of their 19 games on the road.

When the Mammoth released their injury report right before warm-ups, saying that their game against the Golden Knights was going to be an uphill battle is probably the best way to put it. Dylan Guenther and Nate Schmidt were both placed on injured reserve, joining John Marino. Logan Cooley was also announced to be injured, with his status as day-to-day.

The only bit of good news in the injury report was the reactivation of Kailer Yamamoto off of injured reserve. Daniil But was also recalled from the Tucson Roadrunners and made it on time to play in Wednesday’s game. With the Roadrunners, But really hasn’t done much offensively. He’ll make flashy moves but then overthink things and often gets humbled with a hit or two from his opponents. It was a similar story on Wednesday.

“He had a good moment early, and then after that he went through a little bit of adversity and a few reads, but that's what I thought of his game,” Tourigny said. “I think he had a great first period.”

Someone who had a great game was Jack McBain. The forward got three points, including his second goal of the season off a top-shelf shot. His linemate, Lawson Crouse, also had a very good night with two points. It was the only line that really connected throughout Wednesday’s game.

McBain was someone who needed to get going. He hadn’t scored since Oct. 8 against the Boston Bruins and hadn’t produced a point since Oct. 19 against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Crouse has also been struggling to produce as of late, with his last goal coming on Oct. 6 against the New Jersey Devils. Luckily, his line found some luck against the Golden Knights.

“The first one, my goal, was a puck going to the net,” Crouse said. “It popped out perfectly on the weak side. Then a great shot by Bainer, and then another great pass by Bainer. You love to see it from Boehner. He's a guy who does everything right. A true teammate, and nice to see him get rewarded.”

Andrew Peeke also produced assists on the goals. He’s had a sneaky good season so far with eight points in 19 games. 

Back to Crouse and McBain: those two guys needed to step up, and they did. They aren’t the only ones. Anders Lee has struggled to score as of late. Michael Carcone hasn’t done much since returning from injury. Vincent Trocheck’s last goal came Oct. 22. He’s approaching double digits in games since his last goal.

The reason why it’s so critical they have to step up and start producing now is that the Mammoth have run into some very challenging injury issues. There are the four aforementioned players and now Nick Schmaltz. Schmaltz took a hard hit on the boards that forced him into the locker room. He returned for a couple of shifts and then left the game. The Mammoth later announced he was questionable to return with a lower-body injury.

That is three of the Mammoth’s top five forwards who were sidelined for most of Wednesday’s game. Even worse, the Schmaltz injury ended up distracting the Mammoth as the Golden Knights piled on three goals in five minutes that ultimately won them the game.

“We went through adversity in the game with some injuries, and I think we lost our focus, and that cost us the game,” Tourigny said. “At that moment, we gave up three goals, and we got pulled out of the game there. I liked the fight after we came back. That was positive, but I think we can be more connected and a little bit more stingy.”

You can point to that second period as a major reason the Mammoth lost. Yes, there were those three goals, but it goes deeper than that. The Mammoth were outshot 15-5 in the second period. That is not a recipe for winning games.

Something that contributed to that second period was the final penalty the Mammoth took in the game. Crouse went off for tripping, which led to Victor Olofsson’s power-play goal. That helped fuel the two goals that followed, including Ivan Barbashev’s beautiful highlight-reel goal. The Mammoth’s penalty kill wasn’t bad. It actually came up big in the first by killing a five-on-three penalty. However, they took too many penalties, and it caught up with them.

"We need to play our game and play a full 60,” Crouse said. “We talk a lot about our pace, our speed, and how we want to play. We got to do that. Staying out of the box is going to be a big priority. We've got to find ways to not take those penalties."

The Mammoth have now dropped three straight games. They have now dropped to the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference. They now have five everyday players out with injuries. It’s a frustrating time right now for the team.

Goaltending hasn’t been good either for quite some time. While Sebastian Cossa wasn’t necessarily bad, he put up an .821 save percentage. You can blame the blueline for a couple of those goals, but goaltending still needs to start consistently posting a .890 save percentage or better, and neither Cossa nor Karel Vejmelka has done that this season.

“I will need to look at the tape to analyze all the goals and all the scoring chances,” Tourigny said. “I think he made great saves during the game. We'll have to look at all the goals and have a better read on it.”

The Mammoth don’t get much of a break either. They play again less than 24 hours after Wednesday’s loss. The injured and the players still kicking get no rest. Perhaps giving someone like Ben McCartney a chance in the lineup might inject some life into the lineup. Whatever can give them energy, the Mammoth need to do it.

In the locker room, it’s simple. Whether the coaches and general managers do something to energize the team, the locker room needs to rise and step up. The Mammoth need everyone at their best. That hasn’t happened recently. It needs to start now if the Mammoth want to start winning again.

“We talk about adversity, and these are the moments when we all need to rise up,” Crouse said. “Everyone in the locker room needs to demand more of themselves, and that's what we're going to do.”

The Golden Knights are a good team. They deserved to win Wednesday’s game. To make the playoffs, though, the Mammoth need to win those tough games, and they need to start doing it soon to keep pace with the rest of the Western Conference.

The Mammoth will play the St. Louis Blues next on Thursday at the Delta Center. The Blues are 8-8-2 and are coming off a 3-2 win over the Detroit Red Wings.