Utah controlled much of Sunday night’s preseason matchup, but a costly third period allowed Colorado to pull away for a 4-1 victory.
For two periods Sunday night, the Utah Mammoth looked like the team in control.
Utah dictated the pace for much of the preseason matchup, spending long stretches with the puck and keeping the Colorado Avalanche from finding much rhythm offensively. But a few costly mistakes in the third period changed everything, turning what had been a competitive game into a 4-1 Avalanche victory.
The Mammoth entered the final period tied 1-1, having done plenty to keep one of the NHL’s deeper lineups in check.
Colorado opened the scoring in the second period when Beckett Hamilton found the back of the net, but Yegor Borikob answered to keep the game even heading into the final 20 minutes.
The Avalanche received solid goaltending throughout the night. Mackenzie Blackwood stopped all seven shots he faced before yielding the crease to highly touted prospect Ilya Nabokov, who turned aside 16 of the 17 shots he saw.
Utah’s Sebastian Cossa matched that effort early, looking composed in his first preseason appearance with the Mammoth. He tracked the puck well, handled traffic in front of him and consistently directed dangerous rebounds away from the middle of the ice.
The Mammoth also got encouraging performances from several of their young skaters.
Caleb Desnoyers looked comfortable in his first preseason action, playing a responsible game at both ends of the rink and winning 66% of his faceoffs. The fourth-overall pick from the 2025 NHL Draft also showed his willingness to compete physically and make plays away from the puck.
Gabe Smith’s line was another bright spot for Utah. The group repeatedly created pressure in the offensive zone, held onto possession and generated several chances throughout the night. Smith scored Utah’s lone goal.
Then the game began to slip away.
Gavin Brindley put Colorado ahead early in the third period before Brock Nelson added another, giving the Avalanche breathing room as Utah struggled to regain the control it had enjoyed for much of the night.
Taylor Makar, the younger brother of Avalanche superstar Cale Makar, added the final blow to seal the 4-1 victory.
The score ultimately favored Colorado, but the night offered plenty for Utah to take away. The Mammoth controlled the puck for much of the game and showed flashes from several young players. Once the mistakes started piling up, however, the Avalanche were more than happy to make them pay.
