Panthers' late goal sinks Mammoth, who drop 3rd straight

SALT LAKE CITY — No matter how good one starts, sometimes championship DNA takes over in a game.

The two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers were in Salt Lake City Wednesday night. And it was Anton Lundell who played hero for Florida with a goal with just under a minute to play that gave the Panthers a 4-3 win Wednesday.

The Mammoth went on the attack to begin the game, playing with more intensity and urgency after a rough start in their previous outing. That aggressiveness was rewarded with the game's first power-play opportunity after the Panthers were called for slashing.

"We were focused, we were urgent," Mammoth head coach Andre Tourgny said. "Obviously, they're a good team, and they did a lot of good stuff."

But Utah couldn't take advantage and finished 0-of-3 on the man advantage. The Mammoth spent a chunk of the first period on the attack and finally got a shot to go, with Dylan Guenther scoring on a breakaway to give Utah the early 1-0 lead.

Clayton Keller nearly took advantage of another breakaway later, but his shot was wide left of the goal.

Florida went on the offensive as the end of the first period drew near. Carter Verhaeghe got a deflection near the goal to tap in the game-tying goal to give the Panthers its first of three consecutive goals.

Shortly after the conclusion of the Mammoth's second power play, Sam Bennett netted his eighth goal of the season to give the Panthers the lead. A Utah turnover a couple minutes later led to Sam Reinhart setting up Bennett for his second score of the game, with Florida taking a commanding 3-1 lead.

It looked like the game had taken a turn for the worse for the Mammoth, but Guenther immediately answered the Panthers' three unanswered goals with his second strike of the game — his 13th goal of the season and second straight game with a goal.

Keller nearly had a goal again but his shot was stopped by Bobrovsky. The two-time Vezina trophy winner made an impressive save to pluck the shot out of the air.

But the Mammoth continued to attack. That hustle showed itself again when Jack McBain's backhand scoop pushed the puck up over Bobrovsky's outstretched leg to tie the game 3-3.

Both goalies were sharp in Wednesday's game, with Vejmelka and Bobrovsky both turning away multiple shots that could have gone in favor of each team. Utah made a stand on the penalty kill twice in the third period to prevent Florida from taking advantage.

"There were high level saves on both sides," Tourgny said. "We could have separated ourselves way before the third period, but they could have won the game before the last minute, as well."

The Mammoth looked to be on course to at least secure a point and send the contest into overtime, but Lundell tipped in a pass to give the Panthers the late lead and ultimately the win.

"You need to be able to rise to the occasion and play in those key situations," Tourgny said. "It's not just age because Dylan Guenther, when the occasion is there, he's a big time player and he's 22 years old."

The loss extends Utah's losing streak to three games; however, the team showed much more fight and played well throughout the contest.

"You look around the league, good teams find ways to win hockey games, even when they don't have their best or they're close games," McBain said. "It's something as a group we've got to figure out. We know we have it in the group."

The Mammoth will be back in action Friday to defend its home ice against the Seattle Kraken.

Related topics