Mammoth earn first playoff win in franchise history with 3-2 result over Vegas

LAS VEGAS — It appears as if the playoff jitters wore off for a young Mammoth team.

Following a Game 1 loss in which the Mammoth blew a 2-1 lead in the third period while also being out-hit, Utah bounced- back with a 3-2 win over the Golden Knights Tuesday night to even the series 1-1.

Logan Cooley delivered the game-winner, his second goal of the playoffs, late in the third period to give the Mammoth the advantage, and Utah's defense held on in the final three minutes, as Vegas pulled its goalie, to seal the win.

"It's so exciting playing in these games," Cooley said. "You're playing for the cup, it's what you've dreamed of since you were a little kid and you just want to leave everything out there. The games are so intense, physical, fast and I think that fits my game."

The Mammoth improved in nearly every aspect of what they struggled with in the opening game, most notably matching Vegas' physicality for the entire game and not just parts. Utah recorded more hits than the Golden Knights while outshooting Vegas 29-21.

Dylan Guenther and Kailer Yamamoto both notched 2 points for the Mammoth, with Gunther scoring a goal and adding an assist while Yamamoto picked up two assists.

The power-play struggles continued for Utah Tuesday as the Mammoth dropped to 0-for-5 on the man advantage, while the Golden Knights added a power-play goal for the second straight game to improve to 2-for-5 on the series.

In what looked like a much-improved power play to close out the regular season for the Mammoth, it's gone completely cold to begin the playoffs. A spark will be needed on special teams if Utah wants to keep up its momentum as they now return home for Game 3 on Friday.

The improved effort from the Mammoth wasn't always a foregone conclusion in Tuesday contest, though, after Vegas picked up where it left off in Game 1.

The Golden Knights went on its first man advantage in the opening frame after Cooley was called for an interference penalty on Mitch Marner. The penalty proved costly as Mark Stone got his shot near the crease past Karel Vejmelka for the opening goal.

Stone also laid a big hit on Nate Schmidt, which led to Lawson Crouse retaliating and a resulting roughing penalty on Crouse and Stone.

The opening period featured a few mixups as the bad blood from the first game spilled over into Game 2. Brandon Tanev threw a couple punches at Ivan Barbashev, which resulted in a roughing penalty.

In all, there were eight penalties in the opening period, which helped push both teams past the penalty minute total from Game 1.

Utah eventually caught a break after Vegas goaltender Carter Hart failed to control the puck after a shot from MacKenzie Weegar. The puck then bounced off Carter's pad before it hit off Rasmus Anderrson's skate and deflected back under Hart's pad into the net to even the score going into the second frame.

The Mammoth largely dominated the second period, outshooting the Golden Knights 13-4, but the score remained tied after two goals were scored nearly a minute apart.

"Just lost any type of flow in the second period, the way everything was going on," Vegas head coach John Tortorella said. "I thought we had a good start to the third period. Had some opportunities, we couldn't score, they find a way with some of their speed."

After more chaos that resulted in more penalties, Utah eventually ended up on a power play after a penalty on Jack Eichel gave the Mammoth a four-on-three advantage. But Vegas withstood the Mammoth's onslaught, with Hart making key saves and several Golden Knights defenseman blocking shots.

Seconds after the Mammoth killed Vegas' power play, Dylan Guenther gave Utah the lead with a one-timer that blew past Hart to the top corner of the net to take the advantage.

But as has been an issue this season, Utah's lead didn't last long. A minute later, Barbashev evened things up again after he beat Vejmelka and a duo of Mammoth skaters with a backhand shot for his 13th career playoff goal.

A gridlocked third period saw the momentum change with Cooley's go-ahead goal with just under six minutes left in regulation. Cooley was the benefactor of a blocked Guenther shot that Cooley then quickly collected and found the back of the net.

Hart made the stop on Guenther's attempt, only for Cooley to clean it up and sneak the puck past Hart's outstretched leg to give the Mammoth the lead with just under six minutes to play.

The Golden Knights made a push late, but Utah did its job of keeping Vegas on the outside and preventing the home team from getting looks on the net with the six-on-five advantage.

"You lose the first game, the next one is important," Guenther said. "We talked about being level-headed since training camp so we did a really good job of that. We'll enjoy this one, take a little bit of time off and get ready for the next."

The series now shifts to Utah, with Game 3 taking place Friday (7:30 p.m. MDT).

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