SALT LAKE CITY – Utah’s biggest summer acquisition played hero on Wednesday night as the Utah Mammoth erased an early deficit to defeat the Calgary Flames in their home opener at Delta Center.
Utilizing his blazing speed, JJ Peterka emphatically introduced himself to the fanbase with a dazzling game-winner which Utah then protected to send the Flames home with a loss.
Here are the key takeaways from Utah’s big win at home.
Blink, and you just might miss JJ Peterka’s blazing speed and finesse
As one of the biggest trades of the summer, 23-year-old forward JJ Peterka was acquired by Utah for his blazing speed, clever finesse and elite goal scoring.
Against the Flames, Delta Center witnessed a spectacle from No. 77 on the breakaway as he exploded from his own zone and then scored the game winning goal in a tightly contested matchup.
Blazing speed and finesse.
What a filthy finish on the breakaway.
77 is just getting started.pic.twitter.com/PADfXrNlnO
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) October 16, 2025
After utilizing his active stick to generate a turnover near his own blue line, Peterka then burst through the neutral zone, won the footrace over two defensemen and went top shelf to beat Devin Cooley on the breakaway.
Beautifully executed and exactly what the front office expects from him.
Legendary. https://t.co/h2JoLOTdrj
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) October 16, 2025
“He’s improving every game,” Head Coach Andre Tourigny said.
“Both sides of the puck. I like the last two games. Way more involved in battles on the forecheck…even better as well at getting inside in the offensive zone and creating space for his teammates.”
A year ago, Utah struggled to consistently find the back of the net.
Not that they were bad per say, but it wasn’t to the standard required to make the playoffs.
With that in mind, General Manager Bill Armstrong identified a young, talented forward who matched their timeline and was then able to obtain him for a steal.
While it’s still going to take Peterka some time to completely settle in, he’s currently on the right track.
“I think there’s a lot more in JJ. He’s got a lot more to offer,” Armstrong told the KSL Sports Zone.
“That line is just getting going & they’ve showed some really good chemistry…I still feel like [JJ] is still feeling his way here. He’s not completely comfortable.”
Through four games, Peterka now leads the Mammoth with two goals and has registered a point in each of the last three contests.
But like Armstrong pointed out and despite being one of the bright spots for Utah to begin the season, he still hasn’t completely found his groove.
That’s good.
That means there’s still plenty of levels for Peterka to unlock as he deepens his chemistry on the second line and becomes more assertive in the offensive zone.
“[I’m] way more comfortable. Just chemistry wise, I think we’re building more and more as we play.”
“You can see it on the ice. The plays we make are getting way better from game one to now.”
JJ Peterka says he’s feeling much more comfortable in a Mammoth sweater:
“Way more comfortable. Just chemistry wise, I think we’re building more and more as we play.”
“You can see it on the ice. The plays we make are getting way better from game one to now.” pic.twitter.com/dQ2YUxAqzC
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) October 16, 2025
Once he’s fully comfortable, Peterka is going to be a force for the Mammoth as he terrorizes defenses with his unmatchable speed and wicked hands.
Utah’s power play needs some work
Entering tonight’s matchup against Calgary, Utah’s PP was ranked No. 26 in the NHL with just a 10 percent conversion rate.
That’s pretty brutal.
Unfortunately, it only got worse for Utah as they failed to connect on six power play chances against the Flames, dropping to 1/16 on the year.
Now, it is early, but something has to change on special teams, especially considering the amount of speed and offensive firepower on the top unit.
“We need to put it in. How many chances did we have? Six million tonight?” Tourigny jokingly asked.
“We had 2-on-0, we had breakaways, we had one timer from the slot. We’ll take that every night and if we keep doing the same thing we did tonight for the remaining seventy-eight games, I’m not worried about our power play one bit.”
For starters, it may be worth swapping Nick Schmaltz with JJ Peterka on power play one.
Peterka is faster, more dangerous and has already been able to find the back of the net this season while Schmaltz has struggled despite a number of dangerous opportunities in close.
Additionally, Utah appears to be running a double bumper technique (basically two wandering skaters in the slot to generate traffic, facilitate and fire quick shots) that just isn’t working.
Rather than having Guenther near the left faceoff circle to blast one-timers, he was hovering as the second bumper on several of the man advantages.
That’s just not effective.
The good news for Utah, despite their lackluster power play, they still won.
However, it needs to be better.
Rather than battling for 35 straight minutes to protect their lead, even converting on just one of those six chances would’ve buried the game much earlier.
Utah got the win over Calgary, now it’s time to build on it
Aside from the power play, the Mammoth played good hockey for nearly the entire 60 minutes on Wednesday night.
They created numerous dangerous chances, won battles, matched Calgary’s physicality, were strong defensively and found a way to get the job done.
“It was a positive outing, and lots of opportunities. Unfortunately, we could not convert, but it was a positive outing,” Tourigny explained.
“In the third, they [Calgary] had a really good push, but I liked the way we managed it defensively. We turned the puck over a little bit too much when we were protecting the lead, a little bit too safe. But our game in general, when it comes to the physicality, balancing, the hits, and trying not to draw penalties.”
Any win is a great outing. Doesn’t matter if it was a poor effort or strong one, a win is a win.
But Utah needs to keep going.
They need to keep their foot on the gas by continuing to get more pucks on net, crashing hard, generating second chances and suffocating teams with a harsh forecheck like they did against Calgary.
Eventually, those chances added up and they were rewarded for their efforts as the puck finally found the back of the net.
That new goal horn sure sounds nice!🙌
🚨 Haytes makes it a tie game! pic.twitter.com/132e8ad5ln
— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) October 16, 2025
Look, the defense and goaltending are all there for Utah right now.
Karel Vejmelka and Vitek Vanecek have been superb, and Utah is currently one of the best defensive teams in the NHL.
Big positives defensively for Utah through 3 games:
– Ranked 2nd in shots allowed per game (21.3)
– Ranked 8th in goals against (2.33)
– Tied for 14th PK (83.3)
– Veggie is only allowing 1.99 GAA with a 92 SV%
As soon as they find offensive rhythm, watch out. They’ll be tough.
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) October 15, 2025
Once the offense can match it, this team is going to win plenty of games in pursuit of a playoff spot.
Now facing the San Jose Sharks and Boston Bruins to conclude the home stand, Utah has a chance to get hot and become consistent as the season gains momentum.
What’s next for the Utah Mammoth?
The Utah Mammoth will continue their home stand against the San Jose Sharks on Friday at 7 p.m. MT.
The game will be available on ESPN+ and Hulu.
Cole Bagley is the Utah Mammoth insider for KSL Sports. Keep up with him on X here. You can hear Cole break down the team on KSL Sports Zone and KSL 5 TV.
Take us with you, wherever you go.
