SALT LAKE CITY – Despite leading with less than 10 seconds to go in regulation, the Utah Mammoth were their own worst enemy on Monday night as they allowed the Anaheim Ducks to force OT and eventually steal the extra point in three-on-three.
Here are the key takeaways from Utah’s heartbreaking 3-2 OT loss in Anaheim.
Dylan Guenther and Logan Cooley need to keep producing for the Utah Mammoth
While it didn’t result in a win for the Utah Mammoth, forwards Dylan Guenther and Logan Cooley finally broke through their cold streaks as both players lit the lamp against the Anaheim Ducks.
With his second goal in two games, Guenther scored yet another from his office as he drifted over to his spot, prepared to shoot and then unleashed a blistering one-timer that Lukas Dostal never had a chance at stopping.
A slow period for the Mammoth until Dylan Guenther blasted a one-timer from his spot to tie things up.
1-1 after 40 minutes.pic.twitter.com/ywPNXnXADz
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) November 18, 2025
As for Cooley, he also connected on a fierce one-timer after Mikhail Sergachev deceived Dostal with his eyes which then opened up a shooting lane for No. 92.
The Utah Mammoth are 7-2 when Cooley registers a point this season.
He’s such a high impact player for them. https://t.co/ZI2zzC2SXU
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) November 18, 2025
As demonstrated by their 24 points in 11 games in October, Guenther and Cooley are clearly capable of more.
Sure, both guys were on a bit of a heater last month, but it shouldn’t be outlandish to expect close to a point per game from each of them.
They’re immensely talented and the club has recently invested a lot of belief in them with long-term extensions.
But with only six collective points in eight games during the month of November, their performances against Anaheim simply need to serve as a turning point for both skaters.
That effort from Cooley on the forecheck to win the puck on the delayed icing was huge.
When he is flying, Utah wins hockey games.
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) November 18, 2025
Cooley and Guenther are high impact players, and the Mammoth are desperate for someone to start stepping up on a consistent basis.
Why not No. 11 and 92?
Utah made some brutal mistakes down the stretch that cost them a regulation win and an extra point
After taking a one goal lead midway through the third period, it felt like the Utah Mammoth had finally found their footing in a back-n-forth contest with the Ducks.
Cooley got his first goal since October 28, the top lines started playing with a unified energy and Utah seemed to be in control as the final buzzer approached
However, things changed pretty fast as the Ducks pulled their goalie, somehow managed to tie things up with less than five seconds remaining and then carried that momentum into the OT period.
But was it all the Ducks brilliance or did Utah make some critical mistakes?
🚨 TERRY 🚨
HE TIES IT WITH LESS THAN FIVE SCONDS!
We’re going to OT! #FlyTogether pic.twitter.com/05VArBwy2h
— Anaheim Ducks (@AnaheimDucks) November 18, 2025
Not to take away from what Anaheim did, but Utah was their own worst enemy on both goals.
Beginning with the first, this simply came down poor coverage.
Yes, it was a mad scramble after Clayton Keller got tripped, but there’s no reason for Utah to have three skaters along the boards while two Ducks camp out unmanned right in the crease.
You’re begging to be scored on in that situation.
As for the OT winner, that was also poorly played by Utah as Karel Vejmelka overcommitted on the shot, Guenther didn’t step or close off the outlet pass and Keller didn’t back check in time.
Those things just can’t happen.
That’s a game you have to see through to the end and while a point is a point, it absolutely should’ve been two.
The Utah Mammoth need to go back to what was working before things get out of control
It’s still not quite time to begin panicking about the Utah Mammoth.
Through 19 games, the team is 10-7-2 with 22 points.
Guess who else has 22 points?
10 teams in the National Hockey League including the Winnipeg Jets, Vegas Golden Knights, Minnesota Wild, and Edmonton Oilers amongst others.
Notably, there’s also still 63 games left in the season.
Plenty of time to figure things out.
Now, with all that in mind, I’ll admit that it’s been rough lately as Utah is just 3-5-2 over their last 10 contests, have been outscored 34-23 during that stretch and haven’t won back-to-back games since late October.
Brutal.
So, what do they need?
To find some rhythm, go back to what was working and just ride it out.
Since making the line changes to their top six against Toronto, Utah is just 1-5 in their last six games.
Clearly, shaking things up hasn’t exactly worked and it’s fair to say that the original change was even a bit drastic.
Through October 28, the first line (Schmaltz, Hayton, Keller) was top 10 in goals for (7), goals against (3), goals per 60 minutes (5.13), goals against per 60 minutes (2.2), expected goals for (4.2), expected goals against (2) and a handful of other advanced statistics.
Additionally, the kid line was also one of the best in the league with 34 points in just 11 games.
Why go away from that and for such a long period of time?
Sure, they lost two games in a row, and the top six were fairly quiet, but that shouldn’t mean completely abandoning what worked so well early on and then continuing to search desperately for different answers.
Just go back to those original lines, let them regain their confidence, witness the puck go in and generate some consistency.
Right now, not much else is going their way so why not give those original lines another shot?
Like I said, it’s not time to panic yet.
But if Utah can’t turn things around here fairly quickly and piece together a few back-to-back wins, they’ll dig themselves into a deep hole which is almost always impossible to crawl out from in the NHL.
What’s next for the Utah Mammoth?
The Utah Mammoth will face the San Jose Sharks on the road on Tuesday night at 8 p.m. MT.
The game will be available on Mammoth+.
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.
