SALT LAKE CITY – Despite a slow start without a single shot on net through a majority of the first period, the Utah Mammoth erupted offensively over the final 40 minutes to claim a dominate victory over the New York Islanders.
Led by Dylan Guenther, who registered his first ever career hat-trick, the Mammoth scored seven goals to pick up two critical points on the road.
Here are the key takeaways from Utah’s 7-2 victory over the Islanders.
Karel Vejmelka was superb for the Utah Mammoth in his first game back from IR
While he only missed two games for the Utah Mammoth on injured reserve (upper-body), Karel Vejmelka was simply superb in his return against the New Yorks Islanders.
In addition to 20 saves on 22 shots (90 percent), Vejmelka’s most significant contributions were early on in the first period as he remained steady despite a rocky start for the rest of the team.
“That was huge,” Head coach Andre Tourigny said. “The trust the team has in him when we’re not playing well.”
“At the beginning, nobody panicked and Veggie was a big part of it.”
Through nearly 14 minutes in the first, Utah didn’t have a single shot on net as they struggled to get pucks in deep and set up their offense.
Meanwhile, the Islanders came out buzzing as they overwhelmed the Mammoth with 10 unanswered shots on goal, several of which were right on the doorstep.
Now, it’s important to note that none of No. 70’s saves were overly impressive but they didn’t need to be.
What Utah needed between the pipes was a reliable anchor to give them a chance to get going and that’s exactly what Vejmelka did.
He remained steady, locked in, made the saves he should’ve and kept the Mammoth in the game long enough for the offense to start moving.
Dylan Guenther’s domination continued as he registered his first career hat-trick
It may be time for Wikipedia to update the ownership section of the New York Islanders to Mr. Dylan Guenther as No. 11 continued to scorch the nets in Long Island on Thursday afternoon.
After adding three more (first career hat-trick) to his tally against the Islanders, Guenther has now posted multi-goal games in consecutive contests at UBS Arena, with six total goals in four career games against New York.
How’s he gotten it done?
Consistent movement, deception, elite body control and pinpoint laser beams that have been impossible to stop.
Gunner makes it a 1-0 game! 🔥🙌 pic.twitter.com/xhwXZ3u7jY
— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) January 1, 2026
No look pass from Crouser gets Gunner his second of the day! 😎
2-1, Utah. pic.twitter.com/nprtZY04GA
— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) January 1, 2026
DYLAN GUENTHER HAT TRICK! 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/jppHc0u8tJ
— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) January 1, 2026
While Guenther possesses one of the nastiest one-timers in the National Hockey League, he’s also incredibly dangerous off the rush and in transition.
Why?
He’s unpredictable.
Rather than skating in a straight line, he often weaves through the neutral and offensive zones to keep the defense on their toes.
By moving his feet, he also makes the goaltender uncomfortable before picking his spot and firing at will.
“I was surprised it was his first career hat trick,” Karel Vejmelka explained. “He really deserved it. He’s a great goal scorer.”
I may sound like a broken record at this point, but Guenther has undoubtedly been Utah’s MVP since Cooley was placed on IR.
Not only does he lead the team in scoring (20) but entering the contest today, his 10 goals since Dec 1 were tied for fifth most in the NHL.
During a stretch of desperation, Guenther has more than answered the call for Utah.
Still in the mix, Utah needs to build off the win over the New York Islanders
At risk of falling behind in the wild card race, the Utah Mammoth took care of business against the Islanders by claiming two critical points.
Following the victory, Utah has 41 points through 41 contests which puts them in the third spot in the wild card race.
Great.
Now it’s time to keep building.
Since their seven-game win streak in early October, the Utah Mammoth have yet to win three games in a row and have only secured back-to-back wins three times.
That has to change.
Understandably, the mindset of this team right now is to remain competitive and stay in the race with Cooley out.
I get it.
But rather than just barely keeping their heads above water with occasional moments of panic as the current gets stronger, why not piece together a few win streaks?
Doesn’t need to be anything crazy (although that’s obviously welcome), but picking up six points on this trip is entirely possible and would be huge.
While the Mammoth are still very much alive, most the other teams around them in the standings have multiple games in hand.
Notably, San Jose (43 points) and Calgary (40 points) both have one while Nashville (40 points) has two, Los Angeles (41 points) has three and Seattle (39 points) has four.
That means Utah needs to start piecing together consecutive wins and now would be a great time.
They have yet to lose in New York in their existence and they proved not long ago that New Jersey is a team they can keep up with.
Not that anything short of six points on the road trip would be considered a failure but four is the minimum and six would be huge.
Clearly, they are capable.
Time to dig deep and get it done.
What’s next for the Utah Mammoth?
The Utah Mammoth will continue their three-game road trip against the New Jersey Devils on January 3 at 1 p.m. MT.
The game will be available on Mammoth+.
All Mammoth games will also be broadcast live on the KSL Sports Zone (97.5 FM/1280 AM).
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.
