WASHINGTON, D.C. – Following a disappointing conclusion to a three-game home stand, the Utah Mammoth kicked off their road trip on the right foot as they outlasted the Washington Capitals to secure two critical points.
In addition to a new career-high for Dylan Guenther and two goals from the power play units, the Mammoth remained even-keeled to fend off multiple late pushes by the Caps.
Here are the key takeaways from Utah’s 3-2 victory at the Nation’s Capital.
What makes Dylan Guenther’s shot so deadly?
In just his second full season in the National Hockey League, Utah Mammoth forward Dylan Guenther has already set a new career-high of 28 goals and counting.
After sniping Capitals goaltender Logan Thompson top shelf, No. 11 not only got his team on the board but officially surpassed last season’s total.
Set a career-high on a disgusting snipe.
No. 11 is special folks.pic.twitter.com/00zuvSqo2C
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) March 4, 2026
So, what is it that makes Guenther’s release so nasty?
According to head coach Andre Tourigny, it’s a combination of confidence and a quick release.
“It’s his release. He takes it really quick, and he has that confidence and swagger,” Tourigny said.
“It’s funny, before he scored his power play goal (against Colorado), he missed two shots wide. Certain guys, that will get into their head…he did not hesitate much on the third one as he put it right where he had to. He has that instinct of shooting and his release is deadly.”
Watching Guenther set a new career-high in scoring at Capital One Area almost feels poetic.
Home to undeniably the greatest goal scorer of all time in Alexander Ovechkin, they’re certainly some similarities in their ability to find the back of the net.
In addition to their offices being located near the left faceoff circle, both 11 and the Great Eight have a shooters mentality.
Doesn’t matter if they’ve missed the last four, five, or even 10 shots in a row, they approach each puck with the same mentality.
An expectation that the next one is going to go in, and oftentimes, it does.
“I’m confident. I don’t want to pass up any shots, especially when I’m in a scoring position,” Dylan Guenther explained.
“That’s kind of what has gotten me into the league was the ability to score. I’ve always had a good shot…it’s still something that I’m good at and have to keep working on to get better at.”
To be clear, I am not saying that fans should expect Guenther to be the next Ovechkin.
They’re very different players and Ovechkin will never be dethroned as the greatest scorer of all time.
But there’s no doubt in my mind that Guenther will become the Mammoth’s franchise leader in goals one day as his numbers continue to rapidly climb.
Utah’s power play scored twice with a simplified attack against Washington
Despite being one of the worst power plays in the NHL for a majority of the season, the Mammoth have suddenly found new life since returning from the Olympics.
Through their first four games since the break, Utah has recorded a power play goal in three of those matchups with four total on the man advantage.
The biggest difference?
They’ve simply returned to the basics, attacked quickly and put a plethora of pucks on net.
Against the Capitals, Utah continued to embrace that strategy as they scored not once, but twice on special teams.
After circulating the puck for a number of seconds and failing to find any seams, Mikhail Sergachev beat Thompson by simply throwing one at the net with traffic in front.
Sergy power play goal! 😎
2-0, Utah. pic.twitter.com/8RBOwv68gD
— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) March 4, 2026
In terms of the second, once Cooley drew the attention of the defense with speed up the left side, he then fed a wide-open JJ Peterka who bounced a one-timer off of the post and Thompson’s back to light the lamp.
Peterka on the power play! 🔥
3-1, Utah. pic.twitter.com/OkBV3IkgRu
— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) March 4, 2026
“[We’re at our best on the power play] When we’re moving it quick, myself included. There’s been parts of the year where I’m holding it too much,” Keller explained.
“Everyone having that attack mindset and not really letting the PK get set up. Just kind of snapping it around & that’s baseball at the end of the day.”
Head Coach Andre Tourigny then echoed Keller’s words as he too broke down the reasoning behind Utah’s six power play goals over their last six games.
“The most important thing is we are aggressive. We’re attacking…I’d rather us to be overly aggressive, overly quick, attacking quick, putting pucks at the net, chasing loose pucks, trying to make plays inside than being too passive and staying on the outside passing the puck,” He explained.
“When you want to attack quickly, you cannot be complicated…when you’re too slow to attack, the opponent gets inside…the fact we put more pucks at the net created some seams.”
Of course, Keller and Tourigny are spot on.
Far too often this season, Utah would overcomplicate things as they settled for the perimeter, refused to shoot and allowed the defense to get set up in their structure.
That’s predictable and much easier to stop.
But as of late, Utah has found success by attacking the net, creating movement, pulling defensemen out of their positions and taking more shots.
A lot of the time, a power play goal isn’t going to be some beautifully crafted collection of passes that results in a golden one-timer.
No.
Rather, it’s about utilizing the extra man to open up space, create an extra shooting lane, generate traffic or clean up a free puck on the backdoor.
Now that Utah has embraced that mentality, they’ve resurrected their power play at the right time.
Utah’s needs to approach every remaining game on their schedule like they did against Washington
As a young team trying to take the next step and make the playoffs, the Utah Mammoth must approach each of their remaining games with the same energy, positivity and balanced approach.
Why?
To give themselves a chance to remain competitive on a nightly basis and pick up as many critical points as possible coming down the stretch.
During the four games Utah has played since returning from the Olympics, they’ve picked up two wins with that approach while losing twice without it.
Take Utah’s 4-0 loss to Chicago for example.
Against the Blackhawks, the Mammoth came out flat and lacked energy which eventually spoiled their confidence, and the result spoke for itself.
Fast forward to Washington and Utah was a completely different team.
They emerged from the locker room with energy, boasted confidence, navigated adversity, responded during key moments and took care of business.
“The energy on the bench, the boys were into it,” Tourigny said. “They were emotionally involved in the game. Their prep was good. You could feel the energy before the game.”
“They were really positive. Even when, we knew Washington would have a push…but I think even when we had some adversity, some mistakes, they were really positive on the bench, really alert, and really urgent. Their positivity was great.”
That’s what it will take for the Mammoth to make the playoffs.
They have the talent and skill to skate with anybody.
But they have to approach the game with a mature and balanced mindset.
If they’re able to produce that consistently, they’ll make the playoffs.
If not, losses to Colorado and Chicago will begin to add up.
What’s next for the Utah Mammoth?
The Utah Mammoth will continue their five-game road trip against the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night at 5 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.
