SALT LAKE CITY – Despite a sluggish start to begin the first period against the Philadelphia Flyers, the Utah Mammoth produced an improbable victory after coming back from a 3-0 deficit to force overtime.
Led by their captain, the Mammoth slowly chipped away at the Flyers lead until ‘Clayton Clutch’ stunned the opposition to tie things up late and then called game with a brilliant goal in OT.
Here are the key takeaways from Utah’s thrilling 5-4 overtime win.
The Utah Mammoth put themselves in a tight spot with a sluggish first period
Following a three-day hiatus after their last game on Saturday afternoon, the Utah Mammoth experienced their worst period in nearly three weeks as they came out sluggish and quickly fell into a 2-0 hole against the Philadelphia Flyers.
While they were able to rally late and eventually pulled off one of the most impressive comebacks in the NHL this season, the break in between games resulted in dangerously relaxed play through the first 20 minutes.
Didn’t feel like waiting too long. #PHIvsUTA | #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/MoawqKI6KU
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) January 22, 2026
Wasting NO time!#PHIvsUTA | #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/HJPQnmfG2U
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) January 22, 2026
“Obviously, knew that we weren’t playing great,” Captain Clayton Keller said. “There was a lot of mistakes and just dumb mistakes really.”
The biggest difference between the two teams through the first period on Wednesday night was simply urgency.
Philadelphia came out buzzing with speed and physicality while the Mammoth sat back and were instantly caught off guard.
After allowing the opening goal on the first shift, Utah hit the snooze button once more and the Flyers suddenly had full control with a 2-0 lead less than five minutes into the contest.
To add insult to injury, Nick Schmaltz was then called for a high stick as the first period expired which Philadelphia capitalized on to begin the middle frame.
Practice makes perfect!#PHIvsUTA | #LetsGoFlyers pic.twitter.com/m8phrc9SUM
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) January 22, 2026
Now, while Utah was able to pull of an incredible comeback, there’s really no excuse for them to play flat right out of the gate after multiple days in between games.
Rest is always welcome, but when it leads to playing overly relaxed it can be problematic.
Luckily, Utah still found a way to get the job done.
A collection of key moments resulted in an unbelievable comeback for the Utah Mammoth
When trailing by three goals in the second period, an NHL team doesn’t simply come all the way back in an instant.
Rather, it requires a collection of key moments shift by shift in order to swing the momentum and tilt the ice in their favor.
That’s what Utah accomplished on Wednesday night.
Despite trailing by three in the second period and eventually two with approximately eight minutes left in the third, Utah took it a shift at a time as they slowly built towards a remarkable comeback.
“I’m really happy about our comeback,” Head Coach Andre Tourigny said. “Obviously, that was a big goal on the power play (from Barrett Hayton) at a key moment; we often talk about producing on the power play but also producing in key moments–and that was a key moment. Our first 6-on-5 goal in our franchise’s history was a clutch one, obviously. And in overtime, that was a really good goal. I liked the way we turned things around in the second period.”
“The key goals, the comeback, the grit we showed in the second period. We had a good push. I think the fight of (Jack McBain) was a turning point. And we all know the play of the game was (Nick Schmaltz’s) strip. Those are a lot of positives, and I don’t want to take the spotlight off those things.”
Like Tourigny noted, it all started with a pushback from Mammoth in the second period where they scored two goals in less than a minute to gather some initial momentum.
JJ and Crouser score back-to-back, 36 seconds apart! pic.twitter.com/lUhPamBHtm
— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) January 22, 2026
Then Karel Vejmelka kept Utah in the game as he robbed Trevor Zegras with his glove while going post to post in the splits.
Veggie!! What a save 🔥 pic.twitter.com/8BEnwnd1qa
— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) January 22, 2026
Finally, after Jack McBain pummeled Noah Juulsen with a few nasty rights and Barrett Hayton brought the Mammoth within one on a tip from Dylan Guenther, Nick Schmaltz somehow stripped Garnet Hathaway despite an empty net with several feet of space behind him to comfortably ice the game.
Instead, Schmaltz exhausted himself to get back and stole the puck to keep Utah alive.
While Keller’s goals were absolutely mesmerizing, this was the play of the game.
99% of the time that’s an empty netter but Schmaltz didn’t give up. He refused to quit and won possession back.
Utah needs to bring 8 back this summer.pic.twitter.com/ErpxX2yyCk
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) January 22, 2026
“We just kept fighting,” Keller explained. “So many guys made key plays. Vejmelka made big saves…we talked about it in the room after, none of this happens if Schmaltz doesn’t back check and give everything he’s got to strip them before they score on the empty net.”
“That’s the difference sometimes.”
Like Keller pointed out, it was a collection of small moments that resulted in the comeback.
So, while the captain’s heroics eventually called game, it took a group effort to deliver an improbable win.
‘Clayton Clutch’ called game for the Utah Mammoth yet again
The seven-game home stand for the Utah Mammoth was nothing short of magical.
In search of consistency amidst a competitive Western wild card battle, Utah managed to claim 13 of 14 possible points to give themselves a little bit of breathing room in the top spot.
While it was undoubtedly a group effort to defend home ice for more than two weeks and stack up wins, the captain has recently taken his game to a completely different level.
Through 131 games in their young history, the Utah Mammoth had yet to score a 6-on-5 goal.
Enter Clayton Clutch.
THAT’S OUR CAPTAIN!!!!! 🔥
Keller ties the game to get our first extra attacker goal in franchise history 🤯 pic.twitter.com/knGvasV2EP
— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) January 22, 2026
In desperate need of a goal in order to force OT, Keller didn’t just score but he earned that goal in every possible way.
He battled for a loose puck in the neutral zone, forechecked with an active stick, poked it loose, went straight to net and light the lamp on his backhand.
According to Tourigny, that’s just what Keller does.
“For us, it doesn’t change anything. We think that of him. He didn’t prove anything to me tonight. I know that’s what he is,” Tourigny explained.
“I trust him in those situations, I know he has it in him…that’s probably reason number one he’s a great captain for us. He’s never satisfied. He always wants more. He wants to be an elite player. He’s not happy just to be good, he wants to be great.”
To prove his point even further, Keller then scored the OT winner to complete the improbable comeback and sent all of Delta Center into an absolute frenzy.
CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?! 🤯
Clayton Keller wins it for the @utahmammoth in @Energizer overtime! pic.twitter.com/5knpVtJncY
— NHL (@NHL) January 22, 2026
Like Tourigny said, these are the reasons No. 9 wears the “C.”
He’s not only incredibly skilled but he puts in the work to be an elite player because he wants to win on the biggest stages.
“I think a lot of it is belief, and the mental talk that I’m saying to myself in my head,” Keller explained. “I’ve always trusted my training. I know I’ve done everything possible to leave myself in a good position and let the rest take care of itself. I skate every day in the summer with a couple other guys, I work on those touches and all those things.”
“It’s second nature to me & something that I want to continue to get better at.”
Keller describes what goes through his mind when the puck is on his stick with the game on the line:
“A lot of it is belief. The mental talk that I’m saying to myself in my head.”
“It’s second nature to me & something that I want to continue to get better at.” pic.twitter.com/ki8HxTCAC0
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) January 22, 2026
Through the seven-game home stand, Keller finished with 13 points (2G, 11A) which ranks third in the NHL during that span.
His 11 assists are also tied with Boston’s David Pastrnak for a league high.
That’s clutch.
But that’s also just Clayton.
What’s next for the Utah Mammoth?
The Utah Mammoth will begin a four-game road trip against the Nashville Predators on Saturday afternoon at 1:30 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.
