The difference was the special teams.<\/p>\n
Darren Raddysh opened the scoring with an absolute bomb from the point, and Brandon Hagel scored an insurance marker during the final minute of play. Both goals came on the power play, giving the Lightning a 50% success rate with the man-advantage in the game.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnfortunately, too many timely penalties \u2014 not just (that) we got in the box \u2014 it\u2019s the timing of when we got in the box, and I think that cost us the game,” said Mammoth head coach Andr\u00e9 Tourigny.<\/p>\n
The penalties that led to Raddysh\u2019s goal created a perfect storm for the Lightning (see what I did there?).<\/p>\n
Cole, a major contributor to Utah\u2019s penalty kill, took an interference penalty, which his team killed off. At the same time, he took a five-minute fighting major, which kept him out of the game longer, even though it didn\u2019t leave his team short-handed.<\/p>\n
After the interference minor had expired but before the fighting major was over, John Marino \u2014 another big-time penalty-killing defenseman \u2014 took a tripping penalty. This forced several non-penalty killers to fill in, putting the Mammoth in danger against an above-average power play team.<\/p>\n
The Mammoth pack up and head even further south for Tuesday\u2019s game against the Florida Panthers, the reigning back-to-back Stanley Cup champions. The Panthers are one of four teams the Mammoth have yet to beat in franchise history.<\/p>\n
Tidbits and takeawaysSean Durzi appears injured \u2014 again<\/p>\n
Poor Sean Durzi. He just can\u2019t catch a break.<\/p>\n
Four games into last season, he suffered an upper-body injury that kept him out for 51 games. In the second game of this season, he suffered another UBI, this time missing 12 games. And that may not be the end of it.<\/p>\n
In the waning minutes of Monday\u2019s game, Durzi went into the corner with his head down and his back to his opponent. Zemgus Girgensons gave him a moderate, routine bump \u2014 one that wouldn\u2019t have caused any damage in a normal situation \u2014 but because of Durzi\u2019s compromised position, he went head-first into the boards.<\/p>\n
Durzi headed to the locker room and did not return in the final 2:31 of the game. As of the time of writing, there has been no update on his status.<\/p>\n
Earlier in the game, a clip of a furious Durzi made the rounds on social media as he screamed at Lightning defenseman Declan Carlile after an altercation. That fire is part of what makes him valuable to the team.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe has that drive, that passion, that competitiveness,\u201d Tourigny said. \u201cYou need that. When push comes to shove, you need that energy.\u201d<\/p>\n
A true test<\/p>\n
There\u2019s no such thing as an easy win in the NHL, so don\u2019t discount the Mammoth\u2019s nine-game point streak. But most of those games were against non-playoff teams.<\/p>\n
This five-game stretch before the Olympics is where the Mammoth will really see what they\u2019re made of. Among their opponents are the defending back-to-back champs, the top team in the Metropolitan Division and the second-best teams in both the Atlantic and Central Divisions (they also get one lighter game with the 32nd-placed Vancouver Canucks).<\/p>\n
The gauntlet should serve as a measuring stick for management to determine its trade deadline plans \u2014 it\u2019s only 10 Mammoth games away. If they can produce a winning record through this stretch, there\u2019ll be no reason they can\u2019t put up a good fight in the playoffs. If they lose more than they win, there\u2019s less reason to go out and get a rental player.<\/p>\n
Utah’s point streak ends at 9 games.<\/p>\n
This is their 4th time being shut out this season, and all of them ended either 1-0 or 2-0.<\/p>\n
It’s during these games that we find out what this team is made of. They didn’t give the Lightning much, but they just couldn’t beat Andrei\u2026<\/p>\n
\u2014 Brogan Houston (@houston_brogan) January 27, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n The sudden appearance of Darren Raddysh<\/p>\n The Lightning still have 31 games to go and Darren Raddysh has already bested his career high in both goals and points \u2014 by a lot.<\/p>\n It\u2019s not exactly common for a 29-year-old defenseman to go from a depth role to leading the league\u2019s blue liners in power play goals, but that\u2019s exactly what Raddysh has done.<\/p>\n That\u2019s largely due to major injuries to the Lightning\u2019s back end. Victor Hedman and Ryan McDonagh are among the league\u2019s most accomplished defensemen, but they\u2019ve both spent the bulk of this season rehabbing injuries. Emil Lilleberg and Charle-Edouard D\u2019Astous join them in the press box, having both been struck by the injury bug as well.<\/p>\n As a result, Raddysh\u2019s ice time has increased by an average of five minutes per game from last year to now. Just like Utah\u2019s Kailer Yamamoto<\/a>, some guys just need the right opportunity. Once they get it, they take off.<\/p>\n Raddysh\u2019s sudden stardom comes at the perfect time for him. He\u2019s due for a new contract this summer, and he\u2019s bound to make exponentially more than his current salary of $975,000.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/MP5DHRFHI5GLFIAPQXFS2IFHMU.jpg\")
Tampa Bay Lightning left wing Nick Paul (20) punches Utah Mammoth defenseman Ian Cole (28) in the face as they fight during the second period of an NHL hockey game Monday, Jan. 26, 2026, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo\/Chris O’Meara) | AP