In the first period alone, there were eight penalties between the Knights and the Mammoth. Five of those were roughing penalties. There were some massive hits, including a couple on Ian Cole. The Mammoth fought through them, despite Mark Stone scoring in the first period on the power play. The team didn\u2019t take too many worthless penalties, which helped them keep the score even against the really good Knights\u2019 power play.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of emotion in these playoff games,\u201d Logan Cooley<\/a> said. \u201cThere are a lot of ups and downs, and I think you have to find a way to stay level-headed. Different things happen. Good calls, bad calls, different momentum swings. We did a good job staying level-headed, and that\u2019s what we need to move forward.\u201d<\/p>\n In the second period, the number of penalties reduced to five, and only one was related to a roughing penalty, a Michael Carcone unsportsmanlike penalty. The two teams started to find the line and level of balance between being physical and playing smart.<\/p>\n The third period featured just one penalty, a delay of the game penalty against the Knights. Yet, once again, there was quite a bit of physicality. Notably, Sean Durzi was crushed into the boards on a delayed icing call.\u00a0<\/p>\n Yet, once again, the two teams didn\u2019t do enough to warrant penalties. At the end of the day, the hits came out to 39-33 Mammoth. It was a much-needed improvement after the Knights pretty much ruled the physical side of things on Sunday. One of those players who dramatically improved in that category was MacKenzie Weegar<\/a>, who was second on the team in hits.<\/p>\n \u201cLast game, I thought there was a lot of scrums and whatnot, but tonight, I thought it was more whistle to whistle and taking the body a bit more,\u201d Weegar said. \u201cIndividually, I think I can say that I was a little bit more physically engaged tonight. I thought there was an emphasis for me to be more physical.\u201d<\/p>\n Liam O\u2019Brien led the team in hits with five while only having 6:54 of ice time. That is quite impressive. It\u2019s even more so when you factor in that Game 2 was his first-ever playoff game.\u00a0<\/p>\n The fourth line of O\u2019Brien, Kevin Stenlund, and Brandon Tanev actually saw their ice time significantly diminish because of the amount of odd-man opportunities between the two teams. Yet, when they were rolled out, they actually played really good physical hockey. Tanev almost got into a fight after someone put him in a headlock.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s tough to get everybody going,\u201d head coach Andr\u00e9 Tourigny said. \u201cIf I look at Tanev, O\u2019Brien, and Stenlund, the three guys who played really well for us. If you look at their minutes, I know I didn\u2019t play a lot because of that\u2026That makes no sense, but that\u2019s the way the game happened because of the special teams. I think those guys played better than that.\u201d<\/p>\n It would be no surprise if the Knights came into Game 3 swinging. They just lost Game 2, and they\u2019re in enemy territory, so making an impression to silence the crowd will be on their to-do list. It wouldn\u2019t be surprising if the scoresheet looks awfully familiar to the one on Tuesday. However, the Mammoth know how to play in that scenario now, and they know what to expect from the Knights come Friday.<\/p>\n The Second Line Strikes Gold<\/p>\n For the second straight game, the second line of Dylan Guenther<\/a>, Cooley, and Kailer Yamamoto was the best line for the Mammoth. In Game 1, Cooley obviously had the goal, but they had the best opportunities with the aforementioned forward leading the team in shots with six, and Guenther tied for second with four.<\/p>\n Game 2 saw the trio take their game up a notch. After Weegar scored a goal thanks to Rasmus Andersson kicking the puck into his own net, the Mammoth were back in the game. Late in the third period, Yamamoto capitalized on a Jeremy Lauzon turnover, passing the puck to Guenther on his backhand for the forward to unleash his signature slapshot for his first-ever playoff goal.<\/p>\n GPS said it\u2019s Gunner’s turn \ud83d\udd25 pic.twitter.com\/pofjPelOhA<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 x \u2013 Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) April 22, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n Let\u2019s take a second to talk about Yamamoto because that goal would\u2019ve never happened if he hadn\u2019t intercepted the puck shot out by Lauzon. The forward was put on a line with Guenther and Cooley during the Mammoth\u2019s game in Los Angeles at the end of March. In the final nine games with him on that line, Yamamoto had five points.<\/p>\n It\u2019s not just Yamamoto who has had a coming-out party since that game. Cooley and Guenther had 12 points each in the final nine regular-season games. In the playoffs, each player on that line currently has two points, all tied for the team lead in that category. Ever since he joined that line, he\u2019s really been the final piece to complete the Mammoth\u2019s fastest line.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re very easy to talk to, off the ice and on the bench,\u201d Yamamoto said. \u201cI\u2019m always trying to make better plays, read off each other, and stuff like that. I\u2019m a fast player, and they\u2019re both fast players. We just read off each other very well on the ice.\u201d<\/p>\n The Mammoth have tried so many different options to pair with Guenther and Cooley. Some of those options included Daniil But and JJ Peterka, neither of whom has really fit in well. Enter Yamamoto. His speed and elite puck-moving abilities allow him to easily play with Guenther and Cooley because of their similar play.<\/p>\n It\u2019s not just Yamamoto who loves playing with the young duo. Both Guenther and Cooley love playing with him, noting his positivity and speed as key reasons why the trio has really made an impact on the games they\u2019ve played together.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s just such a smart player,\u201d Cooley said. \u201cHe reads off me and Gunner really well. It seems like he\u2019s always in the right position, really poised with the puck. He\u2019s a positive guy too, keeps us loose, and we just have a lot of speed. We read off each other really well, and it\u2019s clicking right now.\u201d<\/p>\n Back to the game, all of that speed and skill struck at the right time for the Mammoth. At center ice, Yamamoto shoved a backhanded pass behind him right to Guenther. Guenther shot his initial shot and his own rebound at Carter Hart, but couldn\u2019t get it to go. However, a trailing Cooley shot it in for the go-ahead goal and the eventual game-winning goal.<\/p>\n As Cool(ey) as it gets! \ud83d\udc4f pic.twitter.com\/5mtJtNIGqv<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 x \u2013 Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) April 22, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n Tourigny doesn\u2019t believe that the line goes out and dominates every shift. What he thinks they do well is playing hard, and they keep moving, which is what helps them score.<\/p>\n \u201cI cannot pinpoint just one thing they do good,\u201d Tourigny said. \u201cThey\u2019re good players who skate, who have hockey IQ, and they compete on both sides of the puck. They do a really good job defensively as well. It\u2019s a wear down. It\u2019s not like every time they\u2019re on the ice, they dominate, and they\u2019re in the ozone and so on and so forth. They play good against a good team. It\u2019s back and forth, and they have talent, and they make key plays and keep moving.\u201d<\/p>\n Now, Cooley has two goals in two games. Yamamoto and Guenther are also point-per-game players in the playoffs with their multi-point outing in Game 2. There\u2019s no argument in the conversation that Yamamoto has unlocked the best play we\u2019ve seen Cooley and Guenther on a complete line.<\/p>\n Yamamoto is a free agent this summer. Potentially, the only thing that\u2019s keeping him from getting an extension is his height. However, time and time again, he\u2019s proved that doesn\u2019t matter, and he is one of the best players on the Mammoth. Neither of those goals on Tuesday would\u2019ve happened without him<\/a>. We all know how skilled Guenther and Cooley are. It\u2019s time to give Yamamoto his flowers.<\/p>\n History in Sin City<\/p>\n It was a tense final few minutes after the Cooley go-ahead goal. The Mammoth had to survive a Knights\u2019 onslaught of shots after they pulled Hart, but after they shot the puck out of their zone with seconds left, it was over. The Mammoth had won their first-ever playoff game.<\/p>\n This is big. Obviously, every playoff game is important, and you want to win every single one. However, Game 2 was very critical. The Mammoth did not want to go back home down 2-0 in this series. They wanted some momentum going into the biggest home game so far of the season, and they got it, evening the series at one a piece.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s always a lot of talk that you want to steal one when there\u2019s a two-game series like this,\u201d Weegar said. \u201cIf you can get one and get back home and do what we have to do, and take care of our home ice, we\u2019re in a good position. I thought after the last game, coming back and bouncing back this way, it showed a lot from our group, so we got to move on here. The guys in here are excited and stuff. We\u2019ll enjoy tonight, but tomorrow, we\u2019re right back at it, and we\u2019re all business-like. We\u2019re excited to keep this thing going.\u201d<\/p>\n This was a significantly better game for the Mammoth. Karel Vejmelka looked a lot steadier and did not lose any confidence after letting in goals. The penalty kill did a lot better, killing three of the four Knights\u2019 power plays. The Mammoth did a lot better in the faceoff circle, winning 50% of them. As mentioned, they were a lot more physical as well.<\/p>\n Denied by Vejmelka! \u274c pic.twitter.com\/JRUbzv5X4t<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 x \u2013 Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) April 22, 2026<\/a> <\/p>\n The Mammoth also didn\u2019t come into this game with a negative attitude. When you lose the first game of the series, sometimes your anger and frustration can hurt your performance. Not the Mammoth. They figured out how to beat Hart and the Knights\u2019 defense instead, setting up what\u2019s to be a fun Game 3.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s hard when you lose the first game,\u201d Guenther said. \u201cThe next one\u2019s important. We talked about being level-headed since training camp, so we did a really good job of that. We\u2019ll enjoy this one, take all the time off, and get ready for the next one.\u201d<\/p>\n Guenther mentioned the time off. The upcoming schedule is a weird one. The Mammoth and Knights will have Wednesday off to travel up to Salt Lake City. They\u2019ll also have Thursday off. Game 3 is on Friday, and then Game 4 isn\u2019t until Monday. The only other series that has a schedule like that is the series between the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Montreal Canadiens<\/a>, which makes sense considering those two cities are pretty far apart from each other.<\/p>\n This is good for the Mammoth. It will allow them some time to recover a little bit. It\u2019s unclear how close guys like Jack McBain and Barrett Hayton are to returning<\/a>, but with so much time off between all of these games, it could result in them being in a lineup sooner than expected.<\/p>\n For now, the Mammoth look to Friday\u2019s game, the very first at the Delta Center, with excitement. It will be good for the team to be at home in front of a crowd that\u2019s expected to be loud, especially with the series tied at one.<\/p>\n \u201cThe crowd was buzzing the last few games,\u201d Yamamoto said. \u201cI can only imagine what it\u2019s gonna be like in the playoffs.\u201d<\/p>\n Winning your first playoff game is a big deal. There\u2019s a reason why Ryan and Ashley Smith and their family, along with Utah Jazz\u2019s Lauri Markkanen, came down to celebrate with the team postgame. That achievement is out of the way. The next one? Win the first playoff series.<\/p>\n The Mammoth will play the Knights in Game 3 on Friday night at the Delta Center. The series is currently tied 1-1.<\/p>\n Free Newsletter<\/p>\n \n Get Utah Mammoth coverage delivered to your inbox <\/p>\n In-depth analysis, breaking news, and insider takes – free.<\/p>\n![\"Nate](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Mammoth-Celebrate-11-1200x800.jpg\")
Utah Mammoth right wing Dylan Guenther celebrates with defenseman Nate Schmidt and defenseman Mikhail Sergachev after scoring a goal against the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 2 of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs (Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n