A potential Stanley Cup playoff preview is on the schedule for Friday when the Anaheim Ducks visit the Utah Mammoth.
The teams will be the meeting for the third time this season and the first time in Salt Lake City. The Ducks won 3-2 in overtime on Nov. 17, and the Mammoth responded with a 7-0 rout on Dec. 3.
Utah (36-27-6, 78 points), sitting in the first Western Conference wild-card spot, should be feeling good heading into the Friday tilt after shutting out the Vegas Golden Knights 4-0 on Thursday in Las Vegas.
Captain Clayton Keller scored twice in the first period and Utah goalie Karel Vejmelka made 28 saves for his second shutout of the season. Barrett Hayton had a goal and an assist for the Mammoth, who have won back-to-back games and are 5-2-2 in the past nine games.
“It’s a learning process sometimes for a lot of guys that haven’t been in that situation or played in those high-pressure situations,” Keller said, according to NHL.com, about his teammates’ status entering the stretch run. “Every game, every point matters. So, it’s good to see our group grow this year, inch by inch, and we’ve been getting better as the year has gone on.”
Mammoth coach Andre Tourigny added, “We have to keep looking in front of us, stay humble and one game at a time. We’re just helping ourselves right now, but there will be ups and downs ahead and you need to be consistent. … We’ll celebrate tonight, but at midnight, we need to switch the page because there’s another strong opponent (Friday).”
Vejmelka posted his 31st win of the season, the second-best total in the NHL behind the 32 of the Tampa Bay Lightning’s Andrei Vasilevskiy, though he had some help. The Golden Knights had four shots hit the post.
The shutout was the eighth of Vejmelka’s career in five NHL seasons.
Anaheim (37-27-4, 78 points) sits atop the Pacific Division standings, one point ahead of the Edmonton Oilers and two in front of the Golden Knights. However, the Ducks aren’t in top form. They have lost four of their past six games (2-3-1), most recently falling 3-2 in overtime to the visiting Philadelphia Flyers on Wednesday.
In that contest, the Ducks pulled goaltender Lukas Dostal late in the third period, and Leo Carlsson scored off the rebound of Troy Terry’s shot to make it 2-2 at 18:06 of the third period.
Flyers forward Noah Cates scored at 2:17 of overtime, and the goal originally was reviewed for being offside before eventually being allowed to stand.
“It was a hard-fought game,” Ducks coach Joel Quenneville said. “They were better than us in the first half. We got way more competitive, and it put us in a good spot, but we’re pretty disappointed with the call at the end.”
Carlsson added, according to NHL.com, “We just didn’t play hard enough, I think. Just weird hockey. Got back to it in the third, but, yeah, too late there.”
