After their second consecutive 5-4 overtime loss on Wednesday, you might expect the Utah Mammoth to be a little demoralized heading into Game 6 of their best-of-seven Western Conference first-round series with the Vegas Golden Knights.
But the mood around the Mammoth was surprisingly upbeat heading back to Salt Lake City for their must-win matchup with the Pacific Division champions.
“We’re a confident group,” Utah captain Clayton Keller said. “We believe in one another and in our team, and I think these are the most fun games to be a part of. Down 3-2, we get to go home, play in front of our fans. If you’re not fired up for that, then you’ve got something wrong with you.”
The Mammoth lost on a Shea Theodore overtime goal in their last game on home ice on Monday, blowing a 4-3 third-period lead in the process.
As painful as that was, Wednesday’s 5-4 double-overtime loss had to be even more of a gut punch. The Golden Knights tied it with a 6-on-5 goal from Pavel Dorofeyev with 52.7 seconds left, then won it on Brett Howden’s short-handed goal 5:28 into the second overtime.
“We’re right there,” Utah coach Andre Tourigny said. “We knew it would be a fight. It is what it is. We want to go back to Salt Lake for Game 6 in front of our fans, and we’ll give it our all and we’ll work from there. But I think we’re really confident in what we can achieve out there.
“I like the fight in our guys. I like our execution. Now it comes down to one game.”
“Go win one at home. I think that’s our focus,” Mammoth forward Lawson Crouse added. “… We have to win. We’ve got to step up and do it on our home ice. We’ve got incredible fans back home, and we’re excited to get going again.”
It won’t be easy. Vegas has a strong veteran group that won the 2023 Stanley Cup and has excelled at finding ways to win games when trailing late in contests.
The Golden Knights led the NHL in the regular season with 108 goals in the third period, and they’ve rallied in the third period in each of their three wins in the series.
“It’s something that we’ve prided ourselves on all season,” center Jack Eichel said. “So much credit to guys in the locker room. There’s a calmness and a confidence within our group.”
There have been 29 teams in NHL history that have trailed in the third period of each of the first five games of a playoff series. This year’s Golden Knights are the first such team to lead the series through five games, per Opta.
“You need to have that come from within the room,” Vegas coach John Tortorella added. “We’ve seen it through five games. You can tell they never feel like they’re out of it.”
History would appear to be on the Golden Knights’ side after Wednesday’s dramatic come-from-behind win. In its nine-year history, Vegas has won all eight of its series where it won Game 5.
Game 7, if needed, is scheduled for Sunday in Las Vegas.
