Utah’s road trip ended with a familiar kind of frustration in Ottawa: a game that was there to be taken, then slipped away in the final minutes.
The Mammoth had already been through a grind, playing five straight on the road and facing three quality opponents in a row. They opened the stretch with a 3-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday, then dropped a 5-4 overtime decision to the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.
On Saturday night, they were in position again. Utah outshot Ottawa 32-21 and stayed in the fight for nearly 58 minutes, but the energy faded late and a pair of defensive breakdowns turned a winnable night into a 4-2 loss.
The decisive moment came with just two minutes left. Nick Cousins slipped into space around Barrett Hayton and MacKenzie Weegar, then redirected the puck past Karel Vejmelka for the go-ahead goal.
Vejmelka was better Saturday. That doesn’t mean he was good enough.
He stopped 17 of 20 shots for an .850 save percentage, and not every goal was on him. Utah’s defense cracked at key moments.
Still, there were also times when Vejmelka looked a step slow, whether he was moving across the crease or trying to read plays as they developed. The result was another outing that didn’t give Utah the level of goaltending it needs.
The bigger issue is that this can’t be brushed off as a short-term dip anymore. Vejmelka has now lost five of his last six starts, and Utah is past the point where it can simply wait and hope the problem fixes itself.
That’s why Sebastian Cossa deserves a real chance to take the net. The former Detroit Red Wings prospect came to Utah in the offseason, and the organization needs to see what he can do.
There’s also a more aggressive option on the table: Scott Wedgewood in Colorado. He’s backing up Mackenzie Blackwood, but his recent numbers point to a goalie who can handle a starter’s workload.
Last season, Wedgewood went 31-6-6 with a 2.02 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage. He’s also in the final year of his contract.
If I’m Bill Armstrong, I’m at least picking up the phone and calling Colorado. Wedgewood could be a major upgrade, and Utah might be able to put together a deal that brings back draft capital while moving Vejmelka.
The Mammoth are too good to keep gambling on goaltending.
In Other News...
Logan Cooley Gave Arizona Fans A Lot To Talk About Again
Logan Cooley was back in the spotlight Monday night, and Coyotes fans had every reason to keep one eye on what he was doing in Utah. In a 5-4 overtime loss to Montral, Cooley put together a four-point night that once again reminded people why his name still carries so much weight in Arizona circles, even after the franchises move. Sebastian Cossa turned aside 30 shots, but the Mammoth could not hold off the Canadiens in a game that stayed tight all the way to the finish.
For Arizona followers, Cooleys latest burst is the kind of development that keeps the old debate alive about what he can become and how quickly he is getting there. The night also came with a concern on the blue line, as Nate Schmidt left early with an upper-body injury and did not return, adding another layer of unease to a game that already had plenty of drama attached to it. [Read more 🡒]
Utah Let A Winnable Road Game Slip Away Again
The Utah Mammoth had a chance to make the final stop of a five-game road trip feel like a turning point, and for much of the night in Ottawa, it looked like they might leave with something to show for it. They outshot the Senators and stayed in the game with a generally competitive effort, but the margins were thin and the mistakes were costly in a 4-2 loss that felt very much like one that got away.
Karel Vejmelka showed some improvement in net, but he still allowed three goals as Utahs late-game issues surfaced again. Instead of heading home with momentum, the Mammoth are left sorting through another close defeat before a tougher test against the Vegas Golden Knights, a matchup that will say a lot about whether this group can turn decent play into points. [Read more 🡒]