Edmonton's Top Line Won Its Minutes. Utah Won Everything Else.
With McDavid on the ice at five-on-five, Edmonton out-attempted Utah 27-14. In the other 29 minutes, and on the power play, the Mammoth won the game 4-2.
Season
2026-27 season
12 posts from the 2026-27 season, including the summer before it.
Utah Won the Minutes Without McDavid. Now It Has the Last Change.
Edmonton's top line beat Utah on Thursday and the Mammoth won anyway. Saturday at home asks whether they can do it again with the matchups in their hands.
Utah's Power Play Meets Edmonton's Top Line. One of Them Decides Tonight.
The Mammoth have the NHL's second-best power play and Edmonton has its 26th-ranked penalty kill, but the Oilers' top line is carrying the league's best offense.
Utah Outshot Toronto 12-2 at Even Strength in the Third. The Penalties Made It a One-Goal Game.
The Mammoth beat Toronto 5-4 after leading 5-2. The scare didn't come from backing off. Three of the Leafs' four goals came with extra skaters, and Utah took the penalties.
Fans Want Yamamoto With Cooley and Guenther. In Real Games, He's Been Playing Somewhere Better.
The practice line fans love hasn't played at five-on-five in the games we can track. Lee, Yamamoto and Hayton have, and they've outshot opponents 11-1.
The Mammoth Played Boston and Buffalo the Same Way at Five-on-Five. Only the Results Changed.
Utah's share of even-strength shots on goal was about 58 percent in the 6-1 loss at Boston and 57 percent in the 4-1 win at Buffalo. What flipped was the goaltending and the special teams.
Utah Lost 6-1 Having Outshot Boston 19-8 From Inside 25 Feet. The Penalties Are the Part That Wasn't Luck.
The Mammoth lost 6-1 in Boston after leading even-strength attempts 60-30. Three Utah minors became three Bruins power-play goals, and that is the part worth worrying about.
Utah Scored Three Even-Strength Goals From Eight Feet or Closer, and the Devils Outshot Them Anyway
The Mammoth beat New Jersey 5-3 with the Devils ahead in shots and in-close chances at five-on-five. The difference was who cashed in around the crease.
The Mammoth Outshot the Rangers 30-22. Most of That Gap Came After They Fell Behind.
Utah lost 4-2 at Madison Square Garden after leading in shots on goal in every period. Through two periods the game was even, and the third-period surge was mostly long shots.
Utah Won on the Power Play. Even Strength Was Closer Than It Looked.
The Mammoth beat Columbus 4-1 on three power-play goals and a first-time starter who stopped seven of eight shots from in close. The rest of the game was a lot tighter than the postgame quotes suggest.
Three Shots Inside 25 Feet: How the Mammoth Turned an Opener Into a Shutout
Chicago got three shots from inside 25 feet in Utah's 6-0 opener. The Mammoth got 13. That gap explains the shutout better than the saves do.
Welcome to The Tusk Report
An independent Utah Mammoth fan blog is open for business. Here's what we'll cover as the 2026-27 season gets underway.