The last time the Utah Mammoth and the Philadelphia Flyers met, it was a thrilling battle that ended in overtime with a dramatic game-winning goal by the Mammoth. On Wednesday, the game once again ended in overtime, once again thanks to a dramatic overtime goal from Clayton Keller.
It was a perfect way to end the seven-game homestand as the Mammoth head to the south for their final road trip in January. With the win, the team extends their win and point streaks. Here are some takeaways from Wednesday’s game.
A Back and Forth Game
For a game that ended with one of the most memorable moments in Mammoth history, it sure didn’t start well for them. 30 seconds in, and the Flyers were already on the board thanks to Cam York.
Less than five minutes into the game, Christian Dvorak (former Arizona Coyote and teammate of many on the Mammoth) scored the second goal for the Flyers to put them up 2-0. While the Flyers’ offense didn’t score again in the first period, they did capitalize on an opportunity less than a minute into the second period as Bobby Brink put his team up 3-0.
What hurt the Mammoth? Well, the big thing was the three penalties they took in the first period that carried over to the second. While the Flyers only scored once on the man advantage during those three penalties, it kept the Mammoth from being able to attack the Flyers’ net.
In total, the Mammoth took six penalties throughout the game, resulting in two power-play goals for the Flyers. It was not a good look for the usually strong penalty kill.
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It seemed like the Flyers had the win in the bag and that the Mammoth were heading to their first regulation loss on their seven-game homestand. However, the Mammoth weren’t quite ready to give up. JJ Peterka jammed in a puck to put his team on the board. 3-1 Flyers.
Less than a minute later, Lawson Crouse received a nice pass from Nick Schmaltz and one-timed it into the back of the net. 3-2 Flyers.
Here come the @utahmammoth! 🦣
Lawson Crouse picks up his 13th of the season! pic.twitter.com/2Ms9HasklB
— NHL (@NHL) January 22, 2026
Dvorak scored on the power play before the second period ended, keeping his team up by two goals. However, the Mammoth kept pressing. The second period was filled with grit and determination from them, and as the third period rolled around, the team was ready to tie it up.
A little over halfway through the game, the Mammoth struck again. Dylan Guenther’s wrist shot was tipped in by Barrett Hayton to make the score a one-goal game.
The game was certainly one that tested the Mammoth in every way possible. Obviously, you had your physicality, like with Jack McBain fighting Noah Juulsen, but there were a lot of mistakes from both sides that led to goals. Head coach André Tourigny said it best: when things are going well, you’re going to get rewarded, as we saw with the Mammoth on Wednesday.
“It’s a good development for our team to understand the good, the bad, and the ugly,” said Tourigny. “When we didn’t do what we had to do, what should have happened–we got what we deserved. And when we did what we had to do, we were successful. So we need to learn (from) that. It’s part of a long season, a process, a grind. It’s great to do it in victory and get the two points. But we need to learn from it.”
History is Finally Made
It’s been told and recited numerous times before Wednesday, the Mammoth had yet to score a goal with an extra sixth player due to the goaltender being pulled. It was getting ridiculous, especially with all the chances the team got with the extra attacker on the ice.
It seemed like the same thing was going to happen on Wednesday with around a minute left in the game. Garnet Hathaway was cruising towards the Mammoth empty net with the puck on his stick. With an easy goal in front of him, he prepared to deposit the puck into the net before Schmaltz tapped the puck away from him and took possession of it.
Schmaltz’s play to get the puck away from Hathaway, despite it being what seemed like an easy goal for the Flyers’ player, was great. It showed off his solid two-way play and directly set up the fourth Mammoth goal.
“You know what I’m happy about–I’m happy that everybody (saw) that,” Tourigny said. “Because that’s what we see from (Schmaltz)…I liked his performance and how he impacts our team. I’m glad for him and for everybody–who were here at the Delta Center or at home watching our game–who sees that. It can highlight what Nick Schmaltz means for our team.”
A couple of seconds later, the Flyers slid the puck back to a defenseman in their own zone before Keller came rushing for the puck and, like Schmaltz, chipped the puck away and charged towards the net. Keller put on a nice move and shot the puck into the net for the Mammoth’s first-ever six-on-five goal and the game-tying goal as well.
THAT’S OUR CAPTAIN!!!!! 🔥
Keller ties the game to get our first extra attacker goal in franchise history 🤯 pic.twitter.com/knGvasV2EP
— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) January 22, 2026
The goal was one of the loudest ever scored in the Delta Center. Almost every single fan was on their feet. To get the six-on-five goal was massive for so many reasons for the Mammoth. It meant the game was tied, and a huge weight was lifted off the Mammoth’s shoulders. The fans knew that as well, which is why they went bonkers in the arena.
“To get a 6-on-5 goal –we haven’t had one this year– it was a really nice individual effort by him (Keller),” Guenther said. “Nice route by him, too. Kind of a 2-on-2, caught his guys sleeping with nice shots, so he had a good game tonight.”
It was a big goal for Keller in an extremely critical and high-pressure moment. He showed up big time scoring when they needed him the most. The attitude and poise he exhibited are exactly why he was selected for Team USA for the upcoming Winter Olympics. Keller thrives in big moments, and he did it once again before overtime for the Mammoth.
“I think a lot of it is belief, and the mental talk that I’m saying to myself in my head,” Keller said. “I’ve always trusted my training. I know I’ve done everything possible to leave myself in a good position and let the rest take care of itself. I skate every day in the summer with a couple of other guys, I work on those touches and all those things.”
The Captain Ends the Homestand
If that late goal wasn’t big enough, the Mammoth captain had one more trick up his sleeve to send the Mammoth faithful home happy.
With the game being sent into overtime, it made it so that the Mammoth’s point streak was kept intact and extended to eight games. However, one point isn’t enough, especially with the close race in the Western Conference and the two wild-card spots.
Around two minutes into the extra period, the Flyers tried playing the puck into the Mammoth’s zone. The puck went to the right of Karel Vejmelka to an awaiting Travis Konecny. However, Guenther was also waiting and chipped the puck forward and zoomed into the Flyers’ zone.
Guenther put on the brakes right inside the faceoff circle. Instead of being selfish and taking the shot himself, Guenther waited patiently for Keller to make his way to the center of the zone, who unleashed a wicked wristshot to beat Samuel Ersson and win the Mammoth their fourth straight game.
ELITE OVERTIME DUO: DYLAN GUENTHER AND CLAYTON KELLER! 🤯 pic.twitter.com/lHd49WRYDn
— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) January 22, 2026
What a win for the Mammoth. It wasn’t an easy one. It was one where they found themselves trailing in every single minute up until Keller’s goal late in the third period. Yet the Mammoth never gave up. They stayed resilient, and as Tourigny mentioned, they were rewarded for their play.
“Resilience,” Guenther said. “We did stick with it, the talk was all positive, and we all thought that we could come back and win. It was a huge character win.”
Of course, none of it would be possible without Keller’s two clutch goals. He now has 49 points in 50 games, nearly a point per game player. On top of that, Keller’s hot streak has continued with eight points in his past five games.
Now, not only does he have his name in the Mammoth’s record books, but Keller also has his fourth game-winning goal. He’s tied with Schmaltz for second in that category, who both trail Guenther by two goals. Despite that, Keller was a big reason why the Mammoth won and has continued to show why he’s been getting the name “Captain Clutch.”
“Our first 6-on-5 goal in our franchise’s history was a clutch one, obviously,” Tourigny said. “In overtime, that was a really good goal.”
As mentioned, the beginning of the game was a rough one for the Mammoth. Penalties, chasing the lead since the very beginning of the game, are big obstacles in the way. However, the Mammoth didn’t give up. Each player stepped up in different ways. It resulted in a comeback and a win.
“We stuck with it, even when we knew that we weren’t playing great, creating a lot of mistakes, but we just kept fighting,” Keller said. “So many guys made key plays, especially Veg (Vejmelka), making saves. We talked about it in the room after, none of this happens if Schmaltz doesn’t backcheck and give everything he’s got to strip them before they score on the empty net. And that’s the difference sometimes.”
With the win, the Mammoth hold on to the first wild card spot in the Western Conference with a 26-20-4 record and 56 points. During their seven-game homestand, they had a record of 6-0-1 and still have only one regulation loss in January. On top of all of that, they are riding an eight-game point streak.
Now the Mammoth head to the southern part of the United States as they play some of their toughest opponents this month. They’ll first take on the Nashville Predators on Saturday. The Predators are 23-22-4 and are coming off a 5-3 loss to the Buffalo Sabres. They will play the Ottawa Senators on Thursday before Saturday’s game. These two teams last met in December, where the Mammoth lost 4-3.
