Mammoth Defeat Sabres in 2-1 Overtime Thriller

On Tuesday night, we saw the Utah Mammoth kick off a four-game road trip with a game against the Buffalo Sabres, who were in the middle of a three-game home stand.

This was the first time these two inter-conference opponents had matched up since the Mammoth sent the Sabres’ Josh Doan and Michael Kesselring in exchange for J.J. Peterka in a blockbuster trade during the offseason.

Game Recap

Through the first period of this one, the Mammoth and Sabres traded chances back and forth. However, Mammoth goalie Karel Vejmelka and Alex Lyon for the Sabres combined to make seven high-danger saves in the period to keep this game scoreless through the first 20 minutes.

The second period brought more of the same. The Mammoth controlled most of the scoring chances, outshooting the Sabres 9-5 in the middle frame.

However, Lyon made six more high-danger saves in the period to keep the Mammoth off the scoreboard. On the other side, Vejmelka was not tested as often. Still, he had the highlight of the period, turning away Jack Quinn on a breakaway after he got loose behind the Mammoth’s defensemen.

The Mammoth finally opened the scoring just over three minutes into the final frame. It came on Nick Schmaltz’s eighth of the season after receiving a beautiful seam pass through the slot from Clayton Keller on the rush.

That lead did not last long, however, as the Sabres tied the game back up just under halfway into the period after Noah Ostlund scored his first career NHL goal, whacking that ricochet off the end wall into the back of the Mammoth’s net.

This goal forced overtime, where Keller danced around all three Sabres on the ice and beat Lyon five-hole 47 seconds into the extra frame to secure the 2-1 victory. It was the Sabres’ fourth overtime loss in five games and their fifth straight game going to overtime. With the win, the Mammoth snapped a two-game losing streak.

These two teams will match up again in just over a week at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City to close out their season series early. Before that, the Sabres will be back in action on Thursday against the St. Louis Blues to close out a three-game homestand. The Mammoth will be back in action tomorrow to play the second half of a back-to-back against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Stats via Natural Stat Trick