The numbers don’t lie.
The Utah Mammoth are not only a faster team than the Golden Knights, but they play faster as well.
Vegas must win four of seven against this speedier opponent. Can they rise to the challenge? And what must they do to do so?
Assuming regular-season form holds, this series will come down to three key factors: understanding Utah’s speed, grasping how the Mammoth use east-west passes as their trigger, and finding the holes in their defensive structure.
NHL Edge offers a comparison of the speeds at which players on both the Utah Mammoth (left column) and the Vegas Golden Knights (right column) skated at during the season. Utah has the distinct advantage.
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Utah’s Pace
Skating fast and playing fast are different skills.
The first is your ability; the second is your pace. Having the first does not guarantee you the second. But if you skate for the Utah Mammoth, you must champion both.
“I think when we’re at our best, we’re playing with a lot of speed, a lot of pace, physical, closing, giving them limited time and space. And when we’re doing those things we’re a tough team to beat. And I expect a lot of that out of us in this series.” 1
Utah’s pace shows up immediately in their forecheck.
March 19 – @ Vegas – 2nd period – 19:42
Rasmus Andersson (4 gold) is first on the puck with Barrett Hayton (27 white) pressuring him.
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The pressure forces Andersson to rim the puck.
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Mikhail Sergachev (98 white) takes the boards away preventing a Vegas breakout.
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Michael Carcone (53 white) gets the loose puck and fires a shot on goal.
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Akira Schmid (40 gold - goaltender) makes the save and directs the rebound toward the corner.
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Nic Dowd (26 gold) is first on the loose puck with Jack McBain (22 white) pressuring.
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The pressure forces Dowd to rim the puck.
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Carcone wins the race for the free puck.
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He spins away from his check and finds some open ice to fire a shot on net.
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Schmid makes the save but gives a big rebound.
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It comes out to Sergachev who cannot convert on it.
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The puck begins in the corner. Rasmus Andersson retrieves it but feels the pressure from an oncoming Mammoth, so he rims it to his teammate. Keegan Kolesar fares no better with Mikhail Sergachev already there to meet him. The Vegas winger tries redirecting it to his center, but Michael Carcone seizes it and gets a shot on net.
Akira Schmid makes the save and redirects the rebound toward the corner. Nic Dowd gets to the loose disc, with Jack McBain immediately on him. Dowd rims the puck the other way. Carcone again retrieves it, spins away from his defender and gets another shot on net, forcing a shoulder save and a dangerous rebound Sergachev can’t quite convert on.
Two shots on net in a 10-second span. All just from forechecking aggressively.
The Golden Knights had opportunities to break out. Twice they were first on the puck. But Utah used their speed and gave them no room to move, no space to breathe.
Vegas was kept on the defensive, even when they had the puck.
Utah’s cadence is just as impressive when they begin the play with the puck.
March 19 – @ Vegas – 1st period – 14:07
John Marino (6 white) begins the play in his own zone.
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He finds an open Nate Schmidt (88 white) with a diagonal pass.
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Schmidt move the puck to the other half of the ice for his teammates to skate into.
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Nick Schmaltz (8 white) pokes the poke past the Vegas defender.
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Schmaltz moves in alone on Adin Hill (33 gold - goaltender) but cannot finish the play.
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John Marino has the puck deep in his end and hits Nate Schmidt with a long cross-ice pass. The Utah defender quickly moves the disc diagonally to Nick Schmaltz, who pokes it past Brayden McNabb and moves in alone against the goaltender.
Five gold jerseys stood between Marino and the Vegas net. But through Utah’s rapid cadence, the puck went from one end to the other in six seconds.
Even more impressive is how Utah can maintain that pace through successive game situations.
March 19 – @ Vegas – 1st period – 12:00
Mitch Marner (93 gold) grabs the puck along the boards and begins moving away from his check.
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Marner uses his teammate and the net to lose his check.
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Carcone cuts off Marner on the other side of the net, forcing Marner to pass the puck.
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Korczak (55 gold) receives the pass and looks for a passing option to move the puck north to.
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Sergachev moves to the middle of the ice to cut off the pass and prevent a breakaway for Tomas Hertl (48 gold).
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Utah immediately transitions onto the attack before the Golden Knights can properly gap up to the blue line.
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Sergachev headmans the puck to Hayton.
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Hayton skates the puck to the top of the circle, looking for a passing option.
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Hayton finds McBain with an east-west pass.
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McBain redirects the puck towards the net.
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The puck sneaks past the goaltender.
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The play begins with Mitch Marner winning a puck battle along the boards and taking it behind his net. Barrett Hayton uses his speed to cut off Marner on the other side, forcing the Vegas forward to make a pass to Kaeden Korczak. But he too feels oncoming pressure, so he attempts a long pass to a streaking Tomas Hertl.
Sergachev cuts off the pass and immediately transitions his team onto the attack. He passes the puck to Hayton at the blue line who takes it to the high circle before hitting McBain with an east-west pass. The Utah forward makes no mistake and shoots the puck to the back of the net.
The overhead shows how Sergachev was nowhere near the passing lane to Hertl when it left Korczak’s stick.
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When Korczak looked up the ice to find his teammate, Sergachev was on the left side covering Pavel Dorofeyev. By playing with anticipation and quick feet, the Utah defenseman was able to cut off the pass before it reached its target.
It took less than four seconds, and what began as a two-on-two Vegas attack became a four-on-three Utah offensive zone entry.
Hidden within these sequences is Utah’s key objective — the one that explains their puck decisions and reveals how best to defend them.
The East-West Passes
While the Utah players skate in a north-south motion to optimize their cadence, they also look for an east-west pass to precede every shot.
Never was it more obvious than against the Ducks.
March 20 – vs Anaheim – 3rd period – 12:29
The puck begins along the wall.
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Moves to the middle.
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Back to the wall.
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Down to the circles.
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Back toward the blue line.
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East to west.
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Back to the east.
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To the middle lane.
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And finally shot on goal.
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Clayton Keller holds the puck along the boards. With no shooting lane, he plays catch with Logan Cooley before taking the disc toward the corner. He drops it back to Cooley who makes an east-west pass to Marino.
Unable to find a shooting lane of his own, Marino sends the puck back to Cooley near the boards, while Schmidt fills the middle lane at the top of the circles. Cooley feeds a pass to Schmidt, who one-times the puck on net and forces a difficult save.
Four cross-ice passes in eight seconds. The Mammoth had different options. Keller could have taken the puck low. Marino could have passed the puck low to Keller. But Utah insisted on making a cross-ice pass before taking a shot.
It is the core of their offensive philosophy and reveals their intentions with the puck. Mixed with their speed, it can easily overwhelm opponents.
March 19 – @ Vegas – 1st period – 17:15
The play begins with a face-off in Vegas territory.
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Utah wins the draw when Clayton Keller (9 white) takes possession of the puck.
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Keller moves the puck east-west with a pass to Schmidt.
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Schmidt moves the puck back east to Marino.
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Marino receives it and begins taking the puck down low.
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At the top of the circles, Marino hits Keller with a cross-ice pass.
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Keller receives it before Hill can get across.
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Keller shoots the puck to the back of the net.
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Utah wins a face-off in the Vegas zone when Keller grabs the puck and passes it to Schmidt in the middle lane. He dishes it to Marino who is standing along the boards. He takes it to the top of the circles and passes it to Keller, who is streaking down the other half of the ice. The speedy forward shoots it to the back of the net.
Right to left. Left to right. Right to left again and to the back of the net.
The Mammoth moved the puck sideways more than they did forward, all the while using their speed to allow Keller to break free.
In a previous article, the need for the Golden Knights forwards to help their defensemen was explored. Against Utah, that need will be amplified. As the slowest of the two teams, Vegas does not want to begin chasing the Mammoth around their zone. They need quick puck recoveries that lead to quicker breakouts.
“Torts’ whole thing is pressure, pressure, pressure, try and get it out as fast as you can. And when you limit time in your own end, obviously that translates to more offense.” 2
For Anaheim, it was a hard lesson learned in a single sequence.
March 20 – vs Anaheim – 1st period – 18:23
Sean Durzi (50 black) grabs the puck along the boards.
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He moves the puck up to Dylan Guenther (11 black).
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By getting past his check, Guenther leads the Mammoth on a 3-on-2 attack with speed.
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Guenther gains the zone and drops the puck back to Cooley.
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Cooley makes an east-west pass to JJ Peterka (77 black).
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Peterka tries passing it back east to Guenther, but the recipient misses the redirect.
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The puck moves up the boards and Durzi is first on it.
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He finds Guenther with another east-west pass.
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Guenther fires a one-time shot to the back of the net.
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Sean Durzi is first on the loose puck and banks a pass to Dylan Guenther. He races up the ice, enters Anaheim’s zone and drops the puck to Cooley. The forward makes a cross-ice pass to JJ Peterka, who attempts his own east-west pass.
Guenther misses it, which leaves the puck loose along the boards and gives a chance for Anaheim to position themselves defensively. But Durzi prevents the Ducks from doing either by getting the puck and making an east-west pass to Guenther, who fires a one-time shot past Lukas Dostal.
First on loose pucks. Pace up the ice. Cross-ice passes before taking a shot.
The Utah Mammoth are a very structured team offensively, and that mentality translates to the other side of the puck.
Space at the Blue Line, Congestion Below
Equally disciplined defensively, Utah’s approach is anchored in protecting the slot and recovering the puck.
March 19 – @ Vegas – 2nd period – 13:12
Eichel gets the puck in the corner and begins taking it up the boards.
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Pressured by two opponents, he passes it to the blue line.
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Brayden McNabb (3 gold) uses the time and space he has to study his options.
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He ultimately decides to shoot on net.
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Karel Vejmalka (70 white) is forced to make the save.
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In Utah’s end, it’s a race for the puck which Eichel wins. He takes the disc up the boards and makes a pass to McNabb. Gifted with time and space, he analyzes his options, decides on a shot and fires the puck at Karel Vejmelka.
The sequence began with four Utah defenders down low to Vegas’ three. Eichel was given no time or space. But once the puck moved to the blue line, the Golden Knights suddenly had both.
It’s a trade-off Utah makes to best defend the most dangerous portion of their zone.
March 19 – @ Vegas – 2nd period – 9:07
Eichel begins the sequence in the corner once more.
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He takes it toward the corner where he is met with the same double pressure.
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Shea Theodore (27 gold) decides to skate with the puck to the middle lane.
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In spite of having more time to apply pressure on the puck carrier, the Mammoth wingers concede the ice above the circles to Vegas.
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Vejmelka delivers another save, with all five teammates defending the slot for a potential rebound.
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Eichel gets the puck in the corner with a defender already on his back. He moves a few feet to his left and is met with a second Utah player. Five white jerseys clog the slot with only three golden ones below the top of the circles.
But Eichel passes the puck to Theodore at the blue line, and immediately, it’s a different reality for the Golden Knights. The two Utah wingers move to the top of the circles but no further. They concede all the ice above the circles in the name of defending the slot.
Theodore shoots the puck which Vejmelka absorbs, but with five white jerseys in the slot, a rebound would have done Vegas little good. Activating defensemen has been a major point of emphasis under Tortorella. Against Utah, its importance only grows.
“Just a few places where we can be a little bit more aggressive, keep some pucks alive, whether it’s in the (offensive) zone, neutral zone or (defensive) zone. Try and play a little quicker in the D-zone, which has led to some more possession time.” 3
How much offense the defense can provide will be at the heart of the Golden Knights' success.
March 19 – @ Vegas – 2nd period – 16:54
Sergachev and Noah Hanifin (6 gold) race toward the puck.
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Sergachev wins the race and shoots the puck on the boards to defeat Hanifin’s pressure and attempt a breakout.
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The puck slides all the way to the blue line where Marner seizes it and studies his options.
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He opts for a shot when faced with soft pressure from the Utah winger.
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Vejmelka is forced to make a save behind a screen from Hertl.
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The puck is at the bottom of the circle and gliding toward the corner. All five Utah players are already down low. Sergachev wins the puck race but is pressured by Noah Hanifin, who slid down the boards.
Sergachev rims the puck off the boards to the blue line where Marner is waiting for it. With a Mammoth player passively approaching him, the Vegas skater uses the room he has to fire a wrist shot through traffic.
The shot may have come from the stick of a forward, but it was made possible by the defenseman’s aggressiveness.
There is no hiding the importance behind the interdependence.
Last Minute of Play
The best defense is a good offense.
Against a faster opponent, it may seem counterintuitive, but considering the Golden Knights’ roster composition, it fits Vegas perfectly.
Defensively, both Theodore and Stone spoke about how if their team has the puck, then Utah doesn’t. Vegas is intent on using puck possession as both an offensive and defensive tool.
One that will prevent them from giving chase to opponents in their end, while deterring the Mammoth from imposing their will through fast transition attacks.
Offensively, the Golden Knights’ defensemen will be given a lot of room to operate. This component of the match-up plays right into Vegas’ strength and desire.
Utah’s coach André Tourigny is a program builder who does so through structure. But structure also breeds predictability, which leads to opportunity.
The Mammoth’s reliance on their structure is both a strength and a weakness.
Vegas won’t beat Utah’s speed. But if they can anticipate it, they won’t have to.
Watch the Highlights!
March 19, 2026 | Utah Mammoth vs. Golden Knights
March 20, 2026 | Anaheim Ducks vs. Utah Mammoth
1 https://www.nhl.com/news/utah-mammoth-confident-heading-into-first-playoff-game
2 https://www.nhl.com/news/john-tortorella-changing-mindset-with-golden-knights-entering-playoffs
3 https://www.nhl.com/news/john-tortorella-changing-mindset-with-golden-knights-entering-playoffs