Utah Mammoth celebrate and defeat the San Jose Sharks at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City in pre season action on Sat Oct 4, 2025 (photo from the NHL)

Utah Mammoth Close Out Preseason With 6-4 Victory Over The San Jose Sharks

By Tom Walker

SALT LAKE CITY– The Utah Mammoth dropped its first of five preseason contests before winning the final two at the newly renovated Delta Center defeating the San Jose Sharks 6-4 on Saturday night.

The Utah Mammoth welcomed the San Jose Sharks to the Delta Center on Saturday night as both teams wrapped up their preseason schedule. On Thursday, Utah defeated the Los Angeles Kings for their first preseason win after dropping their first five. San Jose entered Saturday’s game with a 2-3-0 preseason record.

Just 28 seconds into the first period, the Sharks went on the power play as Mammoth defenseman John Marino was called for tripping against Adam Gaudette. Utah killed off the penalty and Marino had a breakaway when he was sprung from the box, but San Jose netminder Yaroslav Askarov turned it away as his teammates then took the puck up the ice with Adam Gaudette finding the back of the net with a backhand shot, assisted by Shakir Mukhamadullin and Jeff Skinner.

At 7:03 of the first, Mammoth defenseman Mikhail Sergachev converted a snap shot, assisted by Dylan Guenther and JJ Peterka, to tie things up. Less than 90 seconds later, Vincent Desharnais gave Utah its first power play of the evening with a tripping penalty against Jack McBain.

The Mammoth wasted no time converting the man advantage to claim a 2-1 lead as forward Dylan Guenther blasted a perfect pass from Mikhail Sergachev past Askarov with the additional assist to Clayton Keller. At 11:44 of the frame, Askarov turned away a shot from Utah forward JJ Peterka, but a diving Andrew Agozzino knocked in the rebound to put the Mammoth up 3-1.

Less than two minutes later, Utah forward Kailer Yamamoto tipped in a shot from Nate Schmidt to send the home team to the locker room sporting a commanding 4-1 lead.

Less than two minutes into the second period, San Jose’s Tyler Toffoli cut the deficit in half on a snap shot goal assisted by Alexander Wennberg. Barely a minute later, Barclay Goodrow made it a 1-goal game on a goal assisted by Adam Gaudette and Shakir Mukhamadullin.

At 13:39 of the period, with Utah forward JJ Peterka in the sin bin for slashing against Ethan Cardwell, Will Smith brought the Sharks all the way back with his first goal of the preseason, assisted by Macklin Celebrini and Tyler Toffoli. The two squads went to their locker rooms at the period intermission knotted up at 4 apiece.

Last October during the regular season, Utah coughed up a 4-1 lead and lost to San Jose in overtime, so there was a certain feeling of déjà vu heading into the third period. This time, however, Mammoth captain Clayton Keller ensured a different outcome.

At 4:55 of the third, Keller put the puck past Askarov to reclaim the lead, assisted by Sean Durzi and Nate Schmidt. At 11:11, newly acquired Utah forward Brandon Tanev put the game away for good with a backhand shot on a breakaway, unassisted, to give the home team a 6-4 victory to close out the preseason schedule with a 2-5-0 record. The Sharks finished the preseason at 2-4-0.

After the game, San Jose forward Macklin Celebrini talked about his rhythm and timing in his first game back. “It was good to just kind of get out there with our systems and with the guys and kind of just work through some stuff.”

On his assist to Will Smith, Celebrini added, “I mean, we practice a lot of different stuff on the entries, and I think you just kind of start to know where guys are going to be.” With regard to the second period comeback, he said, “I think our puck battles, the way we were able to kill plays in the defensive zone. I think that was the biggest part. They have some really skilled players on their team, and when they get going in the (offensive) zone, it’s tough to stop. So I think just cutting plays and getting out of our zone as quick as possible kind of led to that.”

Sharks Head Coach Ryan Warsofsky, when asked whether the second-period turnaround was more coach- or player-driven, responded, “I think and I hope it’s both, to be honest with you. I had a message, and I am sure that when I left, some of our leadership group had a message as well. So we did have a turnaround in the second period. I liked the second; we did some good things, but obviously we have some things to work on.” Speaking of his goaltender, Warsofsky commented, “I thought he battled. I have to give him credit. He battled. Probably wasn’t the start he wanted, and I think he hung in there and he battled.”

In the home locker room, Mammoth forward Brandon Tanev gave his first post-game interview in his new home. “Yeah, we of course loved our first period. A lot of good things to take away from it, but things got away from us in the second there. But ultimately, we dug down, and we understood what we were doing was wrong, then we had a great third period. There’s a lot of stuff that we liked and that we didn’t like, and it’s improvements throughout camp. You play the preseason, and there are a lot of games, moving bodies, a lot of things, and it’s understanding each other, how to play and how to play the right way. … Getting your legs back, getting your understanding of what you’re supposed to be doing on the ice, where you’re supposed to be, and playing as a team. Ultimately, I think we did that, especially in the third there.” What did he think about playing at Delta Center? “Yeah, it’s great. I mean, the fans here are unbelievable, the passion and energy. It’s definitely a hockey town, and I think we’re very fortunate to be playing in this arena in front of these fans, so we love it every game. And it’s been great so far, so we can’t wait for the regular season.”

Utah captain Clayton Keller talked about the team’s progress throughout preseason. “Yeah, it’s been good. We’ve gotten better each game and each day, we had a lot of guys banged up so we had some different line combinations. But I think the last two games and getting most of our roster together, trying to get that chemistry to get your wind. I thought we did a good job tonight.”

Mammoth Head Coach André Tourigny got straight to the point in his postgame remarks. “I obviously was really happy about the way we played for most of the game. I did not like the second period. I think it’s a good opportunity for us to learn. We were not as fast in the second period. We were not on our toes, and that cost us. I think we learned from there, and I really like the way we respond in the third.” Talking about the second period where Utah surrendered 3 goals to San Jose, Tourigny said, “There’s a timeline between being smart in your decision and being passive. You have to be patient, but you cannot be passive; we were trying to be patient in the second, and instead of being patient, we became passive. We take our best asset out of the game, which is our pace, our speed, our aggression on the forecheck, aggression on the track, and aggression on the way we close the neutral zone. So I think it was a good teaching moment for us to draw the line between passive and patient.” All things considered, Tourigny was happy with the outcome. “It’s business. The coach can arrive here and say I didn’t like the second period, but we only gave up 13 shots, as a team with our full lineup in our barn, and we scored six goals. So, if I’m not happy about that, I might have a problem and I need to see the doc right away.”

Utah begins the regular season October 9 on the road with games against Colorado, Nashville, and Chicago before returning to Salt Lake City on October 15 for their home opener against the Calgary Flames. San Jose will open their season October 9 at home against Las Vegas, Anaheim, and Carolina before returning to Utah for their first road game on October 17.