Colton Sissons #10 of the Vegas Golden Knights celebrates his second-period goal with teammates in of Game One of the First Round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs against the Utah Mammoth at T-Mobile Arena on April 19, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Candice Ward/Getty Images)
(Photo by Candice Ward/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS — Despite leading for a good portion of the contest in Game 1, the Utah Mammoth were simply overwhelmed by the Vegas Golden Knights in the third period, as their physicality proved to be too much for the visitors to handle.
However, after losing by just a goal (not counting the empty netter) and proving to themselves that they belong, Utah has plenty to build on as the series progresses.
Here are the key takeaways from Utah’s 4-2 loss to Vegas.
No. 92 is pretty special, eh?
And not only is he special, he was arguably the best player on the ice for the Mammoth in Game 1. He offered a complete 200-foot performance throughout all three periods.
“He was on a mission,” Mammoth head coach Andre Tourigny said. “He was really good. His line played a solid game. … You guys know how competitive he is. I think he just put it on display.”
Beginning in the defensive zone, Cooley raised his game from the start and proved he has what it takes to defend in the postseason.
In addition to delivering four hits and getting involved in a few scraps, No. 92 offered an active stick, closed down on shooters and backchecked fiercely to help out the D.
As for his offense, after scoring the first playoff goal in Mammoth history, Cooley remained vigilant in the O-zone and utilized his speed to generate a collection of dangerous scoring chances.
What a play by Logan Cooley.
Bursts into the offensive zone, recognizes there’s nothing there yet, fakes out the D-man, gets lost on the backside and buries one.
92 is my X-factor for this series. What a start.
Mammoth up 1-0 after 20.pic.twitter.com/kq0Xsm8vyw
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) April 20, 2026
Notably, Cooley nearly sent all of T-Mobile Arena into a frenzy as he undressed three Vegas defenders on his way to the net with a few flashy dangles.
Cooley DANGLING through the defense.
WOW.
Kid is so skilled.
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) April 20, 2026
But perhaps the best part of No. 92’s game was how fearlessly he rose to the occasion.
Rather than backing down or easing into the series as a young, inexperienced player, Cooley punched Vegas right in the mouth. Literally.
Involved in multiple scraps throughout the night, he wasn’t afraid of anybody and even made a few friends along the way who will certainly be happy to see him in Game 2.
“You’ve got to make sure you’re sticking up for each other and getting each other’s back,” Cooley said. “It’s the playoffs, you’re playing for the cup. Doing whatever you can to help your team win. … It’s all about the team.”
The playoffs are ugly, that’s just the nature of the game; and if Utah wants a chance at staying in this series, they’ll need to fight back.
If Cooley wants to lead that charge, so be it.
As long as he remains effective and doesn’t get too emotional, that’s just another dimension of his game that will allow him to become an X-factor for Utah.
No reason to take too much time here, but Utah simply needs more from their top line if they wish to generate consistent offense throughout the remainder of the series.
Now, to be fair, this was just Game 1.
There’s plenty of time to figure things out, settle in, and properly adjust to what the defense is giving them.
But as Utah’s most productive line during the regular season and one that generally leads the team into the fight, an overall plus/minus of -8 can’t happen again.
“It’s different style of hockey in the playoffs,” Lawson Crouse said. “We knew that. I feel like we can be better. … We’re competitive guys. We want to do whatever we can to help this team win just like everyone in our locker room. We’re going to try and step up.”
Crouse clearly gets it and we’ll just leave it at that.
Overall, there really is no reason for the Utah Mammoth to hang their heads after losing 4-2 in Game 1.
Sure, they would’ve liked to finish strong to steal the first game on the road, but Vegas is a really good team at the other end of the ice — an experienced group who won the Stanley Cup three years ago and plays a very physical, demanding style of hockey.
So, for Utah to have been right there and prove they can skate with Vegas is an accomplishment in and of itself.
“There’s a lot of positivity. … We’ve got to clean up a little bit of things defensively, but that’s playoff hockey,” Crouse said “There’s no reason for us to be down on ourselves right now.”
The important lesson for Utah to learn from Game 1 is that Vegas is never going to go away.
Rather, they will impose their will for 60 minutes and even chase the game if they have to until they eventually wear down their opponent.
FIND A WAY, SIS ✂️ pic.twitter.com/ce9QZGffmB
— y – Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) April 20, 2026
EXPRESSIVE!!! MARK!!! STONE!!!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/Y748AAQBVZ
— y – Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) April 20, 2026
As demonstrated by their season-high 52 hits in Game 1, they’re ruthless and will play that way until they get what they want; that’s just their brand.
But as Crouse pointed out, there were a lot of positives to take away from Game 1.
In addition to leading for a good portion of the night, Utah also outshot Vegas 33-31, delivered 30 hits of their own and managed to go toe-to-toe with an experienced squad that many expect to make short work of the series.
If Utah can come back with a similar approach while cleaning up a few things and weathering those pushes by Vegas a little better, they’ll have a great chance to make this a competitive series that goes the distance.
The Utah Mammoth will face the Vegas Golden Knights in game two of the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. MST.
The game will be available on ESPN and SEG+.
All Mammoth games will also be broadcast live on the KSL Sports Zone (97.5 FM/1280 AM).
