Three More Stars: Power plays, win streaks and good vibes

SALT LAKE CITY — Dylan Guenther was giving an interview after yet another game-winner in Tuesday's 4-3 overtime win for the Utah Mammoth over the Colorado Avalanche when suddenly a surprising face appeared at the rear of the media scrum.

It was Utah rookie Dmitri Simashev, raising his hand to ask his teammate a question.

The smiles and laughs that ensued were signs of a Mammoth team basking in a home win streak and some of the best vibes the team has experienced in its brief existence.

Good vibes only

Athletes don't usually crash teammates' interviews when a team is going through hard times, so it should come as no surprise that Tuesday's moment between Simashev and Guenther had fans on social media celebrating the "whimsy" and good vibes surrounding the Mammoth early in the season.

"The vibes on this team are out of control," X user @clubbertime said.

"I'm glad there's still whimsy in this locker room," @rileyjaenunes added.

Utah had a little less time to celebrate Tuesday's win, with the team's "midnight rule" coming less than an hour after the end of a late game that went to overtime, but it was enough to capture where this team is at and how they're feeling.

The Mammoth finished the opening home stand of the season 4-0, tied for the second-longest win streak in the NHL. The only team in the Western Conference with a longer win streak is the Winnipeg Jets, who the Mammoth will face on Sunday in Manitoba on the second night of a back-to-back.

The road has not been kind to Utah so far this season, going 1-2 on the opening trip, so the next few games will be a major test of just how far vibes can carry you.

Contributions up and down the lines

Utah's top two lines are replete with talent, but a team's stars can only take it so far without contributions from the supporting cast.

Several Mammoth players "stepped up" during the opening home stand, including Liam O'Brien on the fourth line to get his first goal in a Utah jersey and associate captain Lawson Crouse getting his first goal of the season on the third line in the crucial win over Colorado on Tuesday.

"It's great to have a little bit from everybody," head coach Andre Tourigny said. "And contributions can be measured differently. It's not just production, it's a big block, a big penalty kill, a big face-off play against the top line. A lot of guys are contributing, and I think that is where you want to be as a team."

Schmaltz magic on the power play

Utah opened the season with just one goal on its first 16 power play opportunities. It was a point of frustration and tension that even bled over into press conferences with Tourigny at times.

Since the offensive explosion in a 6-3 win against the San Jose Sharks, the Mammoth have now scored on a power play in three consecutive games, including twice at the hands of Nick Schmaltz.

The 29-year-old Wisconsin native has become something of a magic bullet on the power play for Utah and is playing some of the best hockey of his 10-year NHL career.

"I feel like I've had a lot of chances early on in the season here," Schmaltz said after his hat trick against San Jose. "I'm trying to shoot the puck more and take it to the net and be around the net more."

"Crashing the net" was a big focus for Utah after its rough opening road trip, and it seems to have opened up both the power play and offensive game overall on the four-game win streak.

"I still think we have room to grow," Schmaltz said of the power play. "We've been a successful unit in the past, so once we start clicking and we see a few more go in, our percentage will skyrocket for us."

The team's power play percentage has already more than doubled from an abysmal 6.25% to 14.8%, but it still sits in the bottom five in the NHL.

Utah begins a tough stretch this week, with eight of its next nine games on the road with a 6 p.m. MDT puck drop in St. Louis on Thursday.

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