Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
- Karel Vejmelka's 27 saves and Clayton Keller's 2 points led Mammoth's win.
- Mammoth defeated Detroit 4-1, closing a three-game road trip successfully.
- Utah excelled defensively, killing eight of 10 power plays on the trip.
DETROIT — The Mammoth picked up a win in "Hockey Town" and closed out a three-game road trip with a 4-1 win in Detroit.
Karel Vejmelka was a star manning the net Wednesday night, with the Czech goaltender making 27 saves on 28 shots. Dylan Guenther added his sixth goal in the last six games, while Clayton Keller totaled 2 points and three shots in the win.
Both teams' goalies got out to a hot start as Vejmelka and the Red Wings' Cam Talbot combined for 19 saves. Each team was held scoreless in the opening frame, with both failing to convert on scoring opportunities.
Detroit received the game's first power play, but Utah was able to get the penalty kill after allowing just three shots on goal during the man advantage.
Michael Carcone and Keller had scoring chances, but Carcone hit the top of the post while Keller missed a shot with Talbot making the key stop.
Andrew Copp missed his own scoring chance for the Red Wings after getting behind the Mammoth defense before Vejmelka deflected the shot away.
The first goal of the game was scored after J.J. Peterka's shot bounced off of Talbot and right to Keller as the Mammoth captain buried his 11th goal of the season while giving Utah the lead in the second.
That's our Captain! 🔥
— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) December 18, 2025
🚨1-0, Utah! pic.twitter.com/H7JvinB3UZ
After killing off back-to-back Detroit power plays, Jack McBain netted his fourth goal of the season after Carcone's pass found him to the right of Talbot.
The Mammoth had a brief two-man advantage after two penalties on the Red Wings gave Utah another opportunity to add to their lead to close out the second period.
Unable to take advantage of both penalties, Utah was back on the power play, once again; but just as it had been all night, they failed to score.
On Detroit's fourth power-play opportunity of the night, they finally scored the game's first goal on the advantage. Emmitt Finnie's one-timer found the top of the net to cut the deficit in half for the Red Wings.
Feeling some pressure, the Mammoth went back to work in the offensive zone. Mortiz Seider reached his stick into the crease to prevent a goal on a shot from Barrett Hayton but the puck went straight to Guenther, who was gifted an easy goal to bring the lead back to two.
On the very next shift, Kevin Stenlund ripped another goal for Utah to give them two goals in 31 seconds with Keller collecting another point on the assist.
That's two goals in 31 seconds for the @utahmammoth‼️
— NHL (@NHL) December 18, 2025
📺: @NHL_On_TNT & @StreamOnMax ➡️ https://t.co/4TuyIATi3Tpic.twitter.com/AvJK4t4z4V
The three-goal lead sealed the game for the Mammoth, who picked up their second road win on their three-game trip.
Despite struggling to score on the man advantage, the Mammoth excelled on the penalty kill once again as they successfully killed eight of the ten power plays on the road trip.
Utah's defense continued to spark their offense as they found ways to put the puck in the back of the net. The Mammoth will now head back home for Friday night's tilt against the New Jersey Devils.








