March 12, 2026; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins center Ben Kindel (81) celebrates with Pittsburgh Penguins right winger Anthony Mantha (39) after scoring a goal against the Las Vegas Golden Knights in the second period at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvani-Imagn Image Two teams desperate for a win with a shot at the Stanley Cup Playoffs will meet in Salt Lake City on Saturday night when the Utah Mammoths take on the Pittsburgh Penguins.
If the season ends today, both teams will advance to the postseason. But the Mammoths have dropped their last three contests (0-1-2), including a 3-2 overtime loss at home to the Chicago Blackhawks, and the Penguins, who lost 6-2 to the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday, enter Saturday’s game on a two-game skid and 1-3-2 in their last six games.
Defenseman Ryan Shea, who assisted on both of the Penguins’ goals on Thursday, said it was good to be able to “turn it around quickly” after a frustrating loss in Las Vegas.
“Utah is a great team, so we have to move quickly,” Shea said. “The Penguins will complete a five-game road trip with visits to Colorado and Carolina next week.” “We’re pretty much in the playoff hunt and that’s got to be our mentality every game. … We’ve got to get points in the next three games.”
Pittsburgh will come to Utah without Sidney Crosby. The captain, who leads the Penguins with 27 goals and 59 points in 56 games, has not played since the Olympic break.
DK Pittsburgh Sports reported late Thursday that Crosby, 38, suffered an MCL sprain while representing Team Canada at the Winter Olympics last month. That information came from Crosby’s Olympic teammate, Vegas forward Mitch Marner.
In Crosby’s absence, forward Brian Rust (23 goals, 27 assists) has scored (4 goals, 6 assists) in seven of the last eight games. Anthony Mantha (24 goals, 25 assists) has 3 goals and 1 assist in his last 3 games.
The Mammoths have lost three in a row, but a 3-2 overtime loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Monday and Thursday gave them at least two points when they lost 5-0 to the Minnesota Wild.
Utah coach Andre Turrini liked a lot of what he saw from his team Thursday, but he told reporters after the loss that he understood the end result.
“We are undoubtedly at a stage where we need to find a way to get two points,” he said.
Dylan Guenther scored his 31st goal in Thursday’s loss, tying the franchise’s record for most goals in a season for two years. The 22-year-old has scored at least one point (four goals, three assists) in five of his last six games.
Defenseman Mikhail Sergachev returned Thursday after missing four games with a lower-body issue. He has assisted Guenther on goals and scored in four of the five games since the break.
Saturday’s game pits one of the best penalty-killing teams in the league against a struggling power-play unit. Utah has the 7th worst power play, converting 16.6% of their chances. The Mammoths are also tied for third in goals against men with 30.
At 84.5%, Pittsburgh is the second-best penalty kill team in the league.
–Field level media
