Dylan Guenther, elevated to Utah’s top line during the morning skate, collected a goal and an assist to fuel the visiting Mammoth to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Tuesday.
One of Guenther’s new linemates, Clayton Keller, notched two assists as the Mammoth recorded their fourth win in the past six games.
Defenseman Mikhail Sergachev and JJ Peterka each scored a power-play goal and Karel Vejmelka made 23 saves for Utah.
Pierre-Luc Dubois and Ryan Leonard each tallied a power-play goal and Logan Thompson turned aside 20 shots for the Capitals, who saw their season-high five-game home winning streak come to a halt.
Guenther wired a sharp wrist shot from the top of the left circle to open the scoring with 8:48 remaining in the first period. The goal was Guenther’s team-leading 28th of the season, one more than his previous career high set in 2024-25.
Sergachev doubled the advantage 2:11 later after his shot from the point eluded Thompson, who was screened by an unmarked Barrett Hayton in front of the net.
Dubois’ soft wrist shot from the right circle handcuffed Vejmelka to halve the deficit with 33 seconds left in the first period. The goal was Dubois’ fourth in his past five games.
Peterka re-established Utah’s two-goal lead with 1:36 remaining in the second period, albeit with an unintentional assist from Thompson. Peterka’s wrist shot from the hashmarks in the slot initially was denied by Thompson, but the wild movement of the goaltender’s glove sent the puck inside the far post and into the net.
Leonard brought Washington within a goal at 3-2 at 6:31 of the third period with his first goal since Jan. 15. The Capitals improved to 2-for-2 on the power play after going 0-for-10 in their previous three games.
Washington defenseman John Carlson sat out his fourth straight game due to a lower-body injury.
–Field Level Media
