The Utah Mammoth looked like they'd be one of the NHL's most surprising teams at the beginning of the season. They were near the top of the Central Division standings, and their high-powered offense made them an exciting watch. However, after a recent four-game losing streak, the team is now on the outside looking in of the Western Conference playoff picture. As veteran Ian Cole told reporters post-game, via Cole Bagley, something has to change.
“We do a lot of talking, but we need to put stuff into practice… It's really disappointing to see some of the reactions we have to adversity,” Cole said. “Winning needs to matter to us. More than anything.”
Cole knows a thing or two about winning, as he was a back-to-back Stanley Cup Champion with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2016 and 2017. The stay-at-home defenseman sees that his young team still has some maturing to do, but their potential is through the roof. If they can find the killer instinct that Cole saw in players like Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, the Mammoth will be a force in the Western Conference for years to come.
The next step in the Mammoth's development is to build some winning tendencies. It's fine to be a high-powered offense, but the finer defensive points of the game are where teams become contenders. Until the young Utah team finds a way to implement that into their games, it'll be tough sledding for veterans like Cole. While it has been a tough stretch, the Mammoth still have time to figure things out, sitting just one point back of a playoff spot in a tight Western Conference.
