Utah hosts Colorado to end homestand

MORNING SKATE NOTES

• Head coach André Tourigny said the lines will remain the same as in the last match. Here’s how the team lined up in the last game. The only change in the lineup is that Karel Vejmelka will replace Vítek Vaněček, who started in the last match.
• All the expected players were present at the morning training.

Take two

This is the second of two meetings between the Mammoth and Avalanche this season. The first meeting ended in a close 2-1 loss for Utah, and the team knows their opponent well tonight.

“They have a lot of dangerous players that we have to be aware of on the ice,” explained defenseman John Marino. “They like to play that possession game. They’re quick and good in transition. They’re obviously going to limit our turnovers and be aware of that.”

“I feel like we played really well,” Tourigny said of the opener against Colorado. I think it was a good match. I think we forced them into a few turnovers. I know they will be prepared for this. I know it will be a little different match. It’s a team that has very good rhythm. They have a lot of speed and like possession and that sort of thing. But we have to do what we have to do, which is put a lot of pressure, win our battles, protect the inside, those kinds of things will lead (to) our success.

Colorado forwards Nathan MacKinnon and Martin Necas each led their team with 10 points through the first six games. Tourigny explained what Mammoth needs to do to limit these players.

“It’s all about time, space and speed,” Tourigny explained. “You’ve got to spot them early. Make sure you have a lot of structure. I think they feed off a lot in transition. When they can get going and get their speed from there, they’re hard to spot, slow down, they feed the slot a lot. So it’s about managing the puck, getting past them, being physical with them, cutting down their time and space and playing with the puck as much as possible.”

What the doctor ordered

Utah’s top line of Clayton Keller, Barrett Hayton and Nick Schmaltz totaled 13 points in two games (Schmaltz: 3B, 3A; Keller: 2B, 4A; Hayton: 1A). After the morning skate, Tourigny explained how Hayton was the right choice at center for this trio:

“I think he’s just what the doctor ordered for that line. He drives the net really hard. He has a crisp presence. He’s really good on the forecheck, really good on draws, really good in d-sone situations. He has great awareness and his reload was great. He’s a good all-around player so I think he’s exactly the kind of mix you want to have on the line. I think he’s what complements the line really well. I think if you look Individually, these three guys have qualities that blend together very well.