How did experience factor into Mammoth’s first playoff run?
The Mammoth’s goal this season was to gain playoff experience.
Utah Mammoth center Logan Cooley (92) protects the puck from Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Noah Hanifin (15) during the third period of game 3 of a first-round NHL Stanley Cup playoff series at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, April 24, 2026. | Rio Giancarlo, Deseret News Ahead of the Utah Mammoth’s first-ever playoff game, a reporter asked head coach André Tourigny about the mindset of his group, which included many players who had never experienced Stanley Cup Playoff hockey before. “They’ve been in really high-stakes games, really important games,” Tourigny responded.
He specifically spoke of their experience in international tournaments such as the Olympics, the World Championship and the World Juniors. He also speaks frequently about their experience in the CHL playoffs and NCAA tournaments. But six playoff games later, it was the Vegas Golden Knights — the team with the most Stanley Cup Playoff experience both on the ice and behind the bench — that was moving on to the second round .
Of course, the purpose of the Mammoth’s 2025-26 season from the get-go was simply to gain playoff experience, and the only way to gain it is to go through it. Seven of their players made their playoff debuts during the first-round series with the Vegas Golden Knights. “You hear about how hard it is to win the Cup, but once you’re actually in it, it takes everyone,” said Logan Cooley, who made his playoff debut this season.
“It takes every shift, every game. You can’t take a shift off. That’s definitely eye-opening for me and I think as a group, too.