How does momentum affect a playoff series?

The Utah Mammoth celebrate a goal by Utah Mammoth left wing Lawson Crouse (67) during the second period of game 3 of a first-round NHL Stanley Cup playoff series against the Vegas Golden Knights at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Friday, April 24, 2026. | Rio Giancarlo, Deseret News

“It’s important for us to stay even-keeled,” said Mammoth head coach André Tourigny after practice on Sunday. “Not just when you have adversity or challenges. It’s when you have success, as well.”

Tourigny is proud of the way his group has responded in times of both success and shortcoming throughout its three playoff games thus far. In a series of up to seven games, you won’t be on the winning side of every play, so you need to be able to react appropriately to all types of situations.

For example, after taking a two-goal lead in the first period of Game 3, the Mammoth didn’t play like the game was over. Instead, they went out and doubled their lead to four goals.

On the flip side, when the Golden Knights started to push in the latter half of the game, the Mammoth didn’t panic.

That shows maturity on the part of Utah’s veterans and youngsters alike.

“That’s something that we’ve talked about all year,” Kerfoot said. “When we don’t have our best, (we’re) still finding ways to win. ... I think we’ve found ways to win in different ways. We’ve had opportunities in all three games to win.”

Everyone seems to have a different opinion on how much momentum carries from one game to the next, but if it does exist, Utah has it right now.

The Mammoth have won two games in a row, and they have Game 4 at home on Monday. When a series is at 2-1, Game 4 becomes paramount: It either ties the series 2-2 or gives one team a nearly insurmountable 3-1 lead.

The Golden Knights understand the importance of that. They have called up Braeden Bowman and Trevor Connelly from the AHL, and per the folks at SinBin, they overhauled their power play units at Sunday’s practice after going 0 for 4 on Friday.

Golden Knights head coach John Tortorella, a Stanley Cup champion and a highly proven bench boss, has plenty of confidence in his group — especially the leaders.

“It’s a good leadership group,” he said. “They’ve gone through it. They know where we’re at and they know how to handle the situation.”

Game 4 Monday at the Delta Center is set to begin at 7:30 p.m.

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