The Colorado Mammoth are set to take on the Edmonton Rush at Rexall Place in Edmonton on Saturday. The Mammoth are coming off a tough loss to Calgary on Friday night and want to redeem themselves after their loss at home to the Rush on December 28, 2013.
The Mammoth are again having issues with multiple aspects of the game right now. They are looking like the Mammoth of 2013 by coming out strong only to waver in the second and third quarters, and in turn having to play catch up in the fourth quarter. They also have a major dilemma with their goalie situation. Dillon Ward replaced starter Tye Belanger who right now is lacking the confidence needed to go up against strong teams.
In both of their games against the Rush and the Roughnecks, the Mammoth started out strong, however, they allowed a total of 13 goals in second quarters and three in third quarters combined in each of their first two games. Against the Roughnecks, they were shut out of the third quarter altogether.
In the last meeting of the two teams, the Rush had 34 points, 21 assists, 62 shots, 24 shots off net, a 21 percent shot percentage, 61 percent shots on goal, and 70 loose balls while the Mammoth had only 23 points, 13 assists, 61 shots, 21 SOFF, a 16 percent SPCT, 66 SOG percentage and 63 loose balls. The FO percentage was in favor of the Mammoth who had 56 percent versus the Rush with 44 percent face offs. The Mammoth won 15 out of 27 face-offs, but still came out on the losing end.
Against the Roughnecks, they posted 26 points, 15 assists, 67 shots, a 16 percent SPCT, 67 SOG percentage, 33 turnovers and 46 loose balls, while the Roughnecks posted 33 points, 20 assists, 64 shots, a 20 shot percentage, 84 SOG percentage, 25 turnovers and 47 loose balls.
The problems here are that the opponents are keeping our strong shooters from scoring. Against the Mammoth, Rush forward Curtis Knight #9 had three goals and three assists for 6 points, 13 shots, 10 SOG, a 23 percent SPCT and a 77 percent SOG; forward Zack Greer #8 had 3 G, 2 A for 5 points, 16 shots, 10 SOG with a 19 SPCT and a 62 percent SOG; forward Cory Conway #91 had 2 G, 3A for 5 points, 5 shots, 4 SOG, a 40 SPCT, and a 62 percent SOG, and finally, forward Jarrett Davis #23 had 1 G, 4A for 5 points, 5 shots, 2 SOG with a 20 SPCT, and a 40 percent SOG. Between these four players, they put up 9 of the 13 goals scored.
The Mammoth key players are Adam Jones #16, forward who is leading the Mammoth in goals (9G, 4A) for 13 points, 43 shots, 29 SOG, 14 SOFF and 17 loose balls; Drew Westervelt #26, forward with 6G, 5A for 11 points, 26 shots, 19 SOG, 7 SOFF and 6 loose balls; Sean Pollock #17, forward, with 6G, 1A for 7 points, 17 shots, 15 SOG, 2 SOFF and 3 loose balls; and finally, the always stellar John Grant Jr. #24, forward who is leading the Mammoth, with 6G, 9A for 15 points, 46 shots, 31 SOG, 15 SOFF and 7 loose balls are all just too well covered.
So what is going wrong and what do the Mammoth need to do to solve the problems? First, they need to do better on the transition, rebounds and cut down on turnovers. The talent is there, but they are rushing their shots, not using the shot clock effectively and aren’t working as a team. They need to play a full 6o minutes of game time, and not have to worry that the work they did to get ahead in the game will diminish as they get into the later quarters. Belanger is a great goalie, but right now his confidence level is down and that isn’t good for the team as a whole.
Rookie Ward has proven that he deserves to start in goal. His save percentage is that of veteran goalies. The numbers don’t lie. He posted a .833 save percentage against Edmonton, a .789 save percentage against Vancouver and Friday night boasted an .824 save percentage against Calgary. The Mammoth need to start him in goal as he has been the spark for the Mammoth squad. When he comes into the game, you can see the momentum pick up, the players have confidence in him and the opponents have a hard time scoring against him. Rather than waiting until the Mammoth are down, the players frustrated, and in turn having to come back from a deficit and having to play catch up, it boils down to Ward starting in goal.
