Nick Schmaltz reached 500 NHL points on Saturday night, scoring twice as the Utah Mammoth beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-1. It was Utah’s second straight win to open the season.
Schmaltz’s second goal, on the power play at 14:13 of the third period, gave him the milestone. His first came less than five minutes after Mikhail Sergachev opened the scoring in the first period.
How Nick Schmaltz hit 500 points
Utah leaned on its power play. The Mammoth scored three times with the man advantage, with Sergachev, Dylan Guenther and Schmaltz all cashing in. Guenther and Logan Cooley each had two assists.
Clayton Keller had two assists as well and reached 600 career points. Keller, Schmaltz and Guenther were all part of a top group that produced all night.
Columbus gets one back
Kent Johnson scored on a breakaway in the second period for the Blue Jackets’ only goal. Jet Greaves made 21 saves in the loss. Sebastian Cossa started in goal for Utah and took the win in his Mammoth debut.
What’s next after the Nick Schmaltz milestone
The game opened a five-game road trip for Utah. The Mammoth play the New York Rangers on Sunday, and our Mammoth vs Rangers preview looks at that matchup. For how the two teams got here, see our Mammoth vs Blue Jackets preview.
The Associated Press game story, carried by Fox Sports, has the full scoring summary, and The Hockey Writers has three takeaways from the game.
