Schmaltz scores in OT to give the Mammoth a 4-3 victory over the Kings

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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Nick Schmaltz scored his second goal of the game on a break at 1:46 of overtime to give the Utah Mammoth a 4-3 victory over the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday night.

Schmaltz carried the puck in on a 2-on-1 with defenseman Mikhail Sergachev on his left and fired a snap shot between goalie Darcy Kuemper's legs.

After Los Angeles controlled play in the 3-on-3 overtime and nearly ended it on Alex Laferriere’s shot that went off the right post, Kevin Stenlund won a faceoff against Quinton Byfield to set up Schmaltz's seventh winning goal of the season.

Artemi Panarin tied it for Los Angeles with 3:30 left in regulation with his 25th goal of the season His shot from deep on the far right side eluded goalie Karel Vejmelka.

Schmaltz pushed his career-high goals total to 26 and reached 63 points to match his career high set in 2024-25. Lawson Crouse scored twice in the first period and added an assist, and Vejmelka made 33 saves to help Utah end a four-game home losing streak. The Mammoth hold the first wild card in the Western Conference, five points ahead of Nashville.

Byfield had a goal and an assist, and Leferriere also scored for Los Angeles. Kuemper stopped 30 shots.

The Kings are two points behind Nashville for the final wild card.

Kings: At Calgary on Tuesday night.

Mammoth: Host Edmonton on Tuesday night.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl