Mammoth vs Golden Knights Prediction, Odds & Projected Lineups

• The Vegas Golden Knights are -150 favorites in Game 1 of their Round 1 series vs the Utah Mammoth
• Utah has made the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time in franchise history
• See my Mammoth vs Golden Knights prediction, picks, lineups and odds for Sunday’s opener

The Utah Mammoth (43-33-6, 21-17-3 away) held their own in what’s is considered hockey’s toughest division. Their reward, an opening round matchup in the NHL playoff bracket with the Vegas Golden Knights (39-26-17, 20-12-9 home).

This will be Utah’s inaugural trip to the playoffs, and Vegas should have an idea of how dangerous a first-timer can be: they went all the way to the Cup Final in their first season.

Still, the books aren’t giving the newcomers much respect, pegging them as road ‘dogs in the latest NHL odds.

Puck drop is at 10pm ET from T-Mobile Arena. in Las Vegas, with ESPN carrying the broadcast coverage.

Read below as I share my prediction, updated odds, and projected lineups.

Mammoth vs Golden Knights Prediction

This normally would be a straight underdog pick to win, as the Mammoth have beaten up on the Golden Knights in each of the last two meetings, outscoring them 9-1 to win the season series.

However, Vegas is definitely the more experienced team, and they have reeled off four straight wins at home, while playing some of their best hockey of the season heading into the playoffs, winning seven of their last eight.

Mammoth vs Golden Knights Key Stats

But targeting the total feels like the right play, as the Under has gone 4-1-1 in six career meetings between these teams.

Vegas has been especially solid on defense since the NHL resumed after the Olympic break, sporting a 2.71 goals against average in its final 24 games, good for seventh-best in the league.

However, the Knights finished the year just 11-10-3, because their offense went radio silent, scoring just 2.83 goals per game, which was a Bottom-10 mark in the NHL.

It was a different set of circumstances for the Mammoth. While their GAA was just outside the Top 10 for the season, they collapsed defensively post-Olympics, with an inflated 3.29 figure.

What bailed them out, though, was a Top-5 scoring offense, tallying 3.46 goals per game.

The last four matchups between the teams have been particularly lopsided (with Utah winning three of four), with the loser scoring one goal or fewer each time.

Mammoth vs Golden Knights Odds

The interactive widget above will update automatically throughout the day.

Vegas checks in as the betting favorite, getting -150 odds to win outright, and +165 odds to cover by at least two goals, courtesy of bet365. Over at FanDuel, Utah’s odds to win outright sit at +132, while keeping it inside a two goal spread is a less fruitful payout at -184.

Over bettors should stay at FanDuel. where the total is set at 5.5 goals, while Under bettors can add a whole other goal onto that total at DraftKings — which is notable as these teams have only ever topped that figure once, in their inaugural meeting in November of 2024.

Mammoth vs Golden Knights Projected Lineups

Utah Mammoth Projected Lines

Forwards:

Clayton Keller-Nick Schmaltz-Lawson Crouse
KailerYamamoto-Logan Cooley-Dylan Guenther
JJ Peterka-Alexander Kerfoot-Michael Carcone
Liam O’Brien-Kevin Stenlund-Bransdon Tanev

Defense:

Mikhail Sergachev-MacKenzie Weegar
Nate Schmidt-John Marino
Ian Cole-Sean Durzi

Expected Starter: Karel Vejmelka (38-20-3, 2.77 GAA, .897 SV%)

Vegas Golden Knights Projected Lines

Forwards:

Mitch Marner-Jack Eichel-Mark Stone
Ivan Barbashev-Brett Howden-Pavel Dorofeyev
Reilly Smith-Tomas Hertl-Keegan Kolesar
Cole Smith-Nic Dowd-Colton Sissons

Defense:

Brayden McNabb-Shea Theodore
Noah Hanifin-Rasmus Andersson
Jeremy Lauzon-Kaedan Korczak

Expected Starter: Carter Hart (11-3-3, 2.71 GAA, .891 SV%)

Mammoth goalie Karel Vejmelka has struggled down the home stretch, as he’s made a career-best 63 appearances on the year. His GAA has ballooned over 3.00 in each of the last two months, and his save percentage has plummeted under the .887 mark.

While Carter Hard has played fewer games, he may be the fresher goalie and may be able to at least play Vejmelka to a draw in the series.