When the Utah Mammoth traded for Sebastian Cossa, hopes were high that the Mammoth finally fixed its goaltending woes. In the AHL, Cossa established himself as one of the league’s premier goaltenders. Averaging a 0.913 save percentage in his last three years with the Grand Rapids Griffins. After being named a two-time AHL All-Star, Cossa’s pedigree is undeniable.
Paired with Karel Vejmelka‘s Ironman spirit, the two have a chance at getting the Mammoth back to the postseason. However, Cossa has only played two and a half games, after being pulled during the first period in a game against the Bruins.
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If Utah wants a formidable goalie tandem, Cossa has to see more of the net.
Last season, Vejmelka played the most games (64 games) of any NHL goaltender. Ending the regular season with a 38-20-3 record, Veggie carried the Mammoth to a postseason berth. Once the playoffs started, fans and pundits could tell the goalie looked exhausted. Vejmelka let 3.83 goals a game, and with no competent backup goalie to share the load, the Mammoth’s postseason run ended in six games.
The exhaustion may have returned for the Czech goalie. In back-to-back starts against the Edmonton Oilers (Oct. 17) and Seattle Kraken (Oct. 22), Vejmelka allowed a combined nine goals.
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If coach Andre Tourigny truly wants to preserve Vejmelka for the playoffs, he needs to play Cossa more. When rested, Vejmelka has proven he can produce great performances, as he did at the start of the season against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Another thing the coaching staff needs to think about is Cossa’s development. Before this season, Cossa only played one NHL game with the Detroit Red Wings. While he did help the Wings win in the shootout, he didn’t even start the game. If the Mammoth want Cossa playoff-ready, he needs more games to experience and manage the highs and lows.
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Plus, if you have two battle-ready goaltenders going into the postseason, great things can happen. Just look at the Carolina Hurricanes. Without Frederik Andersen, the Hurricanes couldn’t have made it to the Stanley Cup Final, and without Brandon Bussi, they couldn’t have won.
