ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — JJ Peterka had two goals and two asssists, Karel Vejmelka stopped 27 shots for his first shutout of the season, and the Utah Mammoth beat the Anaheim Ducks 7-0 on Wednesday night to snap a four-game skid.
Clayton Keller had a goal and two assists, Ian Cole added a goal and an assist, and Lawson Crouse, Dylan Guenther and Liam O'Brien also scored for the Mammoth, who are now 5-10-3 since starting season 8-2-0. Jack McBain and Nick Schmaltz each had two assists.
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Anaheim Ducks right wing Frank Vatrano, right, passes the puck while under pressure from Utah Mammoth center Logan Cooley during the first period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Anaheim Ducks goaltender Ville Husso makes a glove save during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Utah Mammoth, Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Utah Mammoth goaltender Karel Vejmelka, left, stops a shot by Anaheim Ducks center Mason McTavish during the third period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Utah Mammoth right wing JJ Peterka left, celebrates his goal with center Nick Schmaltz, center, and right wing Clayton Keller during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Anaheim Ducks, Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
The Mammoth matched their season-high scoring total, set previously in a 7-4 win against St. Louis on Oct. 23.
Ville Husso gave up four goals on 21 shots through two periods, and Vyacheslav Buteyets had 10 saves in the third in his NHL debut for the Ducks, who had won five of their previous eight.
Vejmelka had six saves in the first period, 16 in the second and five in the third for his seventh career shutout and first since Jan. 23 at Minnesota.
O'Brien made it 5-0 at 1:41 of the third as he grabbed the puck on the right side, spun and fired a shot off Ducks defenseman Drew Helleson's skate and past the goalie.
Peterka had a power-play goal just past the midpoint of the third for his 12th, and Keller made it a seven-goal lead with 7:08 left for his ninth.
Cole pushed the lead to 3-0 at 5:43 of the second with a shot from the left circle for the defenseman's second of the season.
Anaheim appeared to get on the board when Mason McTavish scored with 7:07 left in the middle period, but the goal was erased on review after a challenge for offside on the play.
Peterka then made it 4-0 with 5:26 remaining in the period on a tic-tac-toe passing play with Keller and Schmaltz.
Crouse got the Mammoth on the scoreboard at 5:59 of the first period with a backhander past Husso.
Guenther doubled the lead with 9 1/2 minutes left in the opening period, putting a backhander between the goalie's skates for his 10th.
Mammoth: At Vancouver on Friday in the fifth of a six-game trip.
Ducks: Host Washington on Friday in the second of a three-game homestand.
AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL
Anaheim Ducks right wing Frank Vatrano, right, passes the puck while under pressure from Utah Mammoth center Logan Cooley during the first period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Anaheim Ducks goaltender Ville Husso makes a glove save during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Utah Mammoth, Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Utah Mammoth goaltender Karel Vejmelka, left, stops a shot by Anaheim Ducks center Mason McTavish during the third period of an NHL hockey game Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Utah Mammoth right wing JJ Peterka left, celebrates his goal with center Nick Schmaltz, center, and right wing Clayton Keller during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Anaheim Ducks, Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
BURGAS, Bulgaria (AP) — Paul Magnier claimed the opening stage of the Giro d’Italia after the French rider won a sprint finish, while race favorite Jonas Vingegaard finished safely in the pack on Friday.
Magnier, who rides for Soudal Quick-Step, will wear the pink shirt for Stage 2 after his first win at a three-week Grand Tour.
The Giro’s opening three stages are being held in Bulgaria. The opening stage was a flat 147-kilometer (91-mile) course from Nessebar to Burgas on the Black Sea coast. Magnier finished the stage in 3 hours, 21 minutes, edging Tobias Lund Andresen at the finish line.
Several riders went down in a crash when a rider clipped a temporary barrier during the run-in over the final kilometer. It appears all the riders who fell managed to get up and finish the stage.
Vingegaard is aiming to complete the rare feat of winning all three Grand Tours. The Danish leader of Jumbo Visma team won the Tour de France in 2022 and 2023 and the Spanish Vuelta last year. This year, he won the Paris-Nice and Volta de Catalonia weeklong races in March.
Tadej Pogačar, cycling's top talent, is skipping the Giro to focus on adding to his four Tour titles in July.
Saturday's stage is a hilly 221-kilometer ride from Burgas to Tarnovo.
The Giro finishes in Rome on May 31.
AP cycling: https://apnews.com/hub/cycling
The pack rides during Stage 1 of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Nessebar to Burgas, Bulgaria, Friday, May 8, 2026. (Gian Mattia D'Alberto/LaPresse via AP)
The pack rides during Stage 1 of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Nessebar to Burgas, Bulgaria, Friday, May 8, 2026. (Gian Mattia D'Alberto/LaPresse via AP)
The pack rides during Stage 1 of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Nessebar to Burgas, Bulgaria, Friday, May 8, 2026. (Gian Mattia D'Alberto/LaPresse via AP)
France's Paul Magnier celebrates winning stage 1 of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Nessebar to Burgas, Bulgaria, Friday, May 8, 2026. (Massimo Paolone/LaPresse via AP)
Denmark's Jonas Vingegaard rides during Stage 1 of the Giro d'Italia cycling race, from Nessebar to Burgas, Bulgaria, Friday, May 8, 2026. (Gian Mattia D'Alberto/LaPresse via AP)