NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Logan Cooley made a between-the-legs, highlight-reel pass in a game early this season. Older Utah Mammoth teammate Anders Lee watched in amazement.
“I mean, I'm not trying that,” Lee said with a chuckle.
No one is asking him to try anything of the sort. The Mammoth made the playoffs with a young, fast, skilled core led by Cooley, Dylan Guenther and captain Clayton Keller, and Lee and fellow veteran forward Vincent Trocheck were added over the summer to bring a more direct, simple and straightforward brand of hockey from their careers in the Eastern Conference and complement what the established group already excels at.
“They’ve always been skillful and everyone’s kind of known them as being a fast, small, skilled team, and now they’ve gone out and added some bigger pieces, some grit to their lineup and I think they have a little bit of everything,” said New Jersey forward Evan Rodrigues, who won the Stanley Cup back to back with Florida in 2024 and '25. “They got good goaltending, a good D corps, guys who can put the puck in the net (and now) guys who also kind of muck it up in front of the net.”
After losing in the first round to bigger, stronger and more seasoned Vegas, Utah clearly could use some more players who can muck it up around the crease. Enter Lee, a 6-foot-3, 234-pound winger who had been with the New York Islanders for more than a decade, and Trocheck, a do-it-all center who played across town with the Rangers the past four years and helped the U.S. win Olympic gold in Milan.
Trocheck has started on right wing on the top line alongside Keller and Nick Schmaltz. Lee is on the left side with Cooley and Guenther.
The trios have combined to produce six goals at even strength through four games, while the Mammoth have the NHL's best power play at an unsustainable 61.5% success rate. The chemistry is still developing with the new faces.
“We’re still figuring each other out a little bit, and I think it’s going to come eventually,” Keller said. “We’ve shown flashes, but I think (it is about) just connecting a little bit. We’re talking about it a lot and each other’s tendencies and things like that, so it’s not something I’m too worried about, to be honest. I think we’re all pretty smart players that think the game at a high level.”
That was the intent in acquiring Trocheck via trade and signing Lee in free agency hours apart on July 1.
Coach Andre Tourigny pointed out that they are two different players but acknowledged they do something similar: “They're guys who play on the inside a lot."
That is important and needed when some of the most talented players are better suited to make a difference on the perimeter.
“Andy is a real power forward: toughness, physicality. Even he’s heavy down low. He can protect the puck,” Tourigny said. “Trocheck is good in the) faceoff dots, playing both special teams, really good defensively.”
The on-ice fit is obvious. There is also the experience that Lee and Trocheck bring from several playoff runs.
“It’s good to have some guys that have been in a lot of different situations where us young guys could kind of lean on them,” Cooley said.
It will take until spring to see how much that benefits Utah. Until then, Lee and Trocheck are affecting younger teammates with not only what they do but what they say.
“Just the things (Lee is) saying on the bench after games and just listening to him tell stories,” Guenther said. “And same for Troch. He’s always adding things that maybe weren’t being said before, like talking about faceoff skill, edge battles — just kind of little things that maybe you weren't even really aware of before.”
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Utah Mammoth center Vincent Trocheck (16) celebrates scoring a goal during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the New Jersey Devils, Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
Utah Mammoth goaltender Karel Vejmelka is congratulated by Vincent Trocheck (16) after the Mammoth defeated the New Jersey Devils in an NHL hockey game Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
FILE - Utah Mammoth left wing Anders Lee (72) and center Logan Cooley (92) celebrate a goal against Chicago Blackhawks goalie Arvid Soderblom (40) and center Frank Nazar (91) during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Oct. 1, 2026, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Melissa Majchrzak, File)
There's a race to the bottom of the NFL standings four games into the season, including some surprisingly winless teams.
A record-tying five teams are 0-4 one month in, marking just the seventh time that has happened in NFL history and the first since 2019.
Some of the winless teams aren't too surprising, with Miami there as part of a rebuild in a season when the Dolphins are carrying a record $184 million in dead money charges on the salary cap. Tennessee is winless after back-to-back three-win seasons.
The other winless teams are a bit more of a surprise: Tampa Bay is there after coming into the season as the favorite to win the NFC South, while Houston and the Los Angeles Chargers are 0-4 after making the playoffs last season.
This is just the third time in NFL history that two teams started a season 0-4 after making the playoffs the previous season. It also happened in 1999 with defending conference champions Atlanta and Denver doing it, and in 1992 with the Los Angeles Raiders and New York Jets both starting 0-4.
The Buccaneers have lost four one-score games, with their minus-20 point differential the fifth-best ever for an 0-4 team, and the best since Minnesota was outscored by 19 points over the first four games in 2011.
The Chargers haven't been nearly as competitive, getting outscored by 39 points for the second-worst point differential in the league so far.
The start for the Texans has been frustrating because they have led in the final 2 minutes in three of the four losses, including a 34-30 loss to Dallas on Sunday when the Cowboys scored the winning touchdown with 40 seconds to play.
They are the second team since at least 1991 to lose three times in the first four games after leading in the final 2 minutes. The Chargers did it in 2016. The only other teams in the Super Bowl era to start the season 0-4 despite leading at any point in the fourth quarter in three of the games were the 2013 Bucs and 2011 Vikings.
C.J. Stroud is the first quarterback since 1950, when starts were first tracked, to lose the first four games of a season without throwing an interception.
Three teams have started the season 4-0, with Kansas City and Minnesota doing it after missing the playoffs in 2025. The last time two teams started 4-0 after missing the playoffs was 2013, when the Chiefs and New Orleans did it.
Signing away the reigning Super Bowl MVP hasn't worked so well in the past. It couldn't be going better for the Kansas City Chiefs.
Kenneth Walker III has transformed Kansas City's offense since leaving Seattle in free agency in March. His 537 yards rushing are the most for any player through four games since Arian Foster had 539 yards in 2010.
Walker rushed for 177 yards and two touchdowns in a 30-27 win over Las Vegas on Sunday, making him the fourth player to have at least 175 yards from scrimmage in three of the first four games of a season. Christian McCaffrey did it in 2019, Billy Sims as a rookie for Detroit in 1980 and Jim Brown in 1963. Sims is the only other player to do it in his first four games with a franchise.
Walker already has six runs of at least 20 yards this season — doubling Kansas City's total for all of 2025.
His performance is far different from the other three Super Bowl MVPs who changed teams immediately after winning the award.
Larry Brown had one interception in 12 games over two seasons with the Raiders after winning Super Bowl MVP for Dallas following the 1995 season. Brown was suspended for conduct detrimental to the team in 1997 and then was cut.
The Raiders signed Desmond Howard in 1997 after he won the award for Green Bay. Howard caught six passes and had two punt return TDs in two seasons for Oakland.
Dexter Jackson fared better after leaving Tampa Bay for Arizona, with six interceptions in 2003, but he was cut the following year.
The NFL came close to setting a record for penalties last week, with the 271 accepted infractions the second most in any week in league history. The highest was 298 in Week 2 of the 2015 season.
There were an average of 16.9 penalties per game in Week 4 for the second-highest mark since 2000.
The biggest culprit was the game Sunday between the Chargers and Seattle when there were 30 accepted penalties for 280 yards, including seven personal fouls against the Seahawks. Three other games had at least 20 accepted penalties last week.
In all, the average of 15 penalties per game rank fourth highest since 2000 through four weeks and the highest since it was at 15.3 in 2015.
There have been noticeable increases this season in offensive holding, false starts and defensive holding compared with last season.
There is a large disparity between teams. Green Bay and Cleveland are both averaging more than 10 accepted penalties a game, while San Francisco and Indianapolis have had less than five.
Inside the Numbers dives into NFL statistics, streaks and trends each week. For more Inside the Numbers, head here.
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Kansas City Chiefs running back Kenneth Walker (9) dives to score a touchdown past Las Vegas Raiders safety Treydan Stukes (31) during the second half of an NFL football game in Las Vegas, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Tennessee Titans quarterback Cam Ward (1) walks off the field after the team's loss in an NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens in Baltimore, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
Miami Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis, left, and punter Bradley Pinion leave the field following an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert reacts during the second half of an NFL football game against the Seattle Seahawks, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Kevin Ng)
Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud looks to the sideline during the first half of an NFL football game against the Dallas Cowboys in Houston, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
