Mammoth News & Rumors: Maccelli Trade, Extensions & More

The condition on the draft pick is that if Maccelli records 51 points next season and the Maple Leafs make the playoffs, it will upgrade to a 2029 second-round pick. The Mammoth did not retain any salary on this deal, meaning the Maple Leafs will have Maccelli’s whole $3.4 million average annual value (AAV) to pay next season. It is the final year of his contract.

With this deal, the Mammoth now have $18 million in cap space to play around with even after the J.J. Peterka extension. They also trade away a player who struggled last season. After a fantastic 2023-24 season where he recorded 57 points, Maccelli only produced 18 points this past season while being a healthy scratch on most nights. This trade gets rid of that issue while providing Maccelli with an excellent spot to prove he’s still a great NHL player.

From the Maple Leafs’ side of things, it doesn’t hurt much to take a chance on Maccelli. They have so many offensive weapons, but they just lost a big one with Mitch Marner getting traded to the Vegas Golden Knights. Adding Maccelli could give them another 50-plus point player if he finds his game again. If not, they’ll most likely be able to find another team to take him on for the final couple of months before his contract expires. 

Though Maccelli wasn’t an everyday NHLer, he was still a part of the roster. Freeing up that roster spot means more of a chance that players like Daniil But or Kailer Yamamoto can make the opening day roster. It’s a solid trade for the Mammoth, but it is certainly one they had to make before the start of the 2025-26 season.

Recent Extensions

The Mammoth didn’t have a lot of big names to re-sign heading into the offseason outside of Peterka, but they have handed out some contracts to some of their smaller names. 

In the NHL, the Mammoth gave Nick DeSimone a one-year, $800,000 extension. After coming over from the New Jersey Devils via waivers, DeSimone played well in Salt Lake City, becoming a solid seventh defenseman, and had good games when he had to draw into the lineup.

Meanwhile, in the American Hockey League (AHL), the Mammoth extended Jaxson Stauber, Ben McCartney, and Montana Onyebuchi to two-year, two-way deals. The McCartney and Onyebuchi deals keep the Tucson Roadrunners’ core together while providing the Mammoth with decent options in case they have to call up any players due to injuries.

The Stauber one could be interesting. Depending on what the Mammoth do in free agency, the young goalie could end up backing up Karel Vejmelka in the NHL. Even if they do sign another goalie in free agency (which it sounds like general manager Bill Armstrong might do) or Connor Ingram returns, Stauber will most likely be the starter in Tucson and try to keep his excellent play from this past playoffs going.

Finally, Michael Hrabal officially made the decision to return to UMass for the 2025-26 season. While many concerns about him wanting out came to fruition, both Hrabal and the Mammoth front office confirmed that he’ll probably join the organization after UMass’ season ends and that another year in college will be great for the goalie.

Saying Goodbye?

Heading into the offseason, Michael Carcone confirmed with media that he will not be returning to Utah for the 2025-26 season, opting for free agency to try to find a place where he’ll get more consistent playing time. For a while, it sounded like he would be one of the only players 100% not returning to the Mammoth organization.

Now, just a couple of hours before the start of free agency, we have learned of a couple of other names that won’t be coming back. Nick Bjugstad is arguably the biggest name. After spending the past three seasons within the Arizona Coyotes/Mammoth organization, the veteran will be taking his talents elsewhere. Whoever signs him will get a great leader and a solid bottom-six forward.

Robert Bortuzzo, as expected, will also not re-up with the Mammoth. While he didn’t officially announce his retirement, it was speculated that Utah’s final game against the St. Louis Blues (Bortuzzo’s old team) would be the defenseman’s final NHL game before he called it quits.

Yamamoto was not tendered a qualifying offer, making him an unrestricted free agent. However, it sounds like the two sides are still talking, trying to potentially work out an extension. By not giving him a qualifying offer, the Mammoth can still sign him, but can do so at league minimum and/or without the two-way option in his deal. Yamamoto told me at the end of the season that he loved his time in Utah/Tucson and would love to return. We’ll see where this goes.

Jack McBain was tendered a qualifying offer. Craig Morgan reported that McBain’s camp and the Mammoth will most likely get a deal finalized sometime later this summer. Armstrong confirmed this later on.

Other players that will become free agents on Tuesday include Travis Barron, Sammy Walker, Egor Sokolov, and Cameron Hebig. I expect, at the very least, Hebig to be extended, especially after his incredible season with the Roadrunners. He told me as well that he would like to return, which is no surprise considering how long he’s stayed in the city and how much love he’s expressed for playing in southern Arizona.

The other three are big pieces of the Roadrunners’ core. I would be very surprised if Walker doesn’t return to the team. He played well after he was acquired from the Iowa Wild. It’ll be interesting if the Roadrunners cut back on spending, especially with the rumors of relocation to Reno. However, if they want to contend and make a serious run at the Calder Cup, offering those players AHL extensions and other star AHL players contracts similar to what the Abbotsford Canucks did this past season is a start.

The Florida Rumors Are Dead

In the past year, rumors have swirled around the three big free agents from the Florida Panthers potentially signing with the Mammoth in free agency. One by one, each of those rumors has quickly fizzled out.

Earlier this week, the Panthers locked up Sam Bennett to a monster eight-year deal. On Monday, they signed Brad Marchand to a six-year deal and Aaron Ekblad to an eight-year deal.

None of the rumors made much sense. The rumors around Bennett made the most sense since the Mammoth needed a center, and Bennett is a fantastic player with a physical edge, which is a player they needed. However, it always seemed like he was bound to stay in Florida, and that ended up being true.

The Marchand and Ekblad rumors were particularly crazy. The Mammoth do not need any more defensemen, especially after signing Dmitriy Simashev. Getting Ekblad would’ve wasted a roster spot the team could use on Simashev or Maveric Lamoureux for the long term. Meanwhile, Marchand is 37 years old. The Mammoth don’t need any older players using up a roster spot for six years. While he’s a great player, it would’ve just wasted money and playing time for the team.

Up to Idaho

The preseason schedule for the Mammoth was released this week. Unlike last preseason, the team will play more than one game in their own arena. The Mammoth will play the LA Kings on Oct. 2 and the San Jose Sharks on Oct. 4 at the Delta Center. It will be the first event held at the arena after the summer renovations.

The Mammoth kick off the preseason in Denver against the Colorado Avalanche on Sept. 21. It’ll be a split-squad game, meaning one group of players will face off against the Avalanche earlier that day, while another will play the Avalanche in a second game later that day.

The other intriguing game during the preseason will be held up north of Salt Lake City. The Mammoth will travel to Boise, Idaho, on Sept. 30 to play the Kings. The game will be held at Idaho Central Arena, home of the ECHL’s Idaho Steelheads. After last preseason, where the team played games in West Valley, Utah, and Des Moines, Iowa, they’ll only make one neutral site trip this year. 

The other two games will be played against the Anaheim Ducks on Sept. 22 and the Vegas Golden Knights on Sept. 25 in Anaheim, California, and Las Vegas, Nevada, respectively.

The team will also participate in its second annual rookie showcase. This time, the Mammoth will travel to Highlands Ranch, Colorado, to face off against the Avalanche on Sept. 12 and the Golden Knights on Sept. 13.

Development Camp Kicks Off

The Mammoth kicked off their annual development camp in Park City on Monday. The camp roster includes many of their top prospects like Simashev, But, Hrabal, Tij Iginla, Cole Beaudoin, Gabe Smith, Tomas Lavoie, Owen Allard, Noel Nordh, and the Mammoth’s top 2025 Draft picks Caleb Desnoyers and Max Pšenička. It will be the first time fans will get to see those two players in Utah colors.

Injury updates for the prospects were given out by the respective players and Armstrong. Iginla, who had surgery on both sides of his hip, will participate in the camp with a non-contact jersey on. Desnoyers, who injured his wrists this past season, seems like he’ll participate fully in camp. Jonathan Castagna did not skate on Monday due to injury.

The camp will end with its annual prospect scrimmage at the Olympic Oval on Thursday. After that, it’ll be until the middle of September before we see the Mammoth back on the ice in any shape or form. However, it won’t be surprising if it’s a busy summer for the newest team in the NHL.