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Mammoth Not Close to Contract Extension with Top Center
Sep 21, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Utah Mammoth center Logan Cooley (92) before the game against the Colorado Avalanche at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

The Utah Mammoth are a team on the rise in the Central Division and Western Conference. After impressing in their inaugural campaign, their second season in the league is expected to be a step forward for the organization.

Part of taking that next step for the Mammoth is making sure they have their core players locked in. That task is becoming a bit more difficult as the team and their top center remain far off in contract extension negotiations. According a new report from insider Frank Seravalli, the negotiations between Utah and third-year center Logan Cooley have still not culminated in a new deal.

Seravalli took to his X account to share the latest updates on Cooley. According to his sources, the organization offered a huge extension to Cooley’s camp that was rejected. The deal was reportedly an eight-year offer worth north of $75 million, and the extension would carry an average annual value (AAV) of $9.6 million.

Calm, Cooley, & Collected

That is an exciting offer presented by the Mammoth. The deal would make him the highest paid forward and player on the team, out-earning the salaries of captain Clayton Keller and top scorers JJ Peterka and Dylan Guenther.

Still, it’s not enough to entice the young center to sign. The obvious question that emerges: why?

It’s simple, really, for Cooley and his camp. The 21-year-old is nowhere near his prime, and the sky is the limit on how far he can reach. As a rookie he scored 20 goals and 44 points in 82 games, and then jumped to 25 goals and 40 assists for 65 points as a sophomore. The 23-point leap was impressive, but Cooley expects to take an even bigger jump in year three.

And he has some evidence to back that up. One promising figure is his goals and points per 60 minutes of ice time. According to data collected by MoneyPuck over the past two seasons, Cooley has seen a consistent rise in both. As a rookie, he recorded 0.93 goals and 2.04 points per 60 minutes. Last season, those figures increased to 1.12 goals and 2.91 points per 60 minutes.

Why this is important is because the Mammoth don’t have another play driving center as effective as Cooley. Barrett Hayton and Jack McBain are the number two and three pivots, and while they bring a diverse skill set, they are best served in those second and third line roles. Neither can bring the same point production and quality chance creation to their ice time.

And Cooley’s camp knows that. They know the Mammoth are putting their hopes in Cooley’s continued rise and his ability to lead the offense. The leverage is shifting to the young center because of it, and it seems that the two sides are a ways away from finalizing a new contract.

This article first appeared on Breakaway on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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