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Mammoth sign defenseman Nate Schmidt to three-year contract

Originally posted on Daily Faceoff | By Mike Gould | Last updated Jul 1, 2025 2:38 PM ET

The Utah Mammoth have agreed to terms on a three-year contract with UFA defenseman Nate Schmidt, the club announced Tuesday afternoon.

Schmidt, 33, collected five goals and 19 points while averaging 16:32 of ice time in 80 games with the Florida Panthers during the 2024-25 regular season, but it was in the playoffs where his value truly shone through.

In 23 games with the Panthers during their run to a second consecutive Stanley Cup championship this past spring, Schmidt racked up three goals and 12 points while playing a pivotal role on the team’s No. 2 power-play unit. The St. Cloud, Minnesota product also averaged 16:16 of ice time during the postseason.

Schmidt’s new contract with the Mammoth carries a $3.5 million cap hit, according to hockey insider Frank Seravalli.

Schmidt to Utah!

We’ve signed Stanley Cup Champion Nate Schmidt to a three-year contract. pic.twitter.com/lbEpLG9WfT
— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) July 1, 2025

An undrafted player, Schmidt made his NHL debut with the Washington Capitals in the 2013-14 season shortly after the conclusion of his successful three-year collegiate career with the Minnesota Golden Gophers.

The 6’0″ left-handed rearguard spent parts of four seasons in D.C. to begin his NHL career before being exposed in the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft, where he was claimed by the Vegas Golden Knights. Schmidt scored at least 30 points in each of his three seasons in Vegas but lost to his former team in the 2018 Stanley Cup Final.

The Golden Knights traded Schmidt to the Vancouver Canucks for a third-round pick after the 2019-20 season. But after just one year in Vancouver, Schmidt found himself on the move yet again — this time, to the Winnipeg Jets, and again, for a third-round pick. He spent three seasons as a bottom-pairing fixture in Winnipeg before signing a cheap one-year deal in Florida.

Through 741 career NHL games over parts of 12 NHL seasons with the Capitals, Golden Knights, Canucks, Jets, and Panthers, Schmidt has collected 52 goals and 239 points. He’s added 10 goals and 40 points in 99 career playoff contests, and his next assignment will be to help Utah in its quest to clinch its first-ever postseason berth.

This article first appeared on Daily Faceoff and was syndicated with permission.

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