Utah Mammoth’s 2025-26 Report Cards: Liam O’Brien

It was a much better season for O’Brien than the one prior. He played in 10 more games, scored three more goals, and produced two more points than he did during the 2024-25 season. In a game that’s constantly evolving and getting faster, O’Brien is doing his best to adjust his play and role to match it. While he had long stretches where he was held out of the lineup, he always did his best to stay ready and be better in any way possible.

“I’m one of those guys where you’re in and out of the lineup, and you have to always be ready,” O’Brien said. “That takes preparation in terms of watching video. I think watching a lot of video is something that I do. I like to watch video and go over our structure. I do a lot of mental work as well. I’ve been pretty open about that stuff. I find that it always keeps me ready to go for any type of opportunity or situation that arises.”

O’Brien was fifth on the Mammoth in hits with 115 even though he only played 38 games. Funny enough, he led the entire team in faceoff win percentage. However, the depth forward only took six draws all season long.

Despite playing in the NHL for quite some time, O’Brien had never appeared in a playoff game going into the Mammoth’s first-ever playoff series. The forward made his postseason debut in Game 2 and led the team in hits during the game with five despite playing fewer than seven minutes.

O’Brien played two more playoff games, with his ice time slightly increasing in each game. His physicality made him a good fit for the type of play in the series, as he finished out the postseason with 11 hits, making the top 10 on the Mammoth in that category despite only playing three games. O’Brien also registered his first-ever playoff point in Game 3, an assist on MacKenzie Weegar’s goal. Ultimately, the Golden Knights eliminated the Mammoth in six games, ending the forward’s season.

The Future

O’Brien is one of the five players on the Mammoth’s main roster who will be UFAs come next July 1 at the moment. It makes his future with the Mammoth beyond this season murky.

Do the Mammoth even need O’Brien? It’s a reasonable question. The forward is effective in his role as a bottom-six player who fights and hits. However, as the Mammoth continue in their path towards a Stanley Cup, they’ll need roster spots like O’Brien’s for better depth options.

As of right now, the team does have players who play a very similar role to O’Brien. Crouse and McBain are just two of the notable ones who were also in the top five in hits for the team, and both do a better job at producing than O’Brien. The Mammoth also brought in Tanev last summer at double the cost of the aforementioned forward to play a similar bottom-six role, and while he hasn’t had much production, expect that to pick up next season.

What is true about O’Brien is that he is a great teammate and a good sport. He’s never complained about his role decreasing with the Mammoth getting better. He’s always ready to play his role when it’s time for him to go into the lineup. He’s also always trying to get better. O’Brien knows to get more games, he has to continue adjusting to how the game is growing. Intending to play more next season, that is a big thing on his mind going into this summer.

“I’m always finding ways to get better with my role and everything,” O’Brien said. “The game evolves, and if you don’t evolve with the game, it’ll leave you behind pretty quick. I’m always working hard in the summer on my skill set, and nothing’s gonna change. I’m looking to get more games next year.”

Time will tell if O’Brien does indeed get into more games next season. As the Mammoth get better, training camps get harder, especially for depth players. Top draft picks turn pro and push already existing players down. The Mammoth didn’t have a lot of turnover this offseason, with Alex Kerfoot and JJ Peterka being the lone departures to the forward group. Vincent Trocheck and Anders Lee join the fold, and Tij Iginala and Caleb Desnoyers will also be fighting for NHL spots. You can’t count out guys like Ben McCartney and Cam Hebig challenging for spots.

With that and his goal to play more games in mind, O’Brien plans to continue working hard this summer, especially on the ice.

“In terms of improving my game, there’s going to be some areas that I’ll dive deep on,” O’Brien said. “It’ll be my skill set on the ice. A lot of it will be on-ice stuff. I’m looking forward to working on that stuff.”

As his contract nears the end, continuing to improve and get better while playing the same role will be the goal for O’Brien this season. It’s hard to predict if the Mammoth will offer him another contract. On one hand, he’s an effective player in the playoffs, playing a very physical game. He’s also a beloved teammate and a great person in the community. On the other hand, as more and more youth get ejected into the lineup, O’Brien will get further and further pushed out of the main roster. The forward has lasted this long in general manager Bill Armstrong’s organization for a reason. We’ll see if that continues past next season.

Final Grade

The 2025-26 season was a better campaign for the man nicknamed Spicy Tuna. More games, more goals, more points, more hits, and his first-ever playoff appearance. An overall improvement from his first season in Utah.

O’Brien proved he can still be an important part of the Mammoth’s depth. While he’s no longer an everyday player like he was in the early stages of the rebuild, he can provide the team with physicality and sometimes offense when needed. He played well in the postseason and was a solid 13th or 14th forward on the main roster.

Overall, O’Brien is getting a C-plus for this season. On a competing team like the Mammoth, he played as much as a player in his role will generally play. He improved in most of his stats, as mentioned. His season was just fine and what you’d expect from O’Brien in most years.

Next season, O’Brien will be a welcome presence for the Mammoth going into big, hard-hitting games like against the very physical Florida Panthers. However, with his contract expiring, does O’Brien want to continue playing in a limited role chasing a Stanley Cup or perhaps hit the open market looking for a bigger role with maybe a bigger contract? It’s a question that he’ll have to ponder as he comes in and out of the lineup throughout most of next season.