Is this the year the Utah Mammoth take a step forward? In his weekly mailbag for NHL.com Dan Rosen mentioned them as a team that “should be ready to climb”. They have a new name, a newly refurbished arena, and a fan base still riding on the high of having their own NHL franchise. Can they reward those fans with a trip to the playoffs?
The NHL technically considers the Utah Mammoth an “expansion team” even though for all intents and purposes they are the relocated Arizona Coyotes. So technically this “expansion team” is entering its second season. The last NHL expansion team the Seattle Kraken also made the playoffs in their second season. In 2022-2023 the Kraken finished with a record of 46-28-8 for 100 points. As their broadcasters said during the playoff clinching win they rose from the depths of the Pacific Division to the playoffs.
The Kraken decided to build their team “the old fashioned” way through patience and developing draft prospects instead of looking for instant success like the Vegas Golden Knights. That’s what made their 100 point season and a playoff berth all the more unexpected. Meanwhile the Mammoth basically inherited a team that had been being built for years and was loaded with young talent. Shouldn’t they be ahead of where the Kraken where when they pass the pole of their sophomore season?
The team’s first in Utah was a step in the right direction as they had their first winning record since the then Coyotes in the 2019-2020 season that ended up being shortened. The then Utah Hockey Club’s 38-31-12 record for 89 points was good enough for sixth in the Pacific Division. Yet it was still seven points behind the St. Louis Blues for the final Western Conference Wild card.
Utah gets a little bit of a mulligan because they are a relocated/expansion/whatever you want to call it team but let’s assume we look at their record since that final “playoff” (remember the 2019-2020 playoffs had qualifying rounds) appearance. We find a team that is going on six seasons without making the playoffs and underwent a massive rebuild that bordered on blatant tanking. Shouldn’t they have taken more of a step forward by now? Any other team with a similar record would be disappointed about a possibly stalled rebuild.
The Mammoth are different for their unique circumstances. Not only were the rebuilding Coyotes losing games, they also had to deal with the behind the scenes financial issues and arena drama. Mammoth fans also haven’t waited half a decade for a playoff appearance because their team has only existed for two years.
Fans in Utah would love to see their still new Mammoth team make the playoffs. By all accounts Ryan Smith and his Smith Entertainment Group are much better owners than the previous regime of Alex Meruelo and company. Not only should the Mammoth be competitive, but they will be given the resources to succeed. Just look at their new practice rink. That’s the type of place that only would have been a dream back in Arizona.
Fans and ownership might be disappointed without a playoff spot. Inheriting a team that was being built instead of one that needed to be built from the ground up should light the fire under general manager Bill Armstrong and head coach Andre Tourigny. Ryan Smith inherited both of them and without the playoffs he might be persuaded to make his first major personnel changes since purchasing the franchise.