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The Utah Mammoth license plates are officially here, and honestly this is the exact kind of offseason content gift I live for. Austin digs into the new DMV plate, the $25 initial contribution, the six-character vanity limit, and the deeply important civic duty of using government records to make strangers laugh in parking lots.

Then it turns into a full-blown brainstorming session: ASMAN, OUTLAW, YETIS, SLC PUK, PUCKME, BIG TSK, VEGGIE, ARCHIE, GUNNER, and more. It’s weird, extremely Utah, and exactly what late-night SLC Puck was built for.

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Austin digs into The Hockey Guy’s Utah Mammoth season preview and lands on a take that feels very Utah: being liked is nice, but being feared is better. The big stat that set him off was Utah getting just 0.42% of the vote as the NHL’s most hated team.

From there, it turns into a challenge for the two young stars. Austin wants Dylan Guenther to score 45 goals and drop the gloves once, and he wants Logan Cooley to turn 54 hits in 54 games into 100 hits over an 84-game season. A little more villain energy, please.

Su...

Austin’s argument in this one is simple: Utah Mammoth season doesn’t just feel close on the calendar, it feels close because the Delta Center is visibly transforming right now. He talks through Ryan Smith’s August 13 arena photos, the stacked party deck, the absurdly steep new section, and why year three might give Utah its third straight opening night that feels historic in the room.

He also says goodbye to the original Sugar House SLC Puck studio, shouts out Eric Jensen for the text that sparked the episode, and leans into the bigger idea that this t...

Austin breaks down Vincent Trocheck’s positioning, faceoff ability, and why his veteran game could help Logan Cooley and Dylan Guenther.

Caleb Desnoyers left the World Junior Summer Showcase needing help off the ice after a brutal collision, and that’s the whole story right now for Mammoth fans. Austin breaks down the clip, why it looked so alarming in real time, why he doesn’t think Wyatt Cullen meant to injure him, and why this still feels like a massive, infuriating setback for a fourth overall pick who was supposed to be pushing toward Utah.

He also gets into the worst part of it: we may not get a real update until rookie camp in September. That unce...

Austin goes deep on why the JJ Peterka era ended so fast in Utah, and why this feels less like a total player failure and more like a role problem that got worse as the season went on. The numbers are rough: 68 points in Buffalo dropped to 47 in Utah, his power-play production cratered from 18 points to 5, and he finished the playoffs with zero points in six games.

There’s also the bigger trade picture now. Utah gave up Josh Doan and Michael Kesselring to get Peterka, then flipped Peterka to Boston in the deal path that eventually br...

The argument in this episode is pretty simple: Logan Cooley already has the tools to be a superstar, but if he’s going to make the jump, he has to shoot more. Austin points to Cooley’s 99th-percentile speed, his 23 points in 29 games before the injury, and the fact that he still only projects to about 1.89 shots per game on an 82-game pace. That’s not enough for a player this explosive.

There’s also the bigger Utah Mammoth angle here. If Cooley stays healthy, locks in a bigger power-play role, and spends real time with Dylan Guenther...

The Athletic said the Utah Mammoth don’t have a real villain yet. I’m sorry, but that is simply not true.

In this episode, I make the case for Utah’s first true hockey villain and run through the receipts: Tom Wilson’s 30 penalty minutes against Utah, Alexei Toropchenko’s knee-on-knee hit on Logan Cooley on November 29th, and the January 9th Jack McBain fight at Delta Center that felt like Utah collecting a debt. I also get into Brett Howden’s four-goal playoff pain for Vegas and why local fans know this team’s history better than th...

Austin ranks the five can’t-miss Utah Mammoth home games for 2026-27: the Winter Classic, Vegas, Ovechkin, Florida, and Celebrini.

The Utah Mammoth might already be the envy of some NHL fan bases.

On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin uses the Vancouver Canucks as the ultimate contrast point. Reports say Canucks ownership wants to cut payroll by as much as $20 million, even with the NHL salary cap rising to $104 million. This is the same Vancouver team that finished dead last last season with just 58 points — 14 behind the next-worst Chicago Blackhawks — and still didn’t land the Gavin McKenna lottery win.

Meanwhile, Utah is heading into year three with Ryan Smith spending money, the Delta Center...

Six centers, four spots. Austin breaks down where Vincent Trocheck, Barrett Hayton, Logan Cooley, Nick Schmaltz, Kevin Stenlund and Jack McBain fit—and who gets pushed to the wing.

John Marino got paid, so the pressure moved. Austin ranks Bill Armstrong, André Tourigny and contract-year Lawson Crouse, then breaks down Utah’s 100-point expectation, the Vincent Trocheck and Sebastian Cossa bets, Crouse’s shrinking runway and the best beer deal inside the Delta Center.

John Marino just cashed in with the Utah Mammoth — and I think Nate Schmidt deserves a little thank-you present for helping make it happen.

On this episode of SLC Puck, I break down Marino’s massive 8-year, $54 million extension and why Utah clearly believes he’s a long-term top-four piece. Marino is coming off a career year: 80 games played, 4 goals, 32 assists, 36 points, and a plus-42 season after averaging more than 20 minutes a night. That’s a huge jump from the 35-game, 14-point season he had the year before.

The biggest reason? That second pair with Nate Sch...

The Utah Mammoth got better this offseason. The problem is a bunch of the teams behind them did too — and that’s what makes this playoff chase feel a lot more dangerous.

On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin breaks down why Utah’s path back to the postseason may be tougher than fans want to admit. Nashville added names like Ross Colton, Jack Drury, Nils Hoglander and Alexander Kerfoot. St. Louis brought in Mason McTavish, Brandon Carlo and Connor McMichael. San Jose added Michael Kesselring, Jacob Trouba, Mason Marchment and Darnell Nurse, plus drafted Ivar Stenberg with t...

Bill Armstrong said it out loud: the Utah Mammoth want 100 points next season. The question is whether this roster can actually do it.

On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin breaks down the real roadmap after Utah finished 43-33-6 with 92 points last year. Even with the NHL moving to an 84-game schedule, Utah’s same 0.561 points percentage would only get them to about 94.2 points. That means the Mammoth still need to find roughly six more points somewhere, and that’s where this gets interesting.

Austin looks at where Utah stole points last season against team...

The Utah Mammoth schedule is out, and yeah... April 3 against the Vegas Golden Knights already feels absolutely feral.

On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin breaks down the full 2026-27 Utah Mammoth schedule month by month, from Opening Night against the Chicago Blackhawks on October 1 to the Winter Classic against the Colorado Avalanche on December 31 at Rice-Eccles Stadium. He digs into the brutal early road-heavy stretch, the six-game trip from late October into mid-November, and why simply staying around .500 early would be a huge win.

There are also some massive dates to circle at Delta...

Anders Lee is a huge pickup for the Utah Mammoth — literally and stylistically. On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin breaks down who Lee is, why Utah gave the former New York Islanders captain a 3-year deal worth $5.4 million AAV, and why his game fits a very specific Mammoth need.

Lee spent 14 NHL seasons with the Islanders, played 923 games, scored 308 goals, and served as captain for the last 8 seasons. He also won the 2024 King Clancy Trophy and helped raise more than $2.5 million for families affected by cancer. But the biggest on-ice number in this episode might be th...

Logan Cooley’s contract with the Utah Mammoth suddenly looks like an absolute bargain.

On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin breaks down why Cooley’s 8-year, $10 million AAV deal looks so good after the Anaheim Ducks were forced to match Philadelphia’s 5-year, $90 million offer sheet for Leo Carlsson. The comparison is wild: Cooley has 69 goals in 211 NHL games, Carlsson has 61 in 201, and their points-per-game rates are nearly identical. But Cooley takes up just 9.62% of Utah’s cap, while Carlsson comes in at 17.31%.

We also get into what this says about Bill Armstrong’s long-term...

Vincent Trocheck and Anders Lee don’t feel like random additions. They feel like a message. The Utah Mammoth are trying to get tougher, nastier, deeper, and a whole lot harder to play against.

On this episode of SLC Puck, I break down what stood out from Friday’s Utah media availability with Trocheck, Lee, and Bill Armstrong. Trocheck revealed he’s been skating with Logan Cooley in Pittsburgh and texting with him over the last two weeks, which tells you this move had been in the works. I also get into Trocheck’s take on all the cent...

Well, egg on my face: the Utah Mammoth matched the New Jersey Devils’ offer sheet for Barrett Hayton after all.

On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin reacts to Utah bringing Hayton back on a one-year, $4.775 million contract, why Bill Armstrong felt a second-round pick wasn’t enough compensation, and what Hayton’s 52.6% faceoff win rate and defensive value say about this decision. Austin also gets into the cap angle, with Utah now sitting around $4.6 million in space instead of having closer to $10 million to work with.

But the most interesting part might be what happen...

Barrett Hayton’s future with the Utah Mammoth is hanging by a thread, and on this episode of SLC Puck, Austin Facer makes the case for Utah to let him walk. With Hayton signing a 1-year, $4.775 million offer sheet from the New Jersey Devils on July 1, the Mammoth are running out of time before the July 9 deadline to decide whether to match.

Austin digs into why this is such a weird, tense spot for Bill Armstrong and the Mammoth. Hayton had 25 points in 37 games last season after posting 46 points in 82 games the year before, and Utah has to...

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The Utah Mammoth have a decision to make on Barrett Hayton, and somehow it all comes back to an old recliner.

New Jersey signed Hayton to a one-year offer sheet, putting Utah in a tough but fascinating spot: match the deal, keep him at nearly $4.8 million, and lose trade flexibility for a year — or let him go and take the 2027 second-round pick as compensation.

On this episode of SLC Puck, we talk through why the Mammoth may be ready to mov...

The Utah Mammoth didn’t tiptoe into NHL free agency — they cannonballed in. On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin reacts to Utah’s biggest move of the day: acquiring Vincent Trocheck from the New York Rangers in exchange for Sean Durzi, Cole Beaudoin, and a conditional 2027 third-round pick. The big takeaway? This front office is done being patient. This is a win-now swing.

Austin breaks down why Trocheck’s profile matters so much for Utah: a two-time NHL All-Star, a faceoff monster winning nearly 60% of his draws, and the kind of veteran center who can change close ga...

The Utah Mammoth didn’t just sit at No. 19 and hope. They moved up to No. 17 to draft Ethan Belchez, the 6-foot-6 Windsor Spitfires winger Austin thinks they clearly did not want to risk losing. This episode of SLC Puck is all about what that move says about Utah’s priorities: size, edge, personality, and a player who could eventually fill a real power-forward role in this organization.

Austin also digs into the other major draft-week dominoes. Utah shipped out J.J. Peterka to Boston for a pair of first-round picks, then used the 23rd overall pick to a...

Sebastian Cossa finally has his NHL shot, and the Utah Mammoth are betting he can solve a real problem. On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin Facer breaks down Utah signing Cossa to a 2-year, $4 million deal and why this move matters way more than people think.

The big question is simple: can Sebastian Cossa be a competent backup to Karel Vejmelka? Austin looks at the numbers from Vitek Vanecek’s rough season in Utah — 22 appearances, 19 starts, a 5-13-3 record, a goals-against average just under 3.00, and an .883 save percentage — and lays out the bar Cossa has to cle...

Andre Tourigny is back, but this sure feels like a prove-it year. On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin breaks down the Utah Mammoth reportedly extending their head coach by just one season — and why that matters way beyond the headline. A one-year extension after a 92-point playoff season says a lot, and Austin lays out exactly what Tourigny needs to do to earn something longer-term in Utah.

This episode digs into Tourigny’s full track record, from a 57-point season with Arizona in 2021-22 to 70 points, then 77, then 89 in Utah’s first season, and now 92 points with a...

The Carolina Hurricanes are Stanley Cup champions, and this episode of SLC Puck is all about what Utah Mammoth fans should learn from it. Austin reacts to Carolina closing it out in Vegas, breaks down how Rod Brind’Amour’s team attacked all night, and explains why the Hurricanes’ depth, culture, and bold goalie switch to Brandon Bussi are exactly the kind of details that separate contenders from almosts.

We also go back to Utah’s two games against Carolina this season, including that brutal January 29 collapse in Raleigh when the Mammoth blew a 4-2 lead in the fina...

Dylan Larkin to the Utah Mammoth? Austin’s not buying it. On this episode of SLC Puck, he breaks down why the Red Wings captain-to-Utah rumor feels more like easy speculation than a real fit — even with reports that Larkin wants out of Detroit and has given Steve Yzerman a list of preferred destinations that includes the Florida Panthers, Minnesota Wild, and Vegas Golden Knights.

Austin’s main argument: the price, the age, and the timeline don’t add up for Utah. If Detroit is looking for a massive return, why would the Mammoth blow up a gradual...

Kevin Stenlund unfollowed the Utah Mammoth on Instagram, and yeah… that feels like something. On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin digs into the NHL Follow Tracker post that caught Stenland unfollowing Utah, why that matters for a 29-year-old unrestricted free agent, and what it might be signaling about the Mammoth’s plans down the middle.

Austin breaks down Stenland’s role in Utah: 80 games played, 4 goals, 14 assists, 18 points, a minus-9, and heavy usage on the penalty kill and in overtime faceoffs. He also compares it to Stenland’s stronger 2024-25 season with 14 goals and 28 points, and asks the...

Dylan Larkin is on the market, and that immediately raises the biggest Utah Mammoth question of the offseason: do they have the assets to trade for him… and should they even want to? On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin digs into the Detroit Red Wings captain’s situation after reports that Larkin wants out, and why the fit in Utah is a lot more complicated than just "big name available, go get him."Austin breaks down Larkin’s profile in detail: 29 years old, 808 career games with Detroit, 643 points, and a team-friendly $8.7 million cap hit through 2031. He also reacts to Col...

Jack McBain is our SLC Pucker of the Year, and honestly, there was no other choice. This episode is SLC Puck’s annual Utah Mammoth end-of-season awards show, where we hand out eight honors to the players who defined the 2025-26 season. McBain gets the big one after leading the team with 84 penalty minutes, setting the tone physically, and delivering one of the best fights of the year against Alexei Toropchenko after the hit that injured Logan Cooley.

We also hand out Electric Factory to Dylan Guenther after his 40-goal, 73-point season, including the kind of late-game mo...

The team that knocked out the Utah Mammoth is now playing for the Stanley Cup, and that’s exactly why this episode matters. On SLC Puck, Austin digs into what the Mammoth can actually learn from the Vegas Golden Knights — a team that keeps making ruthless, win-now moves and keeps getting rewarded for it.

Vegas swept the Colorado Avalanche to reach the Stanley Cup Final after eliminating Utah, and Austin makes the case that the Mammoth may be closer than people think. He breaks down Vegas’ depth and why it worked: Mitch Marner leading the way with 21 points...

This is a free preview of SLC Puck+ — the members-only bonus show for the SLC Puck sickos.

Right now, we have 25 paid members helping build this thing.

The next goal is simple:

50 paid members before next season.

That’s not some random vanity number. That’s the next step in turning SLC Puck from a fun local hockey podcast into a real Utah hockey media operation.

The main SLC Puck show covers the Utah Mammoth: games, roster moves, prospects, reactions, watch parties, interviews, and everything happening around hockey in Utah.<...

Utah Mammoth fans have a real question to wrestle with this summer: do you want a team full of lovable guys, or a team built to win ugly? On this Memorial Day edition of SLC Puck, Austin reacts to the Vegas Golden Knights going up 3-0 on Colorado and uses that as the jumping-off point for a bigger Utah hockey debate. If Vegas is rolling with Carter Hart in net, Mark Stone back in the lineup, and the Avalanche suddenly on the brink, what does that say about what it actually takes to contend?

Austin gets into...

Tij Iginla’s junior hockey career could be headed for a storybook ending.

The Utah Mammoth’s top prospect and first-ever draft pick is set to lead the Kelowna Rockets into the Memorial Cup, one of the biggest stages in Canadian junior hockey. Kelowna didn’t win the WHL title, but as the host team, the Rockets get one more shot — and Iginla gets a massive opportunity to put a stamp on his junior career before taking the next step toward the NHL.

On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin breaks down why Mammoth fans should b...

Join the SLC Puck+ tier on Patreon for bonus episodes! ➡️ www.patreon.com/slcpuckIt’s a very special Mother’s Day edition of SLC Puck — just one week late, because every day should be Mother’s Day if you’re brave enough.Austin is joined by his mom for an annual SLC Puck tradition to talk about the Utah Mammoth season, the family’s growing hockey obsession, and how SLC Puck has turned into a weird, wonderful little family business in the basement.On this episode, Austin and his mom talk about:how the Utah Mammoth took over the familyBig Tusk E...

Join the SLC Puck+ tier on Patreon for bonus episodes! ➡️ www.patreon.com/slcpuckWinter Classic tickets are live, and Utah’s sports future is getting bigger. Austin breaks down ticket prices for Mammoth vs. Avalanche at Rice-Eccles Stadium and the new Intermountain Health Sports Performance Center coming next to the Mammoth practice facility.CONNECT WITH SLC PUCK!🤝 Patreon ➡️ www.patreon.com/slcpuck🛍️ Merch ➡️ www.bigtuskenergy.com🤑SLC Picks (DFS)➡️ https://www.slcpuck.com/t/slc-picks📸 Instagram ➡️ https://instagram.com/slcpuck🎥TikTok ➡️ https://tiktok.com/@slcpuck

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Join the SLC Puck+ tier on Patreon for bonus episodes! ➡️ www.patreon.com/slcpuckRyan Smith just revealed the next major phase of renovations coming to the Delta Center — and the future home of the Utah Mammoth and Utah Jazz is about to look very different.On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin reacts to Smith’s new renovation video and breaks down what the next phases could mean for hockey, basketball, sightlines, fan experience, and the future of live sports in Utah.The plans include major changes to the upper bowl, new terrace-style seating, gondola-style views, a dramatic new south-en...

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The Utah Mammoth’s 2025-26 season is officially in the books.

After making the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in franchise history, improving their record, raising their goal di...

Join the SLC Puck+ tier on Patreon for bonus episodes! ➡️ www.patreon.com/slcpuckThe Utah Mammoth’s first Stanley Cup Playoff run is over.After falling to the Vegas Golden Knights in six games, Utah’s 2025-26 season ends with disappointment, frustration, and a lot of questions about what went wrong.On this episode of SLC Puck, Austin and Sammy react a couple days after the Game 6 loss and break down the end of Utah’s first playoff series, including:* why Game 6 felt emotionally flat* how the series changed after Game 3* Utah’s brutal power play problems* Vegas’ control of the matchup...