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Mammoth Notes: Cooley, O’Brien, Injury Updates

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The Utah Mammoth didn’t make the playoffs in their first season in Salt Lake City, but they did take meaningful steps closer to contention, and perhaps their most important step forward was through the development of 2022 third overall pick Logan Cooley. Today, Utah general manager Bill Armstrong told the media, including The Deseret News’ Brogan Houston, that Cooley’s representation has been “very patient” regarding Cooley’s next contract. He added that there’s no rush to get an extension done.

Cooley, who is repped by Brian & Scott Bartlett of Bartlett Hockey, is in line for a major contract extension after a breakout 2024-25 campaign. The 21-year-old is a dynamic playmaker and ranked second among Utah players in scoring last season with 25 goals and 65 points. Montreal Canadiens forward Juraj Slafkovsky, who was drafted two spots ahead of Cooley at the 2022 draft, received a $7.6MM AAV on his long-term second contract. Given Cooley will be signing his extension at a later stage than Slafkovsky, and will have more experience on his resume at the time of signing, it stands to reason that Cooley’s next deal will exceed Slafkovsky’s. Given his age and production, Cooley could very well see his next deal exceed Mikhail Sergachev’s $8.5MM AAV to become the highest-paid player in Utah.

Some other notes from the NHL’s newest franchise:

  • Mammoth coach Andre Tourigny told the media today that veteran forward Liam O’Brien is currently dealing with a lower-body injury, and is out on a week-to-week timeline. Injuries limited the 31-year-old bruiser to just 28 games played last season, and he also only managed two points. Although it’s not a contract year for O’Brien – his $1MM AAV deal runs through 2026-27 – he’ll look to get back on the ice in order to re-establish himself as one of the league’s more physically imposing bottom-six players.
  • Alongside O’Brien, Tourigny also established who the club’s other injured players are for the start of the team’s training camp. Tourigny named Anson Thornton, Juuso Valimaki, Caleb Desnoyers and Terrell Goldsmith as the remaining injured players. The most relevant name from that list from a roster-building perspective is Valimaki’s, as he is a veteran of 271 career NHL games. With that said, Mammoth fans are likely to pay close attention to the status of Desnoyers, the 2025 fourth-overall pick.

CHL Trade Roundup: Sale, Toure, Sobolev, Thornton

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The CHL Trade Deadline is set to hit on Wednesday and there have been several big moves made already that have involved NHL prospects.  Several more have happened today; here’s a rundown of those moves.

  • Kraken prospect Eduard Sale has been acquired by OHL Kitchener along with blueliner Olivier Savard in exchange for forward Kyle Morey, defenseman Blair Scott, and eight draft picks, reports Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek (Twitter link). Sale was the 23rd pick back in June and is in his first season in North America where he has struggled a bit, notching just 20 points in 25 games with the Colts.  He was more of a factor for Czechia at the World Juniors, picking up seven points in as many contests.
  • A Senators blueliner is on the move as Windsor picked up Djibril Toure from Sudbury for a pair of draft picks. The 20-year-old signed with Ottawa as an undrafted free agent back in September.  Toure, who stands 6’7, has been a shutdown defenseman at the OHL level but still has 12 points in 24 appearances this season.
  • While Brantford was selling with yesterday’s Jorian Donovan trade, they also added to their roster, acquiring Canadiens blueline prospect Danill Sobolev for forward Masen Wray and defenseman Callum Cheynowski. Sobolev was a fifth-round pick by Montreal in 2021 (142nd overall) and has been a shutdown defender in his three junior seasons.  He’ll be too old for junior hockey next season and it remains to be seen if Montreal will look to find a place for him in their system.
  • Coyotes goaltender Anson Thornton’s junior rights have been moved from OHL Barrie to Niagara for a conditional draft choice. The 20-year-old signed as an undrafted free agent with Arizona 2021 but has missed most of the year with an injury, being limited to just four appearances with AHL Tucson where he has a save percentage of just .849.

Central Notes: Mrazek, Drouin, Kirkland, Thornton

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Even with a handful of teams believed to be looking for goalie help, the market for Blackhawks netminder Petr Mrazek isn’t likely to be too strong.  As a result, Mark Lazerus of The Athletic feels (subscription link) it might be more likely that Chicago winds up extending the netminder over dealing him for what’s likely to be a limited return.  The 31-year-old has put up a .903 SV% in 25 games this season, a very respectable number on a team that’s in a battle for the bottom of the standings once again.  He currently carries a cap hit of $3.8MM and while it’s unlikely an extension would come in at that amount, keeping him around on a short-term extension to allow Drew Commesso to have a bit more time to develop with AHL Rockford would make some sense, especially if the trade market isn’t likely to yield much in return.

Elsewhere in the Central:

  • After a rough start with his new team, Avalanche winger Jonathan Drouin has settled in nicely and is in the middle of a strong stretch where he has 17 points in his last 22 games. To that end, Evan Rawal of Colorado Hockey Now evaluates the feasibility of trying to sign the 28-year-old to a contract extension.  Drouin is playing on a deal worth $825K this season, opting for a short-term agreement in the hopes of establishing a better market next summer.  His performance is worth a fair bit more than that but with Colorado’s cap situation, they’ll still be capped at a lower-cost offer.  That said, if Drouin wants some stability and to stay in a good situation, he could be amenable to the possibility of re-signing now.
  • The shuffling of Justin Kirkland continues. After being sent back down yesterday, the Coyotes announced (Twitter link) that the winger has been recalled from AHL Tucson.  It’s his third recall in the last two weeks although he has yet to make an appearance yet with Arizona.  Meanwhile, the 27-year-old has been productive with the Roadrunners, recording 13 points in 12 games so far.
  • Still with Arizona, while not yet announced by the Coyotes, the team has loaned goaltender Anson Thornton back to OHL Barrie, notes Colts color commentator Gene Pereira. The 20-year-old signed as an undrafted free agent with Arizona back in 2021 but has been injured for most of the season, being limited to just four appearances with Tucson where he has a save percentage of just .849.  With the CHL trade deadline coming next week, he may find himself on the move at that level in the coming days.

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