The Utah Mammoth Are No Longer the League Whipping Boy. Can They Catch The Colorado Avalanche?

The Utah Mammoth Are No Longer the League Whipping Boy. Can They Catch The Colorado Avalanche?

All right, on today’s special crossover episode, a team in the Central that I just can’t help but like for some reason, and that’s the Mammoth. So, let’s have a crossover with them. Crossover episode of Locked on Avalanche and Locked on Mammoth coming at you. Your Locked on Avalanche, your daily podcast on the Colorado Avalanche, part of the Locked On podcast network, your team every day. Everybody, welcome to Oh, hang on. There you are. Where’d you go? Welcome to a crossover episode of Locked on Avalanche and Locked on Mammoth. I’m Chris Melli from Locked on Avalanche and joining me for the first time, Tom Callahan from Locked on Mammoth. The last time I did a crossover, uh, they were still the Coyotes. Robin’s still a part of the the podcast. Uh, but you are now a duo, um, and have not done a crossover with you. So, it’s nice to finally have you on board and, uh, doing a crossover, like I said in the intro, with a team that I shouldn’t like, but I just do. And we’ll get into all that stuff. But, how are you doing today, Tom? Great, Chris. Thanks for having me on. Uh, looking forward to to talking about this. And I I have a feeling why, but I’m interested to hear your reasons why. I mean, the Mammoth are likable right now. They they just are. Sit in that world for as long as you can because once you cross that threshold of reasons why uh other fan bases dislike you, there’s no coming back from it. So, uh will you get there? I don’t know. But right now, yeah, I for me, uh, the jealousy comes from a a lot of different like there’s players on the team that I love. Um, but just how they have it’s taken a while to get here for the Mammoths. You going back to the Coyotes, but, uh, you know, where they are now with the prospects that they have, uh, their their their cap situation and you guys have all your draft picks. like it’s all stuff that the Avalanche have struggled to kind of navigate. Um, and you guys are in a really good spot like on all you’re you’re in a spot where you’re kind of taking the next steps and and you still have like a really good prospect pool that you haven’t touched yet. And and and the part with the draft picks is over the next three drafts, there’s one round that you’re not picking in, and that’s the sixth round in next year’s draft. all the other picture. Do you know what that’s like in Avalanche world that like the jealousy runs deep in just having the draft picks? You know, it’s interesting because the ABS put you put a lot into winning your cup, right? And you got your cup. Um and then smartly didn’t pay Philip Grubower. Uh let him walk, which was brilliant because there’s no way he was worth that money. Uh but you know what I mean? You you have legitimate superstars on the team that need to be taken care of. I think Kale Mar is the best defenseman in the NHL and maybe will be of this generation when it’s all said and done. Um, you know, a healthy Nathan McKinnon is a dominant Nathan McKinnon. Like, you have a lot of reasons to like the Avalanche. Oh, sure. But you’re right, because they had to make some moves when they were chasing that cup and then trying to stay in the window. Uh, you know, that’s the other thing is trying to stay in the window. The reason why the Mammoth look so good is because they’re not yet in the window. They’ve got the homegrown talent coming up and they’re starting to have to pay them which is fine. They’ve been planning for that. Uh they do have all their draft picks and they’ve been drafting fairly well. I saw a reank of the 2022 draft that had Logan Culie going number one overall. I saw that. Yeah. And I I would agree with that. Um you know, I think that that’s why the funny thing is and look, I used to work for the Coyotes organization, too. It’s not it’s not the team. Um, you know, once they got Bill Armstrong in, uh, they set a different path. They’ve chartered a course that is draft and developed. Their scouts have done an excellent job, but the ownership has just been garbage. Uh, it really has. And I mean, through the last probably three ownership groups, it’s been hard. And so, there’s a lot of bitter Coyotes fans, especially when they left, but now they have good ownership in Utah. They have a community that cares about this team, and they are just starting to rise. So, there’s a lot of things to like Don’t worry. Once they start knocking teams out of the playoffs, Chris, that’s when other teams are going to start to hate us because we haven’t made the playoffs yet. 100%. No. Yeah. Like you are the like everybody like with the two expansion teams like everyone was like couldn’t stand Vegas just because right off the bat they’re in the Stanley Cup. Seattle people are like, “Oh, that’s a nice team.” and uh you know cool logo and nothing wrong with Seattle and you know but I I think they made the playoffs but I think they’re still in that like honeymoon stage if you ask me overall and the Mammoth like yeah I I they they I like how they constructed this team and you said that they you know the the paying uh of the salaries is is coming. It it’s it’s on the horizon but right now like there’s no bad Is there any bad contracts on this team? I I I was looking at their Pug Pedia like there’s none that stick out to me that’s like that’s ugly and no I don’t see any sure you have some unrestricted next year. Maybe Schmultz is the biggest name as a as a unrestricted next year or I mean you have as a restricted but um you don’t have any bad cont right now there your your your roster is set. You got 23 out of 23 and you have 6.68 68 million still in cap space. Yeah. Like if if the Mammoth are like I have this as the first bullet point if you’re watching on YouTube like another step forward. If they do that, if they go if if by trade deadline, they’re in the mix. They’re dangerous when it comes to moves that they need to make. This team heading into training camp this year. Now, I expect Koulie’s contract extension will be announced around camp. Um maybe a little before he’s due. That’s what they did with Gunther last year. Same thing. They extended him before the season. It worked out well. They’ll extend Kulie. But keep in mind, too, that right now there’s three goalenders. Connor Ingram’s a question mark. That could be another 1.95 in cap space if he goes LTIR. Uh and Valley Mackey’s going to start the year. That’s 2 million on LTIR. He won’t be due back until Christmas. So, there’s a lot of room uh for them. And here’s the crazy thing. I was looking at this roster. We did the far too early line projections, especially bringing in Purka. They are one one training camp surprise forward away from a stack top nine because if someone cracks the top six Yeah. out of nowhere, then Schmaltz drops down to the third line and that is just filthy. Did you ever think I mean when’s the last time you were looking at depth when it came to uh you know going back to Coyotes and the Mammoth and you’re like yeah like I mean it’s happening. It like that’s why I said I I like I like the con the construct of this team. I like how it’s been managed. I like how you’re you’re going to be competitive um this year and with good contracts with cap space in the bank with prospects waiting to go. You’re hitting all the bullet points right now. I know I’m sounding like I’m not the host of an Avalanche show and I love my Avalanche, but man, like I’m just I’m really liking how the Mammoth are kind of navigating this. And yeah, once they hit that spot of being a playoff contender or or playoff team, they’re going to be a problem. And and I I feel like everyone’s looking at Dallas, you know, people look at the Avalanche. Um you know, the Jets may you know, I think last year a lot of people discounted them and look what they did. So, it’s a very strong division. So, it’s not like the Mammoth have an easy road here, but when they’re a player, and they could be a player this year. We’ll get to expectations a little bit later, but uh yeah, I I I and I want to get to players and specific players in a second, too, but that’s kind of what just enamors me with them is they figured it out. took him a while to get there and and figure this stuff out, but they’re I just feel like on all the right paths right now, and it’s it’s impressive to me. This division is killer. Um I mean, all the way back when I was uh with the Nashville Predators, I was calling games for the PRs from 2008 to 2013. That’s when Nashville started to rise back then. And the Central Division then was tough, but that was Chicago’s time, right? And now Chicago’s out and they’re trying to take a step forward. But look at this division. St. Louis could put it together again. Winnipeg is really good. Minnesota I actually think is going to fall back a bit, but the ABS are good. Dallas is good. Nashville’s a giant question mark. But the Mammoth should also be good. Like there’s just a lot to to make you wonder who’s going to be left standing at the end of it all. And I that’s why, you know, I I like the Mammoth. To me, I’ve already started saying playoffs are bust just to start the hype wagon. Um, but you know what? Boy, it’s a tough division. And there’s so many teams that are still question marks this year in that middle of the pack where Utah is, including Utah, that, you know, it’s it’s going to be a bit of a tossup, but it’s going to be an awful lot of fun to track this division this year. Would you say this is maybe the last year of Winnipeg, Dallas, Avalanche being like the the clear top three in this division? This is the last year. And then everything after this year is it’s just going to be another year where the Mammoth are are, you know, adding to whatever whatever they can add. Uh St. Louis getting better and then all the money coming off the books. Well, a little bit more money coming off the books for for Minnesota. Um, so could this be the last year where yes, we can say it’s a strong division this year? Um, but with those top teams still being at the top and then following that, we’re going to we’re going to have uh a free-for-all. I I really think that Dallas is going to be strong for the foreseeable future, unless trading Robertson somehow just dismantles them. But they still have Jakeer and I’m really glad they got rid of Pete Dbor because I used to cover Vegas and I watched Pete Dbor absolutely skewer Mark Andre Flurry destroy the goalending situation there then put all you know their eggs in the Robin Leonard basket and we see how that worked out. Um so that’s but they’re going to move on. They’ve got they’re going to be fine. I still love Connor Halabuk. Um, and I think any team that plays defensive hockey, and when the ABS won the cup, and they still kind of play this way, it’s puck possession hockey, right? Any team that plays puck possession hockey is going to be towards the top of the division. And I think that’s that’s what those top three are going to be. Unless health, I mean, look, Landiskog has had a rough road. If he can stay healthy, that’s awesome. If McKinnon can stay healthy, that’s awesome. But it also the Avalanche are still a couple of years at least three I’m talking three four years left to put in good runs. Oh absolutely. And and like you know we’ve said it many times on on our show that uh it was Joe Sackic in the the post game or the postseason press conference. He’s like you got Kale Mar you got Nathan McKinnon your window is open right as long as those guys are on the team uh they’ll make moves to make sure that they are competitive. So yeah, and you you mentioned uh you’re you’re happy Pete Dborah is gone. There’s a whole fan base right over here that is very happy that he’s out of Dallas as well. So um I want to get into specific players um and this this thing that the Mammoth have of just getting guys that I really like. Uh so I want to talk about all of that. We’ll do that coming up next. Let’s hear from FanDuel. Summer sports are in full swing. And whether you’re all about baseball under the lights, golf on the green, or high stakes soccer action, FanDuel is the best way to make every game even more exciting. And you’re already following the action, why not make it a little bit more thrilling. With FanDuel, you can get in on the game while your friends are getting sunburned at the beach. So, if you’re new to FanDuel, new customers can bet just $5 and get $150 in bonus bets if your first bet wins. Do you know off the top of your head, Tom, what the the odds are for the Mammoth going into this season? I do not. I have not even started to look yet. No, I haven’t either. And and I’m just always curious uh where where like I I think we can agree like I don’t think they’re going to be a Stanley Cup winning team, but I just like seeing like the improvement from last year to this year. Wouldn’t surprise me if they’re a little bit better odds for for the Mammoth this year. So, we’ll see. Uh, so head over to the FanDuel, bet $5, get $150 in bonus bets if that first bet wins. Open the FanDuel app today or visit fanuel.com to get started. All right, I want to first start with a uh player that you did not get and we’ll talk about players that are on the team. Um, you you heard all of the teams that could have been involved if Marner went to market. Um, I got to imagine the Mammoth were putting together something big for him and, you know, did they just miss out on him like everybody else did because the Vegas deal? I mean, Marner pretty much wanted to go to Vegas from the get-go and if they were going to be able to make that work, it was going to work. Did I want Mitch Mner? Yeah, absolutely. I think he would have been dynamite. Uh JJ Perka is a nice consolation prize. Uh but Marner wanted to go to Vegas. That’s where he wanted to be. Um they got the sign and trade done. So I I don’t know. Here’s here’s the funny thing. I don’t know that the Mammoth quote unquote missed. Uh because number one, it allowed them to reserve more cap space, keep that money back. And what I will say about Bill Armstrong, the Mammoth GM, is that he is very tactful in where he’s going to put that money and always leaving his options open. So if a team starts the year struggling, another team, and the Mammoths see an opportunity to maybe take in a player that has fallen out of favor, they’ll do it. If the Mammoth are in the middle of the season, and look at last year, at one point, four of the top six starting defenseman were injured on this Mammoth team. They went out and acquired so many different players. They got Robert Bortuzo, Ole Matzah, uh Nick D Simone, uh they brought him in and they brought him back in a one-year uh one-way deal. They really went out and kind of mined some value defensively that got them through the year and now that they’re healthy, they’re pretty stacked defensively. They’ve done a smart job of that. So, the fact that they didn’t get Mitch Mner doesn’t really upset me too much. I think he would have been an incredible game breaker for them, but the fact that they didn’t get him might be a blessing in disguise. Was it something that they just, you know, they have nobody on the on the team that would even come close to what, you know, he he’s making uh in Vegas? Is it is it that is that part of it? Like they’re just not like while they have the money, they’d rather spend it smartly and kind of spread it around and not just put that much into one guy. Well, you know that as I mentioned, his extension’s coming up and he’s probably going to be in the eight nine somewhere in there. But what I will say is I felt like their upward appetite was uh apparent to us with the Islanders Scuttlebutt. The Mammoth wanted Matthew Barzal. Barzal’s cap hit is 9.5 million. So, I felt like that probably signaled to me at least a comfort level of spending that much money. I don’t know if they want to approach double digits on any contract yet, but I think they were comfortable flirting with that number and especially with the cap going up in the next couple of years. Yeah, that might have been their upper limit and once they they might have just been priced out of it quite frankly. Right. Okay. you mentioned uh uh JJ Purka and like I said leading into this segment um yeah the the Mammoth have have had a a way of of getting guys on their team that I just like uh JJ Purka in his draft year when we did the mock drafts here like that was the guy that I wanted um on the ABS obviously they didn’t go with him and while he was not drafted by the mammoth they have acquired him in trade um while the the Avalanche were were never going to be in on someone like Ta Ginla. I liked him. He’s like another guy that I like that is now on the Mammoth. But Cole Cole Bjoin is a guy who I really wanted the Avalanche to draft. They did not draft him. The Mammoth did. It’s just like this team is turning into a team that I And then there’s players that like other guys, which I’ll get to in a second. Um it’s like we’re one mind, me and the the Utah Mammoth. I really, again, this goes back to like the construct of this team, but talk about Purka first. That was I, in my opinion, a really good addition to this team. He brings them uh he brings a different dynamic to that team. He does. He’s he’s fast. Um and he’s got a heck of a shot. Uh 66 points last year and every year he’s shown improvement that now that was a careerhigh. Uh but you know what? Now, the Mammoth have four 60 plus point guys uh on the opening night roster provided everyone’s healthy uh once they open the season. So, which is great. And I have a lot of friends in the Buffalo media and in talking to a lot of them uh about Purka, they say he is, pardon the saber pun, live by the sword, die by the sword because he is all offense and not much defense. So, there’s been some conjecture about should he get a shot at the top line. And my answer to that is probably not because he’s not defensively responsible enough, although he’s 23. You know, the kid’s got some time to figure it out and learn some two-way play. But if he doesn’t, he gives you an excellent off-wing one time on the power play. And they’ve already got another one in Dylan Gunther that gives you two guys that can shoot on PP1, which is frightening. Uh, and then you’ve got, you know, enough talent in the top six now for the Mammoth to really help him distribute and find his game. But one thing the Mammoth were absolutely prone to last year is just bonehead passes, plays, giveaways, all that kind of stuff. They shot themselves in the foot repeatedly. Um, so Purka is probably going to add to that and that’s just a dose of reality. But, you know, he gives him speed, he gives him flash, and he gives him the ability to score even more points. Uh, so I think that for the Mammoth, if they’re able to clean up the Dzone stuff, this is a player who can really give them top two scoring lines that can mix it up with any team in the league. Absolutely. Yeah. Um listeners locked on Avalanche know like uh one one of my favorite players outside of Colorado is Clayton Keller. Um why is he not more of a household name? Is it just that the market that he’s in or like what what’s the deal? Because that dude has skill that’s off the charts and I just feel like if more eyes were put on him, people would understand how much of a dynamic player he is. I agree. I think there’s still an east coast bias. Um because people on the east coast are mostly in bed when our teams are playing. Uh and the other thing is quite frankly he probably is getting more attention now being in Utah than he ever did in Arizona. Uh you know hit 90 points this year. Playing for team USA was big for him. And I was actually pretty upset that he got left off four nations because the year he was having I was shocked. So to see him go over captain team USA at the World Championships, have a successful uh tournament there and really just I mean he looks so good in and just I was very pleased for the overall season of hockey he had. He will become a bigger household name. But I mean Conor McDavid is Conor McDavid and hockey talks about him because he’s in a high-profile Canadian market. Um, you know, even though Edmonton’s a small market, it’s still super high-profile because of the the ghost of Gretzky and everything else, the Stanley Cups, but honestly, Utah is always going to be in the bottom eighth of teams that people talk about in this league. He’s he’s good, people. If you’re He’s so good. Um, and you know, if if Avalanche fans only watch him, you know, the games that they have against the Mammoth, like he stands out to me. He’s such a good player. So, um, all right, I want to get to, you know, I know it’s only July, but we can talk about expectations. Everybody’s 00 and zero right now. So, what are we expecting for next year from the mammoth? We’ll do that next. All right. Uh before we do that, before I touch on uh what the expectations are for the mammoth next year, you you did touch briefly on um Connor Ingram. Um any any update from him? I know I always root for guys that are going into the the player program. Um and but I haven’t I haven’t really seen much of what’s going on. Any news on him? So Ingram, once a player enters the program, they they are not able to contact the team. The team can’t contact them. So, from the mammoth standpoint, there’s been no updates. We’ve seen some I don’t want to call them leaks because they’re certainly not, but that basically Ingram’s playing men’s league hockey. Um, he’s back on the ice. I don’t know how strenuous a league he’s playing in. I don’t know what the level of competition is, but I do know he’s been back on the ice and he’s in pads. Uh, which is good, but that doesn’t mean he’s done with whatever his his treatment or his program was. Um, at this point, I think you everything you need to know has been explained by them signing VTEC Vanichek. So, when they brought Vanichek in, one-year deal, 1.5 million on the cap hit, which is a little less than what Ingram makes. Uh, Vanichek is insurance, but he’s now Stanley Cup winning insurance. And look, their their guy is Carell Veg Mela. Yeah, that’s their guy. Veggie is the guy for better or for worse. But um I think they really wanted Ingram to push because just a very brief background on it is two seasons ago Veg had a good year, Ingram did not. Last year Ingram seemed to be having the better year and then everything happened and then that thrust Veg back into the starting role and he actually started to pick the ball up and run with it again. So he gets rewarded with a contract. He he’s been handed that starter mantle. Um, and Ingram is just a big question mark. We all wish him well, but we really won’t. When did he go in? Was it like like January or when he when he went into the program? Somewhere around there. Yeah, around there. Yeah. Okay. So, yeah, I I always keep an eye out for guys that go into that program. So, uh, wishing him very well. Hopefully, he comes back and and that would be a dynamic duo if if he’s able to return. Um, did want to touch on uh there there there was an athletic survey and I talked about this on on a recent episode where they they the question was who’s the first coach to get fired? Um, my guy Bednar, your guy Alex Turnigy both showed up on that list at the same percentage. It was like four and a half% or something like that. So on the low end, but they were a part of the the guys that they list. Um, why why would he why would Alex Turney be on that list? because I feel like he’s he’s number one, he’s a great coach and he’s been with them through all of these growing pains and and and firings like that drive me crazy of when a guy you you stick with a guy through the worst of times and then when a team is improving and they’re looking to take that next step, you get rid of him and the new guy comes in and he gets all the accolades for everything that the guy before him really did. Uh, is it is it a is it an option for him? Like if the team maybe doesn’t perform well, like could he really be on the way out? Is he on the hot seat at all? Well, I’m putting him on it. Absolutely. Really? Oh, yeah. I actually am not a huge fan of him as a coach. Wow. So, which I don’t mind saying that because I feel like they’ve had a lot of talent. Um, and look, this past year there were not excuses, but there were reasons, right? Your decor was was run down. You had a lot of injuries there. You started to put it together. They were not making the playoffs last year anyway, but they’re where I thought they would be. Kind of sniffing around a wild card, but not quite making it in. Here’s the thing, though. Um, Torney to me now, my my kind of I’ve had some issues with some of the coaching decisions that have been made. I’ve had some issues with some of the player usage and certainly the goalender usage down the stretch. I think they ran Veg into the ground and it was ridiculous. Uh, I think it was poorly handled. But all that said, the defensive mistakes I was talking about, we called them naps. Utah is fond of taking naps. And that’s coaching. That’s all coaching. And it wasn’t improving no matter who was in the lineup defensively. So, that’s a problem. Um, the power play, if you just look at the numbers, power play looked fine. League average power play. You look at their um their mo I’ll call them the clutch moments. Able to tie a game, able to take a lead in a game, they were awful. That’s coaching. Uh you know, you’ve got to find something else within your players in the execution there. Uh the defensive zone, the giveaways, the the turnovers, the the the even breaking out of their own zone. There’s a lot of reasons to hold his feet to the fire. And here’s the thing, they have now a big collection of talent. They’ve invested. They’ve gone out and got the Sergeevs and they’ve got Marino and they’ve got Mada and they’ve got Purka now on board along with Gunther and Kulie and Keller. If he doesn’t take this team to the playoffs, he’s not taking a team to the playoffs. And so, yeah, if they get out of the gate slow, absolutely I think he’s gone. All right, fair enough. I I will defer to the one who watches them a lot more than I do. So, uh and maybe that’s the difference from from like the outsider looking in perspective. It looks like they’re doing okay, but you know, when you watch them, everybody likes the guy. Don’t get me wrong, Chris, everybody likes the guy. He’s a great dude. I would love to have beers with him, right? You know, but just I mean, sometimes we got to be a little critical. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. No, I I totally get it. All right. So, where where are they going to go this year? Last year, uh what is their record? 38 31 and 13. 89 points for Utah. Um, everything we’re saying is there there’s got to be more improvement. So, what is it? What does it look like? Early expectations, early predictions. Even if you want to throw points out, I don’t know if you want to go that far. Or or is it just playoffs? Got to get in the playoffs. Well, to me, it is playoffs now. Playoffs are the expectation. Absolutely. Uh there’s no more swimming around kind of lurking on the outside. They have to be in the playoff mix and two, three years from now, they have to be contending for a Stanley Cup. That’s the trajectory of this team. And I said last year, hey fans, it’s year one. Enjoy the ride. You’re not making the playoffs. Year two, I expect you to be sniffing that number eight, number seven. Look, it’s going to take what, 95 points to get in. So, that’s six more points. That’s three more wins. Okay. Um, there were some games they kind of gave away in overtime. Uh, and oddly enough, they really overtime and a shootout just they they have to be better there. Also, coaching. Uh they they need to be but they need to put games away. There were several times they let teams back into games to tie them up and send them to OT and then maybe cough up that point. I don’t like that. Uh but if they can shore all that up or score the extra goal, look, if you if you give up three but you still score four, you still win the game. So that’s what I’m looking at. So I I will say 95 points. They have to get to 95 points this year to get in the playoffs. I mean, it’s, you know, no longer is is, you know, Arizona/ Utah the the dumping ground for contracts anymore. It’s like, no, you guys are a competitive team and the expectation is, you know, going up the steps. The next step is we got to get in the playoffs. Um, and it’s going to be, you know, every hockey season’s fun, but I like the fact that like they are another team that is throwing their hat into this ring. That just makes the regular season more exciting. They’re another team that is going to be fighting for it. another team that, you know, even at the end of the end of the year, if for whatever reason they’re out of it, they’re still going to make life miserable for maybe a team that is knocking on the door. And the opposite’s true. Like, if they are a team that, hey, they need to get this win in game 81 or 82, they’re going to be going all out. So, it’s just exciting to have as many teams as possible fighting for playoff spots because that’s what makes the regular season fun. And I I I like the fact that the Mammoth are are kind of officially in that world now. I think that’s great in the central. I mean, Chris, who can you even count out? Chicago. Chicago. I think you can count out, but Nashville shouldn’t be out on paper, which is weird. Uh, but you know, and speaking of coaches, who might be the first to go? Um, I think he was number one on that list. Brunette could be there, too. So, uh, but I mean, Minnesota, we don’t know. St. Louis, we don’t know. Nashville, we don’t know. So, again, that’s why it’s gonna be so much fun. It is. It is. So, we’re almost there. We’re we’re crawling through the wet sand, but we’re we’re almost there. So, um All right. Why don’t you throw out where people can follow uh you and and Robin in the show and listen up? Absolutely. So, uh pretty much every social media platform, we’re locked on mammoth. Uh, if you want to follow me, I’m on Blue Sky, TomTalks, and on Twitter, Callahan Onair. Uh, would love to have you follow us over there. And, uh, YouTube, we’re excited. We’re getting close to 1500 on YouTube. So, we’re fired up about that. We got to figure out what foolish thing we’re going to do to celebrate it. We haven’t ironed that out yet. So, suggestions in the comments. What should we do when we hit 1500? Let me know. I I had a crossover with Seth Seth over at Locked on Wild and and he he’s planning uh celebrations Stanley Cup style when those contracts finally come off the books. Oh, I bet. Like he he is planning what he’s like he’s going to be celebrating like he won the Stanley Cup. So you guys got to do something when you hit the 1500 mark. So yeah. Awesome, man. Go ahead. Yeah. Oh, no. I was going to say we’ll figure that all that stuff out and then uh for you guys, Chris, I know that because this is going to be on our uh Yeah. platform as well. Also, where can folks find you? Same thing. Every everywhere you get your podcast, we’re we’re up on there. We are also on uh over on YouTube and then all of the social medias. Uh just search Locked on Avalanche over on Twitter. It’s lopn_valanche. Um same thing, Blue Sky on all those fun. Uh we have fun over on social media, so join up over there. So, um all right, that’s going to wrap this thing up, man. I I appreciate it. Nice to have you on for uh the first time between uh you you and I and talking some good hockey and I’m sure we will do that again uh some point during the season. Check in, see how things are going. If you’re good with that, Chris, if either one of our coaches is the first one to go. We’re gonna have to do that Got to do it. Gotta do it. Have to uh mark that. Actually, I’d say mark that down, but I don’t want to mark that down because I don’t want my co I like my coach. No, I like that mark, too. Yeah. So, all right everybody, that is going to be it for today. So, thank you for tuning in and making this your first listen of the day and it’s always appreciated. He’s Tom Callahan from Locked on Mammoth. I’m Chris Miselli from Locked on Avalanche. Tom, I don’t know if you uh know how we always end these shows, but I say I’ll see everybody tomorrow where you are 24 hours closer where Sydney Crosby is that much closer to being a part of the Colorado Avalanche. [Music]

Utah Mammoth’s playoff push takes center stage. Can their revamped roster and smart cap management propel them to postseason glory?

On today’s episode, Tom Callahan from Locked on Mammoth joins me to dissect the Mammoth’s impressive team construction, recent acquisitions, and expectations for the upcoming NHL season. We analyze JJ Peterka’s potential impact, Clayton Keller’s underrated status, and coach Alex Tourigny’s decision-making. With a stacked top nine and improved depth, Utah aims to secure a coveted playoff spot in the competitive Central Division.

Tune in for expert insights on the Mammoth’s path to success and how they stack up against rivals like the Colorado Avalanche.

0:00 Intro: Crossover episode with Locked On Mammoth
5:21 Mammoth’s roster construction and cap space
10:21 Central Division top teams discussion
15:33 JJ Peterka trade and impact on Mammoth offense
21:43 Connor Ingram update and goaltending situation
26:41 Expectations for Mammoth in upcoming season
32:11 Outro: Closing thoughts and sign-off

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