What Happened
According to Sportsnet, the Utah Mammoth are hanging tough with the Central Division's heavyweight teams roughly five weeks into the 2026-27 campaign. The division was led last season by the Presidents' Trophy-winning Colorado Avalanche, with the Dallas Stars third and Minnesota Wild seventh in the overall standings. Utah, rebranded from the generic Utah Hockey Club, made its first playoff appearance since relocating from Arizona last season as the Western Conference's top wild-card entry.
Key Details
- André Tourigny was behind the bench when the Coyotes relocated to Utah in April 2024.
- Tourigny said his only prior knowledge of Salt Lake City came from watching the 2002 Olympics on TV.
- Utah played its first season as Utah Hockey Club before adopting the Mammoth name.
- Utah entered last season's playoffs as the West's top wild card and lost to Vegas in six games.
- Colorado claimed the 2025-26 Presidents' Trophy, with Dallas third and Minnesota seventh overall.
What It Means
The Central Division has been the league's deepest in recent seasons, with Colorado, Dallas and Minnesota all finishing near the top of the overall standings in 2025-26. For Utah, staying competitive in that company early in the season would signal that last year's wild-card playoff berth was a step rather than a peak.