The 2025-26 schedule for the Utah Mammoth is here, their second season in franchise history and their first as the Mammoth. It’s a big season for the team as this is the season they expect to make the playoffs. With big additions in the offseason consisting of J.J. Peterka, Brandon Tanev, Nate Schmidt, and others, they are certainly primed to challenge for a spot in the postseason.
The 2025-26 schedule is much different from the team’s 2024-25 schedule, but there are a lot of games to look forward to, as usual. Here are the top 10 that fans should have circled on their calendar.
Day in the Life: Schedule Release Edition 📆✨ #TusksUp | @SeatGeek pic.twitter.com/fjTAWUL70M
— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) July 16, 2025
First Game of the Season (Oct. 9 @ Colorado Avalanche)
During the team’s tenure in Arizona, season openers would usually be on the road. Last season, during the Mammoth’s first season in Utah, the team opened up their season at home before embarking on their typical early New York road trip. This season, the Mammoth will open their season opener on the road.
The Delta Center’s summer renovations have pushed everything back, including concerts. So, a variety of concerts will take place during the opening week of the NHL season, forcing the Mammoth to go on a three-game road trip against Central Division teams, which includes the Avalanche.
The Mammoth will open their season up in Denver against the Colorado Avalanche on October 9. #TusksUp https://t.co/hmr4tBHNpc
— Chase Beardsley (@ChaseBeardsley_) July 16, 2025
The season-opening game for the Mammoth will also be the Avalanche’s home opener, providing an opportunity for them to spoil their division rival’s first game of the season in front of their fans. The Mammoth went 1-2-0 against their Rocky Mountain rivals last season, but most of the games were physical and close.
Mammoth fans won’t have to wait long to see the Avalanche come to Salt Lake City. They’ll travel to Salt Lake City during the first stretch of home games on Oct. 21. The two teams will play each other twice more after October, including the first game back after the Olympic Winter Games in February.
With the Mammoth most likely improving this season and the Avalanche expected to be a playoff team once again, the two teams could begin a rivalry that would be great to see. Especially with players like Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar on the Avalanche, it should be another fun season to see these two teams go at it.
Home Opener at the Delta Center (Oct. 15 vs. Calgary Flames)
Mammoth fans will have to wait a little over a week after the start of the NHL season to see their team play at home. However, Oct. 15’s game against the Flames will kick off a four-game homestand to begin the 2025-26 season at the newly-renovated Delta Center.
Outside of the two preseason games, this will be the first chance for fans to see Delta Center as it enters its second phase before it goes under remodeling again next summer. It will also be the first time fans will get to see the Mammoth brand during in-game presentations.
Home openers are always exciting. Last season was one to remember for Utah after a big 5-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks for the first win in franchise history. This season should feature a better opponent; The Flames were challenging for a playoff spot last season, but funny enough, they couldn’t steal a win from the Mammoth, going 0-3-0.
The scene from inside Delta Center after Dylan Guenther scored the first goal in Utah history. #UtahHC pic.twitter.com/r29eNzLxL1
— Chase Beardsley (@ChaseBeardsley_) October 9, 2024
We’ll see what Mammoth owner Ryan Smith has up his sleeves to celebrate the first game of the season in Utah. Perhaps a return of Shaboozey? Whatever happens, it should be a fun game to watch and see from all angles, and one every Mammoth fan should have circled on their calendar.
Josh Doan and Michael Kesselring’s Return to Utah (Nov. 12 vs. Buffalo Sabres)
A blockbuster trade right before free agency saw the Sabres trade Peterka to the Mammoth, immediately bolstering their top six. However, the Mammoth gave up two fan favorite players in Doan and Kesselring. Nov. 12 will mark their first appearance back in Utah, this time in royal blue.
With all their antics with Logan Cooley publicized throughout the season on social media, the Mammoth fanbase quickly fell in love with the young duo. The female fans of the Mammoth even created “DoanHER Nation” to make a safe space for hockey fans and an extended friend group within the Mammoth fanbase. The name DoanHers obviously came from a play on Doan’s nickname, “Doaner.”
When Doan and Kesselring were traded, the Mammoth fanbase and especially the DoanHERS were heartbroken. While trading for Peterka was the right move as he is by far the best player among the three, Doan and Kesselring were homegrown talent. They both have incredible personalities that attracted fans to them and made them well-liked players in the locker room. Nov. 12 will be a final sendoff to the duo.
It’s always fun seeing teams and their fans honor returning players who have moved on to other clubs. It’ll be interesting to see how long fans will be on their feet applauding the former Utah players.
Before the Nov. 12 game, the Mammoth will play the Sabres in Buffalo on Nov. 4, pitting the Mammoth against Doan and Kesselring for the first time in history. It will also be Peterka’s first time back in Buffalo since the trade. How fans react to the former Sabre returning will be interesting to see, especially after he forced his way out of the organization due to refusing to sign a contract.
The Defending Champions Come to Salt Lake (Dec. 10 vs. Florida Panthers)
There’s no better way to see how good your team is than going up against the defending Stanley Cup champions. Fans will get to see the best team in hockey, the Panthers, before Christmas.
Similar to last season, Mammoth fans will see some great players face off against their team, including Matthew Tkachuk (who could be on Team USA during the Olympics), Sergei Bobrovsky, Aleksander Barkov, and Sam Reinhart. It’ll also be the first chance fans can see Brad Marchand play as a member of the Panthers.
This will also be the first time newly signed Mammoth players Schmidt and Vitek Vaněček go up against their former team, with whom they won the Stanley Cup last season. Schmidt and Vaněček will make their first return to Sunrise on Jan. 27 when the Mammoth make their Florida trip.
The New York Road Trip (Jan. 1 @ New York Islanders)
Usually, the first road trip of the season for the Mammoth and former Coyotes organization is through the New York area. Last season, the Mammoth pulled off wins against the Islanders and the New York Rangers to win their first three games of the season before falling to the New Jersey Devils in the next game. Now, they’ll face the three teams again, but this time in early January.
THE UTAH HOCKEY CLUB REMAINS UNBEATEN! 👀
Clayton Keller caps a high-scoring affair with the @SUBWAYCanada OT winner. pic.twitter.com/gXt2IECPSr
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) October 13, 2024
The Mammoth will go up against a different-looking Islanders team after newly-hired general manager Mathieu Darche traded star defenseman Noah Dobson and drafted three different times in the first round of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft. It’ll also be the second time the Mammoth face off against the first-overall pick of the draft, Matthew Schaefer.
They’ll then travel to New Jersey to face off against the Devils, who are expected to be a playoff team once again. They’ll round out the road trip by taking on the Rangers at the iconic Madison Square Garden, who will also be a tough team to take on as they hope to make a run at a playoff spot after a disappointing 2024-25.
Nick Bjugstad’s Return to Utah (Jan. 9 vs. St. Louis Blues)
While Bjugstad didn’t have the greatest 2024-25 with the Mammoth, he was still a critical part of the team and the locker room culture. With the trade for Peterka and the signings/extensions of Kailer Yamamoto, Alex Kerfoot, Michael Carcone, Daniil But, and Tanev, it left little room for Bjugstad in the bottom-six, leaving him to sign with the Blues this summer.
Bjugstad was with the Coyotes/Utah for the past three seasons, which was the longest stretch of time he had been with a single organization since his first couple of seasons in the league with the Panthers. While it won’t be the first time the Mammoth will play their former teammate, it’ll be the first time the fanbase gets to acknowledge Bjugstad’s contributions to the team, especially in their inaugural season.
The matchup marks the third time the two teams will face off, and the first in Salt Lake City. These matchups will be key for the Mammoth as they try to steal valuable points from their division rivals, who will also be trying to make their way into the playoffs. The two teams split their series last season. Getting at least one more win against the Blues could be big for the Mammoth’s hopes of getting into the postseason.
The game against the Blues is also amidst the longest stretch of home games for the Mammoth this season, as they’ll play seven-straight games at the Delta Center in the middle of January.
Last Game Before the Olympics (Feb. 4 vs. Detroit Red Wings)
In February, the Mammoth will play every single game at the Delta Center. However, the team will only play four times as the NHL takes a pause for around two weeks for the Olympics, which will be the first Olympics NHL players get to take part in since 2014.
The game on Feb. 4 against the Red Wings will be the final chance for fans to see some of their players before they head off to Italy. Clayton Keller will be a favorite to land a spot on Team USA, especially after his snubbing during the 4 Nations Face-Off. Cooley might also press for a spot on the team.
Other Mammoth players who could head there include Karel Vejmelka (Czechia), Peterka (Germany), Dylan Guenther (Canada), Olli Määttä (Finland), and Kevin Stenlund (Sweden).
On the other hand, the Red Wings could also be sending a group of players to Italy, including Dylan Larkin and Alex DeBrincat ( United States), Lucas Raymond (Sweden), and Moritz Seider (Germany).
Like any game against an Original Six opponent, the game against the Red Wings should be nearly a sellout. If you saw any game at the Delta Center last season, you know you want to be inside the arena when it gets loud.
Connor McDavid and the Western Conference Champions Come to Utah (March 24 vs. Edmonton Oilers)
Similar to the game against the Panthers, there’s no better way to see how good you are than taking on one of the best teams in the league. The Oilers are coming off their second-straight trip to the Stanley Cup Final. After a dominant run through the Western Conference last season, they’ll be even more hungry to try to get back to the Final for the third straight season.
Of course, all eyes will be on McDavid as there’s no doubt he’ll be slowing down after a monstrous 100-point 2024-25 despite only appearing in 67 games. With his contract expiring next summer, it could be the last time Mammoth fans see him in an Oilers jersey, even though it is more than likely that the two sides will have an extension done by then.
Fans will also get to see other star players like Evan Bouchard and Leon Draisaitl take the ice. March could be a critical month for the Mammoth as they can’t afford to trail off and potentially lose out on a playoff spot. On paper, it is a relatively easy month for them, as only around half of their games will be against teams that made the playoffs last season. Make no mistake, though, every game will be a battle as the season winds down.
Alex Ovechkin’s Final Appearance in Utah (Probably) (March 26 vs. Washington Capitals)
Ovechkin has done almost everything he can possibly do in his career. He’s won numerous Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophies, a Conn Smythe Trophy, and a Stanley Cup. Last season, he did what many thought was impossible by breaking Wayne Gretzky’s record for the most goals in NHL history. With one more season left on his contract, there is something Ovechkin hasn’t done, which he has been public about wanting to do: play in the Kontinental Hockey League in his home country of Russia.
HE DID IT, HE DID IT ‼️
ALEX OVECHKIN HAS THE MOST GOALS IN NHL HISTORY 🚨 pic.twitter.com/Ej2cclff9y
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) April 6, 2025
With multiple rumors of it happening, it is more than likely that March 26 will be Ovechkin’s final time playing against the Mammoth in Utah. It will also likely be one of Ovechkin’s final NHL games as the season comes to a close, less than a month after this game. For all hockey fans in Utah, this is a must-watch and attend game.
Players on the Capitals probably haven’t forgotten about the last time they played the Mammoth in Utah, where Jack McBain’s awkward collision with Ovechkin caused him to break his fibula. Add on the fact that the Capitals will most likely be fighting for a playoff spot as well, and you could have a physical and memorable game on your hands in late March.
Regular Season Finale (April 16 vs. Blues)
For the second straight season, the Mammoth will finish their season against the Blues. This year, however, it’ll be at the Delta Center. Fan appreciation night is always a fun one to go to, and the Mammoth will be looking to redeem themselves after a disappointing performance during last season’s fan appreciation night.
It could be potentially a critical game for either or both teams, which both could still be battling for a playoff spot. It’s not unheard of, as the Blues found themselves in a Game 82 showdown against the Avalanche back in 2018, with the winner clinching the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. The Avalanche won that one in a thriller, making the playoffs.
On this day, three years ago, was Game 82. (#IYKYK)
The team needed a regulation win to advance and got a late first-period goal from Girard and 3 points from Landeskog to secure our first playoff berth since 2014.#GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/CEHnEcqJYx
— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) April 7, 2021
The Blues won their final game of the season last season against the Mammoth to punch their ticket to the playoffs. It shows just how important the final game of the season can be.
Going more in-depth about the schedule, the Mammoth will have their longest stretch of home games from Jan. 7 to Jan. 21, where they play seven games at the Delta Center. Their longest stretch of away games will be from Nov. 28 to Dec. 6, where they play six games on the road.
Strength-of-schedule-wise, November and January will be the toughest months for the Mammoth on paper as they will play nine games against teams that made the playoffs in 2025, both of those months. Their weakest month will be February due to only four games that month and only two against 2025 playoff teams. April will also be a softer month on paper as only four games will be against 2025 playoff teams.
Division-wise, the Mammoth will play the highest number of games against division rivals in October, where they play seven games against Central Division opponents. February and November feature the fewest games against division opponents, with two each.
Interestingly, the Mammoth will only play one 8 PM Mountain Time home game this year. There will also be four afternoon games at the Delta Center this year that start before 4 PM MT, as opposed to the two they had last season. On top of that, five of the final six Mammoth games will be at home, creating some great opportunities for fans to head to downtown Salt Lake City to watch their team play.
