Utah Mammoth’s 2025-26 Report Cards: Dylan Guenther – The Hockey Writers – Utah Mammoth

The Utah Mammoth’s 2025-26 season is officially over. The team finished with a 43-33-6 record, good enough to clinch the first wild card spot in the Western Conference. Despite a strong series, the Mammoth lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in Round 1 in six games. Meanwhile, their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners, finished with a 34-28-10 record, placing seventh in the Pacific Division, outside of a playoff spot.

With the season in the books, it’s time to look at the 49 players under an NHL contract and grade their 2025-26 season. Over the course of this summer, we’ll take a look at their season, their future, and give them an overall grade. We’re going alphabetically by first name. Next up is Dylan Guenther.

Player Info

Age: 23

2025-26 NHL Stats: 40 goals, 33 assists, 73 points in 79 games

2025-26 Postseason Stats: Three goals, two assists, five points in six games

Originally Acquired: First-round pick (ninth overall) in 2021 by the Arizona Coyotes

Contract Status: In the first year of an eight-year deal with a $7.14 million annual average value (AAV). Unrestricted free agent (UFA) in 2033

Season Overview

Although on a brand new deal, Guenther started the 2025-26 season the same way he started the prior season: on a tear. He once again scored the team’s first goal of the season in the first game against the Colorado Avalanche. He went on to score three more points in the next two games, including his second goal of the season.

The goal ahead of the 2025-26 season for Guenther was to continue being the Mammoth’s main goal scorer and continue improving his overall game. Head coach André Tourigny has preached about how effective Guenther is not just when it comes to goals but when it comes to other aspects of the game as well. Going into a critical season where the expectation for the Mammoth was the playoffs, the team needed the best out of the forward.

Even early on, after a hot three games to begin the season, it looked like Guenther would live up to that expectation. Two games after the first three games of the season, he went on a six-game point streak, scoring three goals in that time span. Four of his first five goals of the season ended up being game winners.

Dylan Guenther plays OT hero!!! pic.twitter.com/dA4PqHH0wW

— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) October 12, 2025

As November hit the calendars, Guenther did have a slump to begin the month. The forward only produced one point in the first six games of November. Line changes came in, and he found himself on a line now with JJ Peterka and Barrett Hayton. Back-to-back games with goals from his usual spot inside the faceoff circle helped his stats a little bit, but he still wasn’t producing at a consistent level.

Ahead of a game against the San Jose Sharks, Tourigny made a lineup change that would help Guenther a lot. He replaced Peterka with Kailer Yamamoto on the second line. While it took a couple of games, the change worked. Guenther produced four points in his next five games as December rolled around.

After a losing skid, Tourigny once again swapped the lines, bringing recently recalled Daniil But onto the second line with Guenther and Logan Cooley. The change did keep Guenther’s offense going. He produced two points against the Anaheim Ducks during the line’s first game. Two games later, he started a four-game point streak, a run in which he produced five points and an overtime winner against the Pittsburgh Penguins. This was all despite Cooley sustaining an injury that kept him out until February.

However, it was in January when everything flipped for Guenther and the Mammoth. The forward scored his first career hat trick in the first game of the new year against the New York Islanders. Guenther scored once more during the New York road trip to produce four goals in three games, helping the Mammoth win two of their first three games of 2026.

Guenther went on to produce 13 points in 13 games in January, including a multi-goal game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Despite missing two of the last three games of the month with injury, Guenther became the first Mammoth player of the season to hit the 20-goal plateau. The forward followed up a great January with two points in the final two games before the Olympic break.

After the Olympics ended, Guenther’s offense returned instantly. With Cooley back in the lineup, he scored twice in the Mammoth’s first game back against the Avalanche. The forward did get promoted to the top line for a second to begin March, but was eventually bumped back down to his usual spot alongside Cooley. In the first 11 games of the month, Guenther had 10 points.

Before a game against the Los Angeles Kings in the final game of March, Tourigny made one final change to the second line. Yamamoto was placed back alongside Guenther, but for the first time with Cooley. That’s where we saw the best of Guenther. Despite missing the final game of the season, the forward produced 12 points in his final eight games of the season, including four goals.

For the first time in his career, Guenther led the Mammoth in goals with 40. Those 40 goals also tied him for 13th in the category in the NHL. Guenther also placed third on the Mammoth in points with 73. Every single one of his offensive totals either tied or broke his previous career highs.

On top of that, Guenther continued to improve physically and defensively. He was a plus in the plus-minus stat line for the first time in his career. He also had the highest faceoff win percentage, penalty minutes, and ice time of his career.

“Goal scoring has got me into the league, but being able to defend and stuff got me more minutes, especially when I was younger, and allowed me to play more and then utilize the stuff that I’m good at,” Guenther said. “I take pride in that. I think I’m competitive, and I don’t like it when they score when I’m on the ice, so I think that’s a big part of it. If you want to be a winning team, everyone has to defend.”

As the Mammoth qualified for the postseason, Guenther got his first taste of the NHL playoffs. His physicality was shown in Game 1 as he was involved in multiple scrums. However, it was in Game 2 where his offense broke through. He scored his first NHL playoff goal to help give the Mammoth their first-ever playoff win.

In Game 3, Guenther scored the second goal of the game to help the Mammoth take a 2-1 lead in the series. While the forward went on to produce points in Game 4 and Game 5, the Mammoth ultimately lost the series in six games. Guenther ended the playoffs tied for the team lead in goals (three) and in points (five).

He’s kind of a big Dyl 🤷‍♂️

Gunner makes it 2-0, Utah! pic.twitter.com/JAWeT0GR9v

— Utah Mammoth (@utahmammoth) April 25, 2026

With the summer ahead of him, despite having a career season, Guenther wants to continue to improve. Yes, he had 40 goals, but he wants to get more. A lot of his goals this season came from the faceoff circle thanks to his release, which many players called one of the best in the league. Going forward, Guenther wants to get more rebound and tipped goals, along with continuing to work on his speed.

“I feel like I can hold on to more pucks down low, try to just work on protecting the puck a little bit better, spinning off guys and stuff,” Guenther said. “If I can add a few more rebound goals and even tipping in goals, those add up. Continuing to work on that aspect, and then just speed and strength. The faster I am, the more productive I’ll be.”

The Future

At only 23 years old, Guenther is a 40-goal scorer. Is 50 goals next?

It very well could happen, but in order to do so, Guenther needs to be placed on a line with the right linemates. His production flourished when he had Cooley and Yamamoto on a line with him. Why? Both of those players can keep up with Guenther and have similar puck-moving skills as well. It also doesn’t hurt that Cooley has had chemistry with him since the Coyotes days, and Yamamoto has a history of playing with guys like Connor McDavid.

For Guenther, the goal has become 50 goals. That is the next step in his production. He had a 13-goal increase this season. 10 more isn’t much of a stretch, especially if Cooley stays healthy. Defensively, there’s always room for improvement, and that’s exactly how Guenther’s mindset is as well.

“I think I’ve gotten better every single season,” Guenther said. “I just want continuous improvement. I might not show up all the time on the game sheet, but I think just trying to get a little bit better every single season is my goal.”

The expectation is pretty simple for Guenther next season. Keep leading the Mammoth in goals, continue being an underrated two-way player, and perhaps get to a point per game rate. The sky seems like the limit right now for Guenther. While 100 points probably won’t happen next season, this is a player who very well could hit that plateau one day.

Overall Grade

There’s not much better of a season Guenther could’ve had. He continued his growth as one of the best goal scorers in the league, hitting the 40-goal plateau for the first time in his career while also still being effective in other areas of the game, including racking up 33 assists. Guenther also didn’t let postseason pressure affect him, becoming nearly a point per game in the playoffs.

The expectations will keep rising as Guenther keeps succeeding. However, he seems to handle it in stride, continuing to raise the bar on himself and his game. He wants to keep growing and improving. Truly a sign of a player who is a star in this league. It’s no surprise that Guether, at only 23, is already highly regarded by his fellow players.

Overall, Guenther is getting an A-plus for this season. An A-plus is a hard grade to get. To get it, you have to be nearly perfect. But that’s exactly what Guenther was this season. Alongside Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz, he was one of the best players on the Mammoth. He was also one of the best goal scorers in the league.

If Mammoth fans were excited to see how Guenther improved this season, they should be even more excited to see how good he can be next season. He’s a core piece for this Mammoth team and one that will be a playoff hero sooner rather than later. With the forward focused on improving himself and his game more and more over the summer, the 2026-27 season is shaping up to be another fantastic season for Guenther.