Sports fans expect consistency year after year from each player, but in reality, there are always risers and fallers.
For example, did anyone expect Karel Vejmelka to be as impactful as he was for the Utah Mammoth last season? And who could have foreseen the drop-offs that Lawson Crouse and Matias Maccelli had?
With that in mind, here are a few Mammoth who could surprise people next season, based on the public’s expectations versus their respective abilities to impact the game.
Vítek Vaněček
It was only three seasons ago that Vítek Vaněček backstopped the New Jersey Devils to a second-round playoff berth. Before that, he was one half of an even-split goalie rotation with the Washington Capitals, who reacquired him from the Seattle Kraken immediately after losing him in the expansion draft.
Vaněček hasn’t posted the greatest numbers since his first season in New Jersey, but he has hoisted the Stanley Cup. He has the ability to be an impactful goalie in the NHL, but perhaps his confidence just hasn’t been there.
He comes into Utah in a low-expectation, low-pressure situation. That’s often a good recipe for unexpected success. If Vaněček can put together a good body of work, he might be able to earn himself a longer term contract and reestablish himself as a legitimate starting goalie.
Oh, and for the first time in his NHL career, he has a fellow Czech as his goalie partner. If nothing else, it should provide an extra level of comfort for the newcomer.
Nick Schmaltz
This will be one of the most important years of Nick Schmaltz’s career.
It’s a contract year for him, and for the first time ever, he will have the ability to hit the open market as an unrestricted free agent. That’s not to say he’ll necessarily leave Utah, but leverage comes from the ability to walk away, which usually results in unrestricted free agents being paid more than restricted free agents.
In order to maximize his value, it will be important for Schmaltz to have a good season. That should come naturally, as he’s achieved new career highs in both assists and points in each of the last two seasons.
“I think I’ve still got more to give,” he said. “I think I keep getting better every year and I’m feeling better out there — more comfortable the more I play."
Dylan Guenther
Quietly but forcefully, Dylan Guenther is establishing himself as one of the league’s elite shooters. Scoring 27 goals in 70 games as a 21-year-old ain’t too shabby, but he it’s likely that he hasn’t come close to reaching his true ceiling.
Look for “Gunner” to pot close to 40 goals next season, and don’t be surprised if he gets 50 soon. It’s unlikely that he makes Canada’s Olympic team next year, but it’s not out of the question that he secures a spot on the 2028 World Cup of Hockey team.
“I just want to get better every year,” Guenther said at his year-end exit interview. “I don’t want to set any limitations. This is what I want to do. I love playing hockey and I think if I just continue to work and get better, I don’t want to set any kind of limits.”
Sean Durzi
After a hot start to last season, Sean Durzi suffered a shoulder injury that precluded him from playing the majority of the season. When he returned, the dominance with which he started the season wasn’t quite there.
“It’s so disappointing,” he said of his injury. “As a player, you work so hard in the offseason. You give everything you have to be prepared, and there was almost a little bit of extra motivation coming to Utah and being so excited about such a big year and how we can write our own history and all that, and four games into the year, it kind of just goes away.”
With a full summer under Toronto-area trainer Gary Roberts’ care, in addition to the need Utah has for right-shot defensemen, Durzi could be primed for a career year.
Michael Carcone
If there’s one word to describe Michael Carcone, it’s “motivated.”
He famously declared in his exit interview that he’s scored 20 goals in a season before, and he feels he can do even better with the right opportunity.
It seems he didn’t find a team in free agency that agreed with him, so he came back on another prove-it deal.
Don’t be surprised to see Carcone come flying out of the gate. Look for him to shoot the puck more and try to make more plays in the offensive zone. The addition of JJ Peterka will likely push him out of his power play spot, but that shouldn’t be a problem — just one of his 34 career NHL goals came with the man advantage. He’s not a guy who relies on power play time.