Hockey fans woke up Tuesday morning to some startling news: The Columbus Blue Jackets have extended Charlie Coyle to a six-year deal worth $6 million annually.
That should scare general managers across the NHL.
It’s not that Coyle doesn’t deserve the money — he’s a good hockey player who leveraged his situation to secure the future for himself and his family. But no team wants to give a top-dollar, long-term deal to a 34-year-old middle-six player.
Simply put, the NHL free agency market this season is dire. Connor McDavid, Kirill Kaprizov, Adrian Kempe and a number of other big names were supposed to headline the UFA class of 2026, but almost every team locked up its stars early.
Free agency is still a month and a half away and there’s already nothing but crumbs left. You know it’s a weak free agency class when the biggest star is coming off a six-digit deal.
The other half of the equation is the rising salary cap.
With last week’s announcement that each team will have an extra $8.5 million to spend, in addition to big increases the past several seasons and the same anticipated in future years, the bidding wars could get out of control.
It’s simple economics, really. When the supply is low and the demand remains the same, prices go up. And when everyone involved has disposable funds, prices shoot through the roof.
Utah Mammoth GM Bill Armstrong frequently says that “winning the summer” doesn’t always equate to winning in the winter. This year, he and his peers will have to be extra careful when scouring the free agency market.
Utah Mammoth 2026 free agency targets
If their remaining unsigned UFAs don’t return, the Mammoth will have a few roles to fill through signings, trades or internal promotion:
- Backup goalie
- Left-handed defenseman
- 2-3 depth forwards
If it wasn’t clear already, the Mammoth’s first playoff series showed that they need more size, grit and experience.
It’s likely that Dmitri Simashev handles the left-handed defenseman job, and it’s possible that Daniil But takes takes one of the depth forward positions. There’s also reasonable likelihood that some of the pending UFAs return to Utah.
The Mammoth also have a significant amount of mid-round draft picks and B-tier prospects — so many that they won’t possibly be able to provide sufficient opportunities for all of them to make the NHL. If they can package a bunch of them in trades, just as they did when acquiring MacKenzie Weegar, they might be able to get the exact guys they need to round out the team.
All that said, here are a few free agents that might fit Utah’s needs.
Bobby McMann
Position: center/left wing
Age: 29
Height: 6-foot-2
Weight: 217 pounds
2025-26 team: Seattle Kraken/Toronto Maple Leafs
2025-26 production: 78 games played, 29 goals, 46 points
Bobby McMann would make sense for the Mammoth to bring in on a long-term deal. His age fits with the team’s core and he’s got the size and scoring ability to make a difference in both the regular season and the playoffs.
In 18 games with the Seattle Kraken this season after being traded at the deadline, McMann scored 10 goals and 14 points. Don’t expect him to consistently produce quite at that level, but do expect him to chip in at a steady rate.
Rasmus Andersson
Position: defense
Age: 29
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 202 pounds
2025-26 team: Vegas Golden Knights/Calgary Flames
2025-26 production: 81 games played, 17 goals, 47 points
The Mammoth saw Rasmus Andersson up-close this year in the playoffs. He’s a competent two-way defenseman who plays with a chip on his shoulder — not unlike his former defense partner, MacKenzie Weegar.
Andersson and Weegar were paired together the bulk of the 2023-24 season — the year Weegar more than doubled his previous career high, scoring 20 goals.
Like McMann, Andersson is the right age to fit with Utah’s core for years to come.
Mason Marchment
Position: left wing
Age: 30
Height: 6-foot-5
Weight: 212 pounds
2025-26 team: Columbus Blue Jackets/Seattle Kraken
2025-26 production: 68 games played, 19 goals, 45 points
In a recent appearance on the Spittin’ Chiclets podcast, Pittsburgh Penguins GM Kyle Dubas said one of his biggest regrets during his time with the Toronto Maple Leafs was trading away Mason Marchment.
He’s a behemoth of a man who can put the puck in the net. Those guys are always valuable in the NHL.
Michael McCarron
Position: center
Age: 31
Height: 6-foot-6
Weight: 232 pounds
2025-26 team: Minnesota Wild/Nashville Predators
2025-26 production: 79 games played, 8 goals, 17 points
Michael McCarron isn’t going to be the fix-all answer to any team’s problems, but he’ll probably get calls this summer from the bulk of the GMs in the league.
He has really emerged in the last few weeks as a playoff player. He’s big, he’s physical, he kills penalties and he’s excellent in the face-off circle.
Teams will have to be cautious not to over-commit on term or money, as high demand equates to increased price. But if you can get him at a reasonable number, McCarron is the type of depth player that teams need, especially in the playoffs.
Brett Kulak
Position: defense
Age: 32
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 192 pounds
2025-26 team: Colorado Avalanche/Pittsburgh Penguins/Edmonton Oilers
2025-26 production: 83 games played, 1 goal, 12 points
Having made it to the Stanley Cup Final in 2021, 2024 and 2025, and with a somewhat high likelihood of doing it again in 2026, Brett Kulak has the playoff experience a young team like Utah needs — especially if two-time Stanley Cup champion Ian Cole doesn’t return.
Kulak is a steady middle-pairing defenseman. He’s not going to fill the opponent’s net on a nightly basis, but he can erase his teammates’ mistakes at an above-average rate. That’s a valuable guy to have.
David Rittich
Position: goalie
Age: 33
Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 200 pounds
2025-26 team: New York Islanders
2025-26 production: 30 games played, .894 save percentage, 2.76 goals-against average
Karel Vejmelka played five more games this season than the next-most used goalie. That was necessary because the Mammoth couldn’t rely on Vítek Vaněček as much as they’d planned.
Vaněček’s contract is up this summer, so Utah will get another chance to find their guy on the never-ending carousel that is the NHL backup goalie market.
David Rittich, or “Big-Save Dave,” as he was affectionately known earlier in his career, could be the answer. He split the New York Islanders’ workload with Ilya Sorokin this year, which allowed Sorokin to have a monstrous season.
Utah will likely only need a guy who can come in for a season or two until Michael Hrabal is ready. They might be able to get Rittich on a short-term deal.
Plus, he fits with the Mammoth’s theme of signing Czech goalies.
