Schmaltz signs 8-year, $64 million contract to remain with Mammoth

Nick Schmaltz was already convinced that Utah was where he and his fiancé wanted to settle, live and play.

An eight-year, $64 million contract made it official.

Schmaltz, the Utah Mammoth’s 30-year-old center, signed his new contract that carries an $8 million average annual value on Wednesday, less than four months before he could have become an unrestricted free agent.

He is in the final year of a seven-year, $40.95 million contract ($5.85 million AAV) he signed with the Arizona Coyotes on March 30, 2019.

“I feel like I’m a pretty loyal guy,” Schmaltz said at a press conference in Utah on Wednesday. “I committed to Arizona for seven years and obviously there was some tough times there, but I liked the group we had, I saw light at the end of the tunnel and I knew at some point it had to turn around and I wanted to see it through, be a part of the rebuild, kind of build it from the ground up. You can see the steps we’ve taken, it’s been fun to see. The new guys we’re bringing in, the young talent, I’m super happy that I did that. I think it means a lot to grind through those years because then it makes the good times that much better. I’m looking forward to getting better every year and hopefully get to that end goal of winning one day.”

The Mammoth (34-26-5) are in position to be the first wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference with 73 points, six clear of the playoff line. It would be the first time the Mammoth or Coyotes — whose assets were purchased and transferred to Utah in 2024 — made the playoffs in a full NHL season since 2011-12.

Arizona qualified for the playoffs in 2020 after the League returned following the pause because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I remember talking to Nick earlier in the year and saying, ‘Hey Nick, there’s no question that you need to be here and we want you here. This is going to become a math equation,’ ” Mammoth owner Ryan Smith said. “I’m just so thrilled that we both were able to see that. And really his desire to want to be in Utah because, let’s be honest, he’s two months away or whatever it is from being able to choose where he wants to go. There’s a lot of suitors out there and us being able to work together and do this is pretty special.”

Schmaltz is second on the Mammoth with 59 points (24 goals, 35 assists) in 65 games. He has already set a new personal NHL high in goals, topping the 23 he scored with the Coyotes in 2021-22. He needs five points to set a new personal NHL best in points in a single season.

He had 63 points (20 goals, 43 assists) in 82 games last season.

“The thought of losing Nick left me sleepless night after night after night and thinking about what he was going to get in free agency,” Utah general manager Bill Armstrong said. “Finally, we reached out to his agent and we were able to have conversations. In those conversations we were mutually agreeing that we both liked each other and that this was a good fit and this could be a good fit for a long time. That was an important part of our talks.”

Schmaltz leads all Utah forwards in ice time per game (19:42) this season. He is tied for first on the team with six power-play goals and ranks fourth with 13 power-play points. He is also tied for first with six game-winning goals. He plays on both special teams units.

“He’s such a valuable, key piece of our organization,” Armstrong said. “He has a unique ability. He can play if you’re up a goal or down by a goal in the last minute. He can play left wing. He can play center. He can play right wing. He can play on the power play. He can play on the PK. He is a huge minute muncher on our team and has maximum importance. I lost a lot of nights sleeping thinking that we weren’t going to get him back. It’s such an integral part of our organization to sign this young man today and make him a part for a long time.”

Schmaltz is the latest in what is now a long line of Mammoth players who have bought into Utah.

Forward Dylan Guenther is in the first year of an eight-year contract and forward Logan Cooley will begin his new eight-year contract next season.

Goalie Karel Vejmelka, and forwards JJ Peterka and Jack McBain are in the first year of five-year contracts. Defenseman Sean Durzi is in the second year of a four-year deal.

In addition, defensemen Mikhail Sergachev and MacKenzie Weegar, who were both acquired in trades, are in the third year of eight-year contracts.

Mammoth captain Clayton Keller has this season and still two more remaining on an eight-year contract.

“It just shows the commitment to winning here,” Schmaltz said. “I think we’re right on the edge of being a really great team. We’ve got all the pieces in place, and I know we’re only going to get better.”