Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
- Logan Cooley is eligible for a contract extension with Utah Mammoth soon.
- Cooley's performance, similar to Wyatt Johnston's, suggests a significant salary increase.
- General Manager Bill Armstrong anticipates extension talks, prioritizing other offseason tasks first.
SALT LAKE CITY — Logan Cooley hasn't quite gotten the full Utah experience yet.
When asked to weigh in on a fry sauce debate that had erupted in the press room, the Utah Mammoth forward affirmed that, yes, he did enjoy the Utah staple.
Then his face grew quizzical.
"Wait, sorry, like, normal fry sauce?" Cooley asked.
Reporter: "When you think of fry sauce, what do you think of?
Cooley: "Like Chick-fil-A sauce?"
A chorus of groans erupted from the press corps.
He'll likely have plenty of time to try some out, though.
On July 1, Cooley — who has one year left on his entry-level deal — will be eligible to sign an extension with the Utah Mammoth.
"Well, it's a mutual thing that you get together with a player and the agent and get down to work," general manager Bill Armstrong said. "There are a lot of comparables out there for a player like that, so we're looking forward to those talks."
Cooley's camp may need just one comparable to set the floor on negotiations.
Dallas signed Wyatt Johnston to a five-year, $42 million extension in March. Johnston is one year older than Cooley (he turned 22 in May, while Cooley turned 21) and has put up similar numbers to those of the Utah forward.
Johnston had 65 points in 2023-24 and 71 in 24-25. Cooley finished with 65 points in his first season in Utah but missed seven games due to injury.
Considering that Cooley is a year younger and the salary cap is increasing, it would appear that Cooley is at least in store for the $8.4 million average annual value Johnston received.
"I'm sure there's going to be some talks coming up here soon," Cooley said. "This is kind of the only time I've really thought of it. It's always in the back of your head, but you just try to focus on the season."
The season proved to be a pretty good one for Cooley. After an up-and-down (but still promising) rookie year, Cooley came into his own in Utah.
Cooley was second on the team in points, finishing with 25 goals and 40 assists. By the end of the season, he was centering Utah's top line between Clayton Keller and Dylan Guenther.
He then spent May (alongside Keller and fellow Utah Mammoth teammates Michael Kesselring and Josh Doan) helping the United States win the IIHF World Championship. Cooley had 12 points (four goals and eight assists) in the tournament.
"Cools has got all-World talent," veteran defenseman Mikhail Sergachev said. "He's a maximalist as well. He pushes himself, pushes guys beside him to be better, and he's got the potential to be a leader. … Obviously, he's got all the skill, but just the thought of trying to be better defensively, that's what I love about him."
Entry-level contract extensions are, at times, a bet on potential, with maybe the famous one being New Jersey's extension of Jack Hughes.
In his first 119 NHL games, Hughes had 55 points (20 goals, 35 assists). Still, the Devils gave the former No. 1 pick an eight-year, $64-million contract. It wasn't long before that was one heckuva bargain for one of the game's best centers.
Utah has shown it's fine making those types of bets, too.
The team signed Guenther — Cooley's fellow youthful forward — to an eight-year, $57.14 million contract last September before Guenther had ever played a full NHL season. Guenther responded by scoring 60 points (27 goals and 33 assists) in 70 games.
Which begged the question: Just how good can the Cooley-Guenther duo become?
"They've been unbelievable," Utah captain Clayton Keller said. "So good, so quickly. They are great guys to be around. Great teammates. They're always trying to get better. They're two special guys that this franchise is going to have for a very long time. They're only going to get better — they're both so young."
Armstrong said that there's "no rush" to get an extension done. There are more pressing priorities to start the offseason — like bringing over top prospects Dmitry Simashev and Daniil But from the KHL in Russia, the NHL draft, and free agency — but, in time, expect the Mammoth to sign Cooley for the long haul.
Maybe they can celebrate with some actual fry sauce.
