Utah Mammoth trade for Buffalo forward JJ Peterka, who signs 5-year extension

SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Mammoth decided to follow up a busy NBA draft night with some trade action of their own.

Late Wednesday night, Utah and Buffalo were engaged in discussions surrounding 23-year-old Sabres winger JJ Peterka from Munich, Germany, Frank Servalli of Daily Faceoff first reported before the Mammoth made the news official.

In return, Utah sent Michael Kesselring and Josh Doan to the Sabres, with the Mammoth agreeing to a five-year, $38.5 million contract extension with Peterka.

"We are excited to welcome JJ to Utah and know our fans are going to love what he brings," Mammoth president Chris Armstrong said. "On the other side of this, it is never easy to say goodbye to players of the highest character like Michael and Josh. We are certainly grateful for their contributions to our organization and trust their careers will continue to flourish in Buffalo."

Kesselring was drafted by the Edmonton Oilers in 2018 and then traded to the Arizona Coyotes in 2023. He played in all 82 games during Utah's inaugural season and finished seventh on the team in points.

Doan, the son of Coyotes franchise scoring leader Shane Doan, was drafted by the club in 2021 with the 37th overall pick after Dylan Guenther went ninth in the same draft. He made his NHL debut at the end of the final Coyotes season in 2024 and split the 2024-25 season between Utah and the Tucson Roadrunners of the AHL.

Peterka made his NHL debut at just 19 years old in 2021 after being drafted in 2020 from EHC Red Bull München of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga. He scored his first career hat trick against the Boston Bruins on Jan. 29 and finished tied for second on the Sabres in points with 68 this season.

The trade does not change the timeline of the Mammoth, with Peterka matching the rising core of Guenther and Logan Cooley, all in their early 20s. General manager Bill Armstrong said this week that the plan is to build around that group, which he expects to hit their prime in around five years.

"Most times you don't win a championship until your guys are 27, 28, 29," Armstrong said. "We have to live in the reality of, we've got good players, we've got to add players around, but we don't necessarily need to sell the farm for a 31 year old or 35 year old for $40 million to come in and and kind of clog our team up; and then we can't make the signing when we need it."

Ironically, Peterka's contract is reported to be just $1.5 million under $40 million, though he's got a ways to go before hitting veteran status. The immediate signing and length of the contract appear to signal mutual long-term interest between Utah and Peterka.

His 2024-25 goals, assists and points would've all ranked top three on the Mammoth last season, with his goal total matching Guenther's, and his assist total beating Cooley's by one. Only Clayton Keller had more goals than Peterka, and Keller and Nick Schmaltz topped him in assists.

"He will help solidify our scoring and add to what is already a great young core of forwards on the roster," Armstrong said. "Signing JJ to a long-term extension is another positive step towards building a sustainable contender here in Utah."

The league movement this week is likely just getting started, with the NHL draft set to kick off Friday at 5 p.m. MDT on ESPN, when Utah has the No. 4 overall pick.

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