Utah Mammoth center Jack McBain gets a new contract — and potentially a new hot tub

When Jack McBain and his roommate Dylan Guenther first moved to Utah, they had a go-to spot to explore.

Costco.

While the Utah Mammoth duo eventually incorporated Top Golf, bowling in Draper and trips to Park City into their routine, they always came back to the product-filled warehouse.

“That store’s pretty crazy; they’ve got everything,” McBain said in September upon the team’s arrival. “We were running low on water. We went in for some sparkling water, and we came out with a hot tub.”

By the season’s end, that Costco hot tub sat in McBain and Guenther’s backyard collecting dust. It broke earlier on and was never attended to. The two Mammoth forwards joked about who would replace it, especially with Guenther’s eight-year, $57.14 million contract kicking in.

Suddenly, McBain is not too strapped for cash, either.

The 25-year-old center agreed to a five-year, $21.25 million contract ($4.25 million average annual value) with Utah on Monday. McBain, who was a restricted free agent, will remain with his best buddy, Guenther, while growing into his role in the Mammoth’s young core.

“We are very pleased to sign Jack to a new contract,” general manager Bill Armstrong said in a news release. “He is a big, strong, physical player who competes hard on a nightly basis and brings a gritty toughness to our group. Jack is an important part of the championship-caliber team we are building, and we look forward to having him back on our roster for the foreseeable future.”

Both parties can now exhale knowing the deal is done, but it was not an easy process.

McBain, evidently, was bargaining for an increase in term and salary; his last contract was a two-year deal with a total value of $3,199,998 and an annual cap hit of $1,599,999. As a 6-foot-4, 219-pound forward who can play both the middle and wing, fight, hit and score, McBain has obvious value — to the Mammoth and just about every other team in the NHL.

As negotiations continued, the Mammoth filed for club-elected salary arbitration on Sunday. (That eliminated the possibility of another team presenting McBain with an offer sheet while discussions continued, which was probably a primary reason for doing it.)

NHL salary arbitration is a process that either the player or the team can file for to resolve RFA contract disputes. A neutral arbitrator comes in and determines the player’s salary and contract term within 48 hours of the hearing — which includes cases from both sides about performance, off-ice value, injury history and more. It can get testy.

An arbitration hearing would’ve taken place in the coming weeks, but the two sides settled before.

“The commitment that both sides are making to each other in this extension tells you everything you need to know about the value and importance that has been placed on winning together,” Mammoth president Chris Armstrong said in a news release. “Jack’s versatility as a player, his care for his teammates, and his demonstrated willingness to do whatever it takes to win, are all critical elements to our future team success.“

Going to arbitration would have also put McBain on a path toward becoming an unrestricted free agent after two years.

By signing McBain to a five-year term, the Mammoth are eating up three of his UFA years during which he could’ve tested the open market for a bigger contract. That is likely part of why his new AAV is higher than some expected. Utah is paying, literally, for McBain to stay.

The Mammoth have around $6.6 million in cap space after the signing.

McBain is now locked into Utah’s next stage, as are the other pieces the team is building around. McBain’s contract runs until 2030, as does J.J. Peterka’s. Guenther’s goes until 2033. Clayton Keller’s deal is up in 2028, and Logan Cooley is due for a major extension this summer, too, which will keep him in Salt Lake City — presumably — for seven to eight years.

The Mammoth have set themselves up to peak at the same time as their foundational players. And they’ll all go through it together. Especially McBain and Guenther, who started as rookie roommates in Arizona.

“He’s fun. It’s fun to go through what we’re going through with another guy. Obviously, Gunner and I kind of came into the league at the same time — he’s a little bit younger than me — but we’ve been through a lot of stuff together,” McBain said. “He’s been really good for me.”

The two will continue to push each other.

For McBain, that means contributing on and away from the scoresheet. McBain — who was one of six skaters to appear in all 82 games for Utah — logged a career-high in goals (13) and points (27) while playing up and down the lineup with middle-six responsibilities. What’s more, he led the team in hits (291) and fighting majors (8). His punishing forecheck was a staple of the third line he ended the year on.

“I think my impact on the game goes a lot further than points or statistics. There’s a lot of things that I do that help in a really positive way,” McBain said in April. “Maybe not the most thrilled with my offensive production in the statistics column this year. But I think I did a lot of good things that can lead to success in the future. I’m happy with my year for sure.”

Now that McBain and Guenther are both anchored in Utah, it is a safe bet to run it back to Costco, though perhaps not for a new hot tub.

“That one didn’t last. I don’t know about a new one,” Guenther said at the end of last season. “I think we’re getting a new [hot tub] at the practice rink. That will be pretty nice.”