Utah Opens 2025-26 Season in Colorado

THE DETAILS

WHO: Utah (0-0-0) at Colorado (1-0-0)

WHEN: Oct. 9, 2025 – 7 p.m. MT

WHERE: Ball Arena – Denver, CO

TV: Utah16, Mammoth+

RADIO: NHL App, NHL.com, KSL Sports Zone (97.5FM/1280AM), KSL Sports App

MORNING SKATE TAKEAWAYS

The Mammoth had full attendance at morning skate including forwards Barrett Hayton and Liam O’Brien. Here’s today’s workflow and power play groups:

PP1: Keller, Schmaltz, Guenther, Cooley, Sergachev

PP2: Peterka, McBain, Yamamoto, Durzi, Schmidt

Following skate, Tourigny said that “only one” defenseman is not playing tonight, Nick DeSimone, and that forward Michael Carcone will also not play.

Facing Colorado:

The Avalanche bring a lot of threats to tonight’s game. Here’s what head coach André Tourigny shared about Colorado pregame:

“They have a lot of speed; they play with a lot of speed. They move their feet, offensively and defensively, and obviously they have high-end talent. They have some of the best players in the world. So, they’re a really good team, probably the top team in our division. Ton of respect for them but we’re ready.”

What will the Mammoth focus on to counteract those threats?

“The goal is to arrive at the first game of the season and not have to think and be able to play with the pace,” Tourigny explained. “We need to have a lot of pace, be above them, and be physical with them, cutting their time and space. Defensively and obviously offensively, we’ll need to play really, really fast.”

Debut in Primetime

Defenseman Dmitri Simashev will make his NHL debut tonight against Colorado. The blueliner discussed it following morning skate:

“You only have that one first game in the NHL, so I just want to enjoy the moment, play my game. Of course, I want to prove (myself) because it’s a good opening (game), Colorado is a great team. I want to just play my game, play in (the) d-zone, don’t (let Nathan) MacKinnon score on my shift. Just be myself.”

Simashev has a core of veteran defensemen who will be there to support him, like two-time Stanley Cup Champion Ian Cole.

"I think as teammates, we just try to help each other out," Cole explained. "He's going to be excited and anxious and nervous, and all these things. We think he's a good player and just try to help him be at his best however we can do that. I want to be that support system to lean on, whether it's trying to help with plays on the ice, or help emotionally, or help with anxiety, all those things. As teammates we try to help out where we can."

THE PREVIEW

Thursday’s Matchup:

• Utah is playing its first game of the season while Thursday is Colorado’s second of the year. Thursday’s game is the Avalanche’s Home Opener.
• The Mammoth start their season in Colorado and will continue on to Nashville and Chicago before returning home. Utah’s Home Opener is Oct. 15 against the Calgary Flames. Learn more here!
• In Colorado’s first game against the LA, the Avalanche beat the Kings, 4-1. Martin Necas scored twice in the win while Sam Malinski and Artturi Lehkonen each scored once. Goaltender Scott Wedgewood stopped 24 of the 25 shots he faced.

By the Numbers:

• Utah has improved by seven or more points under head coach André Tourigny each year. He is also one of three coaches in the league’s history to have improved seven or more points in each of their first four seasons as an NHL head coach. John Tortorella (TBL) and Martin St. Louis (MTL) also achieved this feat (per Utah PR). Here’s Tourigny’s record through his first four seasons:

1.  2021-22: 25-50-7, 57 points

2.  2022-23: 28-40-14, 70 points

3.  2023-24: 36-41-5, 77 points

4.  2024-25: 38-31-13, 89 points

• Last year, the Mammoth had three forwards, 26 or younger, that contributed 60 or more points in Logan Cooley, Clayton Keller, and Dylan Guenther. This tied two other teams (New Jersey, St. Louis) for most in the NHL. After trading for JJ Peterka, the Mammoth now have four players who meet this criteria (per Utah PR).

• Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon became Colorado’s all-time points leader with his 1,016th NHL point. He passed Joe Sakic for the Avalanche record; however, Sakic remains the franchise leader with 1,641 points.

Facing the Avs:

• This is the first of four games against Colorado this season with two at Delta Center and two on the road in Denver.
• The Mammoth and Avalanche played split squad games to kick off Utah’s preseason this year. Colorado won both games, a full recap is available here.

Upcoming Schedule:

• Oct 9: UTA at COL
• Oct 21: UTA vs COL
• Dec 23: UTA at COL
• Feb 25: UTA vs COL