Utah Mammoth’s 2025-26 Report Cards: Clayton Keller

The Utah Mammoth’s 2025-26 season is officially over. The team finished with a 43-33-6 record, good enough to clinch the first wild card spot in the Western Conference. Despite a strong series, the Mammoth lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in Round 1 in six games. Meanwhile, their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners, finished with a 34-28-10 record, placing seventh in the Pacific Division, outside of a playoff spot.

With the season in the books, it’s time to look at the 49 players under an NHL contract and grade their 2025-26 season. Over the course of this summer, we’ll take a look at their season, their future, and give them an overall grade. We’re going alphabetically by first name. Next up is Clayton Keller.

Player Info

Age: 27

2025-26 NHL Stats: 26 goals, 62 assists, 88 points in 82 games

2025-26 Postseason Stats: One goal, four assists, five points in six games

Originally Acquired: First-round pick (seventh overall) in 2016 by the Arizona Coyotes

Contract Status: In the sixth year of an eight-year deal with a $7.15 million annual average value (AAV). Unrestricted free agent (UFA) in 2028

Season Overview

Coming off a career-high 90-point season and winning gold with Team USA at the World Championship, the goal was simple for Keller. Help lead the Mammoth to their first playoff appearance. Keller had only experienced playoff hockey once, and that was during the 2019-20 season, a season where the Coyotes wouldn’t have made the playoffs if the NHL used the normal playoff format.

In only his second season as captain, and with no prior experience of playing those hard games down the stretch, it was easier said than done. It was a slow start to the season for Keller as well, as he produced only one point in his first four games.

However, that did not last for long. Keller produced four points in a game against the San Jose Sharks. It kicked off a stretch of four games where the forward put up 11 points. While Keller only had two points in his next seven games, the streakiness didn’t last for long as the calendar turned to November.

In November, Keller produced nine points in 16 games. However, the big story came at the end of the month. A couple of days before the Mammoth’s game against the Dallas Stars, his dad, Bryan, passed away unexpectedly in his sleep. Bryan had been a big part of Keller’s hockey career and obviously a part of his life. Despite the tragic loss, the Mammoth’s captain elected to play in the game against the Stars and in the following game in his hometown of St. Louis against the St. Louis Blues. It was a true showing of how much he cares for his team, but it was also a showing of how people who care about the forward came to support him.

“At times, I actually needed other people more than they needed me,” Keller said. “I needed my mom, my brother, my mental coach, my grandma. Those are people that I leaned on when the times were the toughest. Ultimately, that helps me become a stronger person, whether someone’s in a similar situation ever or whatever it may be, dealing with something else.”

Keller persevered through his loss. He produced 12 points in 14 games in December. At the start of January, after a four-point performance against the New York Islanders, he was named to Team USA’s Olympic squad, his first-ever Olympic nod. Keller followed that up with 14 points in his next 14 games to round out January, which also included an overtime winner against the Philadelphia Flyers.

KELLER COMPLETES THE COMEBACK FOR UTAH! 🦣

The Mammoth storm all the way back to win the game courtesy of Clayton Keller's Subway Canada OT winner! pic.twitter.com/0etscuOJ3v

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) January 22, 2026

In the two games in February before the Olympic break, Keller produced four points right before flying out to Milano Cortina. In the Olympics, he only played four games, producing zero points. However, Team USA went on to capture gold, giving Keller his second gold medal in a span of a year.

When the Mammoth’s captain returned to Salt Lake City, he played his best hockey of the season. On a line with Lawson Crouse and Nick Schmaltz, Keller produced 34 points in the final 25 games of the season. That included scoring a hat trick against the Vancouver Canucks, an overtime winner against the Edmonton Oilers, and ending the season on a 10-game point streak, one in which he produced 20 points.

Keller guided the Mammoth to a respectable 43-33-6 record in his second season as captain, clinching the first wild card spot in the Western Conference, fulfilling the team’s goal to make the playoffs. He was also nominated for the Bill Masterton Trophy after everything he had been through during the season. Keller finished the season with 88 points, once again leading the Mammoth in points. He also led the team in assists with 62, a personal career high for him.

Similar to the regular season, Keller had a slow start to the playoffs as he and the top line struggled in the first two games. Heading back to Utah with the series tied at one, the forward assisted on Dylan Guenther and Crouse’s goals to produce his first two points of the playoffs. In Game 4, Keller completed the Mammoth’s four-goal comeback by scoring his first goal of the postseason.

Despite the late comeback, the Golden Knights won Game 4 in overtime and proceeded to win the next two games to end the Mammoth’s season in six games. Keller ended the postseason tied for the team lead in points with five. He was tied for second place in assists with four.

For Keller, despite it being his ninth full season in the NHL, it was a season full of growth and learning. He took a lot of strides in leadership as a captain, learning how to lead through adversity and lean on his locker room, one filled with other big leaders and voices in the organization.

“I think I’ve definitely taken strides,” Keller said. “I obviously went through a lot this year, and there were times when I needed my teammates to really help me in that role, and they did. That speaks volumes about the type of players and people away from the rink that we have. It was a good step in the right direction in terms of leadership, and now I do everything I can to continue to get better.”

It’s not just on the ice during games and practices where Keller focused on improving as a player, leader, and person. Off the ice, he constantly tried to find things to improve on, whether it be right after games or the next morning. Even after having a 90-point season in the NHL and a 60-plus assist season this past year, Keller just wants to get better in any way possible to continue helping the Mammoth get better.

“Nobody’s harder on themselves than me,” Keller said. “I’m always breaking down things I did, nights after games, the next day, just trying to make sure that I’m doing everything I can to be a good leader and a good person. I’m also worried about my own game as well, and I think I’ve done a good job of balancing all that. You’re a captain for a reason, and it’s not like I changed who I am.”

The Future

We are now two seasons away from Keller being a free agent. While that’s still quite far away and it’s nothing to be concerned about, it’s more impressive to see where Keller was when he signed his eight-year contract and where he is now.

When Keller signed the contract ahead of the 2019-20 season, he was 21 years old, just two seasons removed from college on a rebuilding Coyotes team. Six seasons later, he’s had three 80-plus point seasons, a World Championship gold medalist, an Olympic gold medalist, has two postseason appearances under his belt, and is captain of the Mammoth. Maybe some saw all of that coming. Regardless, it’s an impressive six seasons that Keller has had.

Moving forward, the future is pretty simple for Keller. Continue producing at an 80-plus point rate and lead the Mammoth back to the playoffs, hopefully winning a round or two in the process. It was mentioned in last season’s report card that Keller hitting the 100-point mark wasn’t out of the question. While he had two fewer points this season, that mark should still be in conversation, especially if he’s back on a line with Schmaltz and Crouse next season.

Overall Grade

Olympic gold medal, 88 points, 62 assists, and a playoff appearance. All while dealing with a big loss in his personal life, which earned him a Bill Masterton nomination. It was an impressive season for Keller. One that tested him as a captain, player, and human being. Yet, with a strong willingness to help his team and a supportive group backing him, Keller thrived and continued to be one of the best players in the Western Conference, if not the NHL.

Overall, Keller is getting an A for his season. It was another standard season for him, leading the team in points once again. He helped fulfill the Mammoth’s goal of bringing postseason hockey to Utah and did so while playing more hockey than any other player on the team. It was another great season for Keller. There’s no better way to say it.

With no World Championship for him this summer, is Keller finally going to hit the 100-point mark? Even if he doesn’t, it’s expected to be another strong season for him, especially if the Mammoth end up reuniting the top line from this past season, one in which the forward played his best hockey down the stretch. 80-plus points and a playoff appearance are the standard now, one Keller can certainly achieve once again next season.