The Utah Mammoth have now played seven games this season. With the team a couple of weeks into the season, it’s allowed the newest players on the team to have now had the time to settle into their new home and explore it a little bit in their sparse free time.
Some players have gone out and enjoyed some usual activities with their families. Some of the younger players have adapted to life with some of the established players on the Mammoth. Some players haven’t even begun to explore what Salt Lake City has to offer. I caught up with Nate Schmidt, Dmitri Simashev, and Vítek Vaněček to see what they’ve been up to in the past couple of weeks in Utah.
Nate Schmidt Embracing Family Life in Utah
Inking a three-year contract with the Mammoth has allowed Schmidt to settle down with his family, which includes a new kid who was born over the summer. With his other kid, Harvey, being two and a half years old now, Schmidt has begun to take him to do extracurricular activities, which include jiu-jitsu.
To Harvey’s amusement, Schmidt isn’t as good at martial arts as he is at hockey. However, it was a fun experience for both father and son.
“The first 30 minutes were a little bit ugly,” Schmidt said. “After that, once I got taken down by one of the other student instructors, he wanted it all in. Then he was all excited. It was great.”
Related: What Do Visiting NHL Teams Think of Utah?
Outside of martial arts, Schmidt and his family have fully embraced the Utah family life. They’ve done the required trip to the mountains and have already filled their closet with flannels and other usual clothing you see around Utah.
“It’s been really fun,” Schmidt said. “My wife and my son are loving it. It’s been a nice transition. We’ve been up in the mountains and done the gondola rides. We’re fully embraced. I already got my hats and my plaid shirts ready to rock.”
It’s been an exciting couple of weeks for Schmidt, which started with his Mammoth debut against the Colorado Avalanche. He and his family’s enjoyment of their new life in Salt Lake City has only made it better.
Dmitri Simashev Enjoying Life With Mikhail Sergachev
When Simashev came over from the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), he moved into Mikhail Sergachev’s house, which drew a lot of attention because of the social media frenzy behind Sergachev’s other occupants in his house: his chickens.
Simashev says the chickens still haven’t warmed up to him yet, and they’ve been really loud, but they have produced a lot of eggs.
Other than tending to the chickens, Simashev has been trying his best to stay entertained with Sergachev, which has included a couple of interesting hobbies, including guitar.
“We just try to do something crazy,” Simashev said. “We tried to play guitar. We just tried to play with his son. We cleaned the chicken house yesterday. I think I’m good for him too, because I’ll have a laugh with him. It’s absolutely amazing. I enjoy every day with him.”
Sergachev has Simashev cleaning up after his chickens 😭 pic.twitter.com/y9KgPHBvjp
— Cap’n Cook 🦣 (@JazzePinkman) October 15, 2025
Simashev has had other hobbies too. As seen on social media, the defenseman is a big reader. He reads some English books to help him understand the language, but his favorites are the classic Russian ones.
“My favorite book is Anna Karenina (by Leo Tolstoy),” Simashev said. “It’s an amazing book you have to read. It’s a huge book, but it’s amazing. My second favorite is Night in Lisbon (by Erich Maria Remarque). It’s a book about love, but who doesn’t like love?”
Outside of reading, Simashev also likes playing chess and, of course, watching hockey.
It’s been a real family experience for the Russian defenseman at the Sergachev residence. The family usually has breakfast together. To his own admission, Simashev isn’t a great cook outside of knowing how to make eggs and toast. However, Sergachev and his wife usually cook for the family, which Simashev enjoys.
They also all do karaoke together. Simashev does have a favorite song. It’s a Russian one called “If You’re With Me” by Dominick Jocker.
Like Schmidt, Simashev has been enjoying the family vibe in Salt Lake City. He’s excited to show his family the mountains and the city when they come over.
“It’s really a family city,” Simashev said. “It’s really good weather. It’s beautiful. You wake up, and you see the mountains. In the future, I want to go downtown, visit some good restaurants. My family will be coming soon, and I want to show them the city.”
Despite Having Limited Free Time, Vítek Vaněček is Loving Utah
Like Schmidt, Vaněček has a young kid of his own. His son, Tobias, is only eight months old, so it’s harder for him to take him around places right now. Vaněček’s main highlight as of right now has been going to the grocery store as he adjusts to being a father.
However, that doesn’t mean Vaněček hasn’t been having fun. He’s been loving his new team and locker room.
“It’s a really fun locker room,” Vaněček said. “Now we just have to play good hockey, and then win more games, and then it’s gonna be even more fun.”
Vaněček is coming from the Florida Panthers, who, besides the Mammoth, have one of the newest practice facilities in the league. Their practice rink is right by the beach, which is hard to beat. However, Vaněček is extremely happy with the team’s new digs.
“It’s beautiful,” Vaněček said. “It’s huge, it’s new. I think they did a really good job. The gym is huge. I’m really happy with the locker room. We have everything that we need here.”
Despite being busy with hockey and family, Vaněček has loved his time in Salt Lake City thus far. Similar to what Simashev and Schmidt said, he believes it’s a great city for families.
Family is a big thing for Vaněček. He’s made that public with his recent Instagram post, which was a picture of his son watching his game from home. Utah has been a perfect place for him to continue raising Tobias despite having limited time.
“It’s great,” Vaněček said. “We have the mountains. The families are really happy. I think it’s really good.”
It sounds like, for the second straight season, new Mammoth players have loved Salt Lake City. Of course, they’re not going to say anything bad about their new home, but all three of Schmidt, Simashev, and Vaněček have seemed genuine about their love for Utah.
The Mammoth have been an attractive destination for players both young and old, with and without families. Players like Simashev get to play alongside great players and live in a peaceful city. Players like Schmidt and Vaněček get to raise their children in a kind and supportive community, which is one of the youngest in the United States.
All three players have settled into their homes and have had a good first couple of weeks in Salt Lake City. Sometimes it takes a while to do that in other cities. For players heading to Utah, it’s become an easy experience to move to and live in the newest NHL market.
