Offer Sheet Candidate Emerging from Utah Mammoth

When it comes to potential offer sheets this summer, plenty of attention has been given to the obvious candidates, like JJ Peterka of the Buffalo Sabres, the Minnesota Wild's Marco Rossi, and K'Andre Miller of the NY Rangers, among them.

But the Utah Mammoth have been flying a little under the radar, with a sneaky good restricted free agent of their own who could be a dark horse candidate to receive an offer sheet.

25-year-old Jack McBain, the...uh...mammoth Mammoth center has had his name out there, per Elliotte Friedman on the 32 Thoughts podcast.

McBain's a center, and he's a bigger guy. He's 25 years old, a 6'4" center, and teams are always looking for those kinds of players. Big centers are hard to find. I think the Mammoth really like him, and I think they're trying to sign him. But that's an under-the-radar type that could get (an offer sheet.)

McBain just completed his third full season in the NHL, and for the second time, hovered around the 300-hit mark, finishing sixth in the NHL with 291 body shots delivered. He recorded 13 goals and 27 points in 82 games, both of those a career high by just a shade. He averaged 13:34 of ice time per night.

What will RFA Jack McBain's next contract look like & is an Offer Sheet forthcoming?

The former third-round pick (2018 NHL Draft) is coming off a two-year, $1.6 million AAV deal. AFP Analytics has McBain projected to earn a three-year deal worth just north of $3 million annually. He does have arbitration rights.

The Mammoth have just over $20 million in cap space, and Friedman says they're expected to be active this season, so we'll see if they need to wait on a McBain decision to get something else much bigger done, which could cost them an offer sheet coming in on their young, physical center.

"I heard that the Mammoth are discussing some stuff, that might not be considered 'small'... I think Utah's in the middle of a lot of things."