NHL camp is right around the corner for the Utah Mammoth. The rookie camp opened yesterday, with two games being played this weekend. The anticipation of the season, which has been building all summer, is coming to a head, and the players will be hitting the ice shortly, with the first pre-season game just 11 days away. The new players will be the star attraction as they don the latest gear.
As the Mammoth enter their second season, the excitement is around the new additions of JJ Peterka, Brandon Tanev, Nate Schmidt, and Vitek Vanecek. Of course, Peterka was the big splash made by Bill Armstrong before the draft. Despite many rumors surrounding the club, that was the biggest move of the weekend and the entire offseason.
As the fans get a first look at the new Mammoth logos on the ice and in action, they will also get to see the new number arrangements. The numbers 9 and 92 jerseys will be all around the arena, but what numbers are the new additions wearing?
The new goaltender in the room is Vanecek, fresh off a Stanley Cup with the Florida Panthers. The veteran goalie will wear number 41, which he has worn for four other teams in his 6-year career.
The most popular signing, despite being a depth player, is Tanev after dominating NHL social media with his “shocked” face for team photographs. Still, Tanev is a very reliable and feisty forward who will be very important to Utah this season. Tanev will wear the number 13 for the fourth time in his career. Last year, after being traded from Seattle to Winnipeg, Tanev chose the number 73. Before that, the 33-year-old wore the number 13 with Seattle, Pittsburgh, and back in Winnipeg to start his career in 2015.
The acquisition that put the Mammoth on the map was Peterka, and he will wear number 77. No surprise here, as Peterka wore this number in Buffalo for the last four years and in international competition.
Finally, another Stanley Cup-winning player, Schmidt, comes to Utah and will wear the number 88. Like his fellow newcomers, Schmidt has worn the number 88 in every place he’s played in the NHL. It all began in Washington, then off to Las Vegas before having brief stints with Vancouver, Winnipeg, and Florida.
Although none of the players went out of the norm for their jersey number selection, the numbers are all quite high and flashy. With no correlation to how they play on the ice, it will be interesting to see the new jersey numbers with the new jersey collection.