The Utah Mammoth locked up a core piece of their blue line, signing John Marino to an eight-year extension with an average annual value of $6.75 million, the team announced Tuesday.
Marino, 29, was set to become an unrestricted free agent next offseason. His extension begins in 2027-28.
While he's better known for his defensive game than his offensive ability, Marino produced a career-high 36 points in 80 games last season. He tied for fifth in the NHL with a plus-42 rating.
John Marino, extended 8x$6.8M by UTA, is a two-way top four puck-moving defenceman who plays a stabilizing but not physical defensive game with good stickwork and the ability to turn 50/50 pucks into clean exits. An underrated break-out passer with great awareness. pic.twitter.com/684hrGuYlM
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) July 21, 2026
In 2025-26, Marino averaged over 20 minutes per game for the seventh consecutive season. He played for the Pittsburgh Penguins and New Jersey Devils before the Mammoth acquired him in a 2024 trade.
The Mammoth sent Sean Durzi to the New York Rangers in the Vincent Trocheck trade this offseason, solidifying Marino as their second-pair right-shot defenseman behind MacKenzie Weegar.
Marino will be Utah's second-highest paid defenseman behind Mikhail Sergachev ($8.5-million AAV) when his extension kicks in.
