as per the results of the poll, let's dive into our next willmack lore topic! oh, where to begin...
Who is Logan Cooley?
logan cooley was drafted 3rd overall by the arizona coyotes in 2022 but had a pretty lacklustre rookie year, especially in comparison to mack's breakout performance. he had periods of high-level playmaking followed by stretches where he struggled to produce.
early in the season, he played nearly 20 minutes a game, but his ice time dipped as the season progressed, with some games seeing him play fourth-line minutes, suggesting coaches were trying to manage his development or accountability.
with the suspenstion of the yotes in 2024, all team assests, including cooley, were transferred to the utah expansion team that would later become the utah mammoth where cooley plays as of 2025/26.
he also recently signed an 8 year extension with utah, marking his commitment to the team and consolidating his status as a franchise player.
he's from pittsburgh and actually got his start in hockey playing with sidney crosby's 'little penguins program'! he went on to play triple a with the junior pens. despite this, he says he grew up an ovi and caps fan.
cooley then went on to play for the usntdp, where in 2021/22 he played alongside our very own will smith! (plus all the usual suspects: leno, gabe, zeev, lane too).
he later made his senior national team debut for the usa at worlds 2025 alongside will, where he recorded four goals and eight assists in ten games, tied lead for the team in points, and helped team usa win their first gold medal since 1933!
let's not forget that at this same tournament, mack was playing for team canada, who lost unexpectantly to denmark in the semis, whilst cooley went on to win gold alongside mack’s boybestfriend...
Beginnings of a rivalry
the first instance (and probably origin) of mack's beef with logan cooley comes from a moment in the third period of a sharks-utah game in december 2024 where the game was tied 3-3. the game had been particularly physical, with mack getting boarded pretty hard by stendlund earlier on in the game. so when zetterlund got hit by simashev and eky got tied up with cooley, it led to lots of other sharks and utah players getting involved.
alternate crowd pov here! as we can see, mack ends up tied up with sergachev but cooley completely dips on the main scrum to go at it with mack lol. eventually they end up in their own tussle and mack ultimately ends up on top (both literally and figuratively) by the boards.
this was a big deal at the time because it was the first time mack had really gone for it with anyone! and both mack and cooley seemed pretty heated throughout their scrum... i think this photo perfectly encapsulates their feelings about one another lol
when interviewed after the game, mack said:
'I just kinda... I don't know what set it off. If any of my teammates are in a scrum, I'll go help. You can't leave them out to dry.'
'I just saw Eky kind of get jumped, so I stepped in.'
evidently mack didn't like the way cooley went in on eky which is why they probably ended up fighting each other away from the scrum.
Sharks v Utah saga continues
so, the 25/26 season rolls around and the sharks play utah in october. many of us were wondering if mack and logan would be beefing again and, well, lo and behold!
full gif set here! not only does mack drive cooley into the boards, he then also continues to hold him down against the ice (amazing), at which point cooley just starts grappling him down to the ice too and gets mack in a headlock (??) just like, this was truly insane.
the sharks and utah then meet again in december and everyone was much less surprised this time around when mack and logan started beefing at the net. logan gave mack one too many shoves and mack took exception to it, but their teammates and the refs get involved before it could develop into anything more (booo). full clip here! full gif set!
Playoff race
the rivalry between the sharks and utah has become much more scrappy as of late, espeically in the 2025/26 season, because both teams are competing for a western conference wildcard spot!! they're both in very similar places in terms of a rebuild too.
in this interview with army, mack actually names utah as the sharks’ biggest rivals. historically this would be the la kings, of course, but with the wildcard race and the added cooley beef for mack, ofc he said utah 🙃
this post also does a fabulous job explaining the similarities between these two and the lingering bitterness this might instil. essentially, boiling down to both mack and logan being two high draft picks with expectation bearing down on them, the two faces of their franchises, yet only mack seems to get any recognition for what he's doing from hockey fans and the league...
when discussing the rivalry, the sharks broadcast summed it up pretty perfectly here:
'I think both players play at such a high level. I think Macklin is the standard for all young NHL players.'
'I'm sorry, Logan Cooley is not Macklin Celebrini, and I think he knows that.'
... yeOUCH. yeah. if i'm logan cooley, i'd be pretty pissed off and riled up too.
Surveys
quite hilariously, in a survey by the athletic, active nhl players were asked which player they thought was the 'most punchable'. of course the usual names appeared, cousins, tkachuk, marchand, and oh- who's that with one singular vote, you say? mr. logan cooley? hmmm...
of course we immediately assumed this was mack's vote lol, but it would fit! no other player has had such continuous beef with cooley👀
logan cooley also more recently received one vote for 'worst chirper'! haha
In conclusion...
that brings us up to date with mack's beef with logan cooley for now!! i'm sure we will continue to see this rivalry flare up, especially as the sharks and utah continue to battle it out for a playoff spot!
https://www.youtube.com/@innaa.besedinaTELEGRAM: https://t.me/historyandphilosophy"AS SOCIAL BEINGS WE LIVE WITH OUR EYES UPON OUR REFLECTION, BUT HAVE NO AS...
"AS SOCIAL BEINGS WE LIVE WITH OUR EYES UPON OUR REFLECTION, BUT HAVE NO ASSURANCE OF THE TRANQUILLITY OF THE WATERS IN WHICH WE SEE IT."
CHARLES HORTON COOLEY
CHARLES HORTON COOLEY WAS AN AMERICAN SOCIOLOGIST, PROFESSOR OF ECONOMICS AND SOCIOLOGY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN, AND FOUNDING MEMBER OF THE AMERICAN SOCIOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION, KNOWN FOR HIS CONCEPT OF THE LOOKING GLASS SELF, WHICH IS THE CONCEPT THAT A PERSON'S SELF GROWS OUT OF SOCIETY'S INTERPERSONAL INTERACTIONS AND THE PERCEPTIONS OF OTHERS.
"AS SOCIAL BEINGS WE LIVE WITH OUR EYES UPON OUR REFLECTION, BUT HAVE NO ASSURANCE OF THE TRANQUILLITY OF THE WATERS IN WHICH WE SEE IT."CHARLES HORTON COOLE...
"AS SOCIAL BEINGS WE LIVE WITH OUR EYES UPON OUR REFLECTION, BUT HAVE NO ASSURANCE OF THE TRANQUILLITY OF THE WATERS IN WHICH WE SEE IT."
