The Lines
During Wednesday’s media day, head coach André Tourigny shared they would be mixing around lines and d-pairings to see what could work, especially with the depth this team has.
On Thursday, Tourigny shared some updates on lines. As they continue to mix up lines throughout practices, Tourigny shared some pairs will likely remain including Nick Schmaltz and Clayton Keller, Dylan Guenther and Logan Cooley, and Jack McBain and Barrett Hayton.
New Mammoth forward Vincent Trocheck will practice at center and on the wing. He’s one of the players that adds significant depth to this roster with his ability to shift between the two. Tourigny shared that Trocheck will start at center and then move to wing for the third day of practices.
The depth at this year’s training camp, at all positions, is something that President of Hockey Operations Chris Armstrong, General Manager Bill Armstrong, and Tourigny have all discussed.
The First One
Thursday’s practice was fast and physical as players were eager to get back to work after the offseason.
“It was great,” Nate Schmidt smiled. “It was fun to just feel the energy of being back on the ice for real … I kind of love the first day. You kind of feel like you went through it together and you got through it … guys talking around the room right now, just about how to prepare for tomorrow but also having little jabs about today.”
“It was fast out there,” Kailer Yamamoto said. “There’s a lot of guys, everyone was dialed in. It was a great practice and (I’m) looking forward to tomorrow.”
For about half of Group A’s Thursday practice, the Mammoth focused on breakouts. Tourigny explained what Utah is looking to improve on.
“We want to generate a lot of speed off our breakouts,” Tourigny explained. “First in the breakout, you need to get out. It doesn’t have to always be pretty; it has to get out. But then if there’s ways where we can break out with the puck, with speed, creating speed underneath and stuff, that’s the goal. But we cannot lose sight of first, the puck has to get out.”
Tourigny also shared that breakouts are probably the area of the Mammoth’s systems that will change the most.
Ready to Impress
Former first round draft picks Tij Iginla (2024) and Caleb Desnoyers (2025) have come to training camp ready to impress. Both had big seasons for their respective junior teams and are ready to show how they’ve improved. Iginla and Desnoyers are determined to make the NHL, sooner than later, and that starts with a strong training camp.
“Just get better,” Desnoyers said of his goals this season. “It’s always been my mentality. Even though it’s starting to be the best leagues and not really developing anymore, my main goal is to always get better. We’ll see where I play.”
“Want to go put my best foot forward and show that I’m ready to play at the highest levels. (It’s) obviously the goal,” Iginla said of his goals for training camp. “Try to show off my speed, my shot. I feel like I improved strength over the summer, things like that. (Just) try to go do that.”
What’s Next
Friday is the second of three straight practice days. Full coverage remains on the Utah Mammoth’s social media channels and UtahMammoth.com.
