The Utah Mammoth selected five players on the second day of the 2026 NHL Draft on Saturday.
About Adam Valentini:
- With their lone selection in the third round (96th overall), the Mammoth selected forward Adam Valentini from the University of Michigan (NCAA).
- The 5-foot-10, 185-pound forward recorded 11-16-27 and 46 penalty minutes (PIM) in 40 contests during his freshman season, helping the Wolverines win the Big Ten championship.
- He spent the 2024-25 season with the USHL’s Chicago Steel, tied for the team lead in scoring with 17-22-39 and 24 PIM in 58 games.
- Valentini was an alternate captain for Canada at the 2026 IIHF Under-18 World Championship, recording 3-2-5 and a +3 rating in five games.
- He also tallied 2-3-5 in five games while serving as an alternate captain at the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, helping Canada to a bronze medal.
- The Toronto, Ont. native won gold with Canada White at the 2024 Under-17 World Hockey Challenge, leading the tournament with 4-5-9 and four PIM in five games.
About Carl Axelsson:
- In the fourth round, Utah chose goaltender Carl Axelsson from Muskegon (USHL) with the 115th overall pick.
- Axelsson recorded a 28-14-1 record, 2.48 goals-against average (GAA), .916 save percentage (SV%), and two shutouts in 44 USHL games in 2025-26.
- The 6-foot-4, 183-pound goaltender spent the majority of the 2024-25 season with the Austin Bruins, earning a 14-4-1 record, 1.74 GAA, .937 SV% and six shutouts in 19 NAHL games.
- Axelsson also made four appearances for the USHL’s Sioux Falls Stampede in 2024-25, earning a 1-1-0 record, 4.95 GAA, and .837 SV%.
- The Danderyd, Sweden native represented his home country at the 2023 World Junior A Challenge, with a 1-0-0 record in five tournament appearances.
- The 19-year-old is committed to play college hockey at the University of Minnesota Duluth in 2026-27.
About Theodor Knights:
- With the first of two fifth-round picks (130th overall), Utah selected defenseman Theodor Knights from MoDo’s junior team in Sweden.
- The 6-foot-4, 207-pound defenseman played 24 junior league games with MoDo in 2025-26, posting two assists and 78 PIM. He also skated in three games for MoDo’s under-18 squad.
- A native of Stockholm, Sweden, Knights won a silver medal at the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup after tallying 0-1-1 and a +2 rating in five games.
- He also won bronze at the 2025 World Junior A Challenge, registering 0-1-1 and six PIM in five games.
About Florent Houle:
- The Mammoth used the 147th pick in the fifth round to select forward Florent Houle from the QMJHL’s Sherbrooke Phoenix.
- The 6-foot, 192-pound forward recorded 19-22-41 and 93 PIM in 52 games with Sherbrooke, finishing second on the team in goals and fourth in points.
- Houle added 5-1-6 and 24 PIM in seven postseason contests in 2026, netting two more playoff goals than any other Phoenix skater.
- The Québec, Que. native has totaled 30-45-75 and 167 PIM in 113 QMJHL games over two seasons with Sherbrooke and added 5-3-8 and 47 PIM in 15 career playoff contests.
About Artem Prima:
- With its final selection today (211th overall), Utah drafted forward Artem Prima from the Omaha Lancers (USHL).
- Prima recorded 6-8-14 and eight PIM in 17 games with Omaha in 2025-26.
- The 6-foot-1, 176-pound forward also played 28 NAHL games with the Minot Minotauros, tallying 8-18-26 and six PIM, ranking seventh in scoring among team skaters.
- A native of Yekaterinburg, Russia, he spent part of the 2024-25 season with AKM Novomoskovsk’s organization, including nine games in the MHL.
