Enthusiasm bubbles from ice rinks across the NHL at the opening of training camp, the hope of every team to raise the Stanley Cup next spring.
The Utah Mammoth kicked off their third training camp with a bit of extra juice.
Buoyed by a playoff appearance and their young core in tact, the Mammoth are eyeing a deeper run into the postseason this year.
“Each year we’ve gotten better," Mammoth captain Clayton Keller said. "We’ve had higher expectations for
our group and obviously we do this year as well. We know how good our team is, how much talent we have.”
The Mammoth set the talent foundation when the franchise was still in Arizona.
General manager Bill Armstrong rebuilt the roster by accruing a bevy of a draft picks that were used on talented young players who developed in their system. As those players matured, so did the Mammoth's standing in the NHL, culminating in last year's playoff run in the franchise's second season since moving to Utah.
Most of the core from that team is back after the Mammoth matched New Jersey’s offer sheet to restricted free agent Barrett Hayton, signing the 26-year-old center to a $4.775 million contract.
Utah also added a couple of key veterans, acquiring two-way center Vincent Trocheck in a trade with the New York Rangers and signing former Islanders captain Anders Lee to a three-year, $16.2 million contract.
The Mammoth's leadership group is on firm ground as well, with coach André Tourigny signing a multiyear contract during the offseason. Two-time Stanley Cup champion Adam Foote also joined the coaching staff.
“We’re still a pretty young team but there’s a lot of talent in our locker room and it’s time to show it up and just make another step," Mammoth goalie Karel Vejmelka said. "Obviously, we want to make the playoffs again and just be even better as a team. I think we’re ready to have a great run to the Stanley Cup final.”
The Mammoth have been built with sustained success in mind, not the occasional playoff appearance.
They have recent examples to pull from.
Pittsburgh underwent an overhaul and won the Stanley Cup three times with Sidney Crosby leading the way. The Chicago Blackhawks had similar success with a rebuild centered around Jonathan Toews, though now are in another overhaul with Conner Bedard as the focal point.
The Colorado Avalanche won the Stanley Cup in 2022 after a rebuild and the Tampa Bay Lightning tore it down to build it up again, winning the Cup in consecutive seasons from 2020-21.
The Mammoth don't have a singular star like Crosby, Toews or Colorado's Nathan MacKinnon, but had a talented core of young players that includes Keller, Hayton, Logan Cooley and Dylan Guenther.
The reconstructed roster took a first step with last year's playoff run, leaving the Mammoth wanting more.
“Our expectations inside the dressing room are to exceed what we did last year,” Mammoth defenseman MacKenzie Weegar said. “It was a great year, but I think that’s in the past.”
That past built what could be a better future in Utah.
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