In the opinion of the Utah Mammoth front office — and most people in the hockey world, for that matter — players who have championship experience before they get to the NHL are in a better position to succeed.
This week, two Mammoth prospects have the opportunity to win on arguably the biggest pre-NHL stage there is: the Memorial Cup.
The Memorial Cup is an annual tournament between the champions of the three leagues under the Canadian Hockey League umbrella, with the host team taking the fourth spot. Because it takes so many games to capture it, many argue it’s the hardest trophy in hockey to win — the Stanley Cup included.
Here’s a rundown of Utah’s players who have a crack at it this year.
Tij Iginla, Kelowna Rockets
- Drafted: 1st round, 6th overall, 2024
- Position: center/left wing
- Age: 19
- Height: 6 ft.
- Wfootght: 182 pounds
- 2025-26 production: 48 games played, 41 goals, 90 points
As the first player ever drafted by Utah, expectations of Iginla have been high from the beginning. His first post-draft season was cut short due to a necessary surgical procedure on both hips, but he didn’t skip a beat upon returning this year.
The 19-year-old scored the second-most points per game of any CHL player this year. His shot is comparable to that of Dylan Guenther — that is to say it’s among the best in the world — and he has terrorized goaltenders with it all year long.
Mammoth GM Bill Armstrong famously told Iginla after the draft that the team had enough 20-goal scorers, and he needed Iginla to score 50. Guenther will probably beat him to the punch, but it’s not unlikely that Iginla accomplishes it, too.
Iginla’s Kelowna Rockets are the host team. They got knocked out of the Western Hockey League playoffs in the second round at the hands of the eventual-champion Everett Silvertips. They’ll now have the opportunity for revenge.
Being from the Kelowna area, Iginla has the opportunity to lead his hometown team to a championship on home soil. The Rockets have won the Memorial Cup once before, in 2004, and it was also on home ice.
That roster was likewise headlined by local kids: Josh Gorges and Shea Weber. Both went on to have long NHL careers, and Weber ended up as a first-ballot Hockey Hall of Famer.
Tomas Lavoie, Chicoutimi Saguenéens
- Drafted: 3rd round, 89th overall, 2024
- Position: defense
- Age: 20
- Height: 6-foot-4
- Weight: 215 pounds
- 2025-26 production: 48 games played, 41 goals, 90 points
Ironically, Mammoth Nation was largely cheering for Lavoie’s Chicoutimi Saguenéens to lose in the Québec-Maritimes Junior Hockey League. Nothing against Lavoie, but the opposing Moncton Wildcats team featured Utah prospects Caleb Desnoyers and Gabe Smith.
Lavoie’s name might not carry the notoriety of a top-five pick, but he’s an exciting prospect in his own rite.
The Saguenéens topped the Wildcats in six games to capture the Gilles-Courteau Trophy Sunday.
We use the official NHL website for players’ bio information, which lists Lavoie at a whopping 215 pounds, but the Saguenéens’ site has him listed at 230. By both accounts, he’s 6-foot-4.
Big players have advantages in puck battles, they cover more space when defending rushes and they’re capable of hitting harder than smaller guys. As one of the bigger players in the league, Lavoie has all of those advantages.
Lavoie was the fourth-highest-scoring defenseman on his team in the QMJHL playoffs, but he was still better than half a point per game from the blue line.
