The Utah Mammoth will play their Rookie Faceoff games in San Jose this weekend without any of their recent first-round picks.
Ethan Belchetz, whom they selected No. 17 in June, would risk losing his NCAA eligibility, so he won’t be there. The Mammoth traded 2024 No. 24 pick Cole Beaudoin to the New York Rangers this summer, and both 2024 No. 6 pick Tij Iginla and 2025 No. 4 pick Caleb Desnoyers are out with injuries.
“They’ve got some nagging day-to-day injuries that will push them out, so they’ll both miss,” said Mammoth GM Bill Armstrong at a media availability Friday afternoon. “They’ll be available at some point during main camp, but it’s day-to-day right now.”
Desnoyers’ injury, Armstrong said, is related to the one he suffered in the final minutes of the World Junior Summer Showcase on Aug. 1, when Nashville Predators prospect Wyatt Cullen took his legs out from behind (seemingly inadvertently).
Iginla and Desnoyers both missed significant amounts of time due to injury in their respective “draft plus one” seasons.
Iginla underwent a pair of arthroscopic surgeries to treat femoroacetabular impingement — an abnormal growth of bone on the hip. It is a relatively common procedure among hockey players and virtually everyone who has had it has not experienced issues after healing.
Desnoyers suffered injuries to both wrists shortly before being drafted. He had surgery in August 2025 and missed minimal time after recovering. His injury this summer did not appear to be wrist-related — he was favoring his left leg as he skated off the ice.
Both players are expected to make their pro hockey debuts this season, whether for the Mammoth or their AHL affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners.
Mammoth rookie camp runs from Friday to Tuesday, beginning with an on-ice practice session and followed by three games against other teams’ top prospects in San Jose. Iginla and Desnoyers will participate in the off-ice elements of the camp.
