On Wednesday, August 20th, the NHL and NHLPA announced that Utah Mammoth goaltender Connor Ingram has been cleared by the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program and can return to the NHL this season. Ingram will return to the Mammoth for the first time since entering the Player Assistance Program in March.
Although Ingram’s return is great news for him and the Mammoth, it creates an even bigger question mark surrounding the team’s goaltending situation for the 2025-26 season. The Mammoth now have five goaltenders with NHL experience signed for this season. Ingram’s main competition will come from Karel Vejmelka and Vitek Vanecek. Both goaltenders were prepared to share the workload this season without Ingram. As for Jaxson Stauber and Matt Villalta, they will likely be back in the AHL with the Tucson Roadrunners.
After playing well in Ingram’s absence last season, Vejmelka will be the odds-on favorite to be the Mammoth’s starting goaltender on opening night. After registering 26 wins for the Mammoth last season, Vejmelka signed a five-year contract extension with an annual salary cap hit of $4.75 million. Mammoth’s GM, Bill Armstrong, could keep all three of Ingram, Vejmelka, and Vanecek on the main roster for a total of $8.2 million. He has the cap space to do it, so it’s an option he could choose to take.
Utah Mammoth Have a Decent Trio in Net
Although Vaněček is coming to the Mammoth after winning the Stanley Cup with the Florida Panthers, it’s important to point out that he didn’t appear in a single playoff game. He was only brought in to be the backup to Vejmelka because the Mammoth weren’t sure when Ingram would be returning. With Ingram back in the mix, things just got much tougher for Vanecek. The trio will hopefully bring out the best in each other with healthy competition in training camp.
It’s expected that the Mammoth will give Ingram plenty of playing time during pre-season to help get him back up to speed, since he hasn’t played an NHL game since February 22nd. However, all signs point to Vejmelka being the Mammoth’s number one guy.
