Tij Iginla #77 of the Utah Mammoth skates with the puck ahead of Braeden Bowman #42 of the Vegas Golden Knights in the first period of their preseason game at T-Mobile Arena on September 24, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
(Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY – As the Utah Mammoth swiftly approach the 2026-27 NHL season, the team made another round of roster cuts on Friday morning.
Required to submit a 23-man opening day roster by 3 p.m. MT on September 28, the Mammoth were forced to reassign the likes of Tij Iginla and Caleb Desnoyers amongst other prospects to the AHL while placing skaters like Brandon Tanev on waivers.
The Utah Mammoth have assigned the following players to the Tucson Roadrunners.
Forwards
Yegor Borikov
Caleb Desnoyers
Tij Iginla
Gabe SmithGoaltender
Michael HrabalForwards Brandon Tanev and Joshua Roy and defenseman Zac Jones have been placed on Waivers for the purpose of…
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) September 25, 2026
Amidst the most competitive training camp that Bill Armstrong has overseen during his tenure with the Utah Mammoth/Arizona Coyotes, some difficult decisions had to be made in regard to several of Utah’s brightest young prospects.
Despite a solid offseason and a deep desire to finally crack an opening day NHL roster, players such as Iginla, Desnoyers, Yegor Borikov, Gabe Smith and Michael Hrabal will begin their 2026-27 campaigns in the American Hockey League with the Tucson Roadrunners.
Additionally, the Mammoth also placed Brandon Tanev, Joshua Roy and Zac Jones on waivers with the purpose of being reassigned to Tucson.
Anticipating those three clear waivers, they’ll join the prospects on the Roadrunners.
To preface, Iginla and Desnoyers being reassigned to Tucson isn’t a bad thing, nor does it mean that anything is wrong with them.
They are both remarkably talented young players and their time in a Mammoth sweater will come.
However, the moment that Utah acquired Vincent Trocheck and Anders Lee this offseason, things changed.
Opportunities to make the 2026-27 opening day roster for those two became increasingly difficult as Utah got older, deeper and more experienced in their top six.
It was always going to be an uphill battle, which in the grand scheme of things is a huge positive.
Utah isn’t the league punching bag anymore.
They are bigger, stronger, faster, and swiftly transitioning their focus towards winning which means it’s going to be more difficult for young prospects to claim a roster spot.
But that doesn’t mean Iginla and Desnoyers won’t get an opportunity.
Injuries are inevitable and those two will likely be the first players called up if anyone inside the top six misses time.
So, don’t fret over 77 and 18 being cut.
This happens to highly touted prospects every single year.
Even Dylan Guenther, who scored 40 goals last season, was sent to the AHL early in his career.
Rather than moping around, he showed the front office that they’d made a mistake and forced his way onto the NHL roster.
Iginla and Desnoyers will have the opportunity to do the same.
While unfortunate, this one is pretty simple.
After signing a three-year, $2.5M AAV contract last summer, Brandon Tanev has struggled to find his game in Utah.
Through 56 regular season games in a Mammoth sweater, the veteran forward has yet to score a goal and only registered three assists.
Additionally, coupled with an underwhelming preseason performance, Tanev’s contract makes him more likely to clear waivers as NHL teams likely won’t be tempted to claim him given his lack of production.
The Utah Mammoth will wrap up the preseason on Saturday afternoon as they host the Colorado Avalanche at Delta Center at 3 p.m. MT.
The game will be available on SEG+.
All Mammoth games will also be broadcast live on the KSL Sports Zone (97.5 FM/1280 AM).
Cole Bagley is the Utah Mammoth insider for KSL Sports. Follow him on X. You can hear Cole break down the team on KSL Sports Zone and KSL 5 TV.
