Among the swarms of notable AHL alumni are reigning Vezina Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck (Winnipeg), reigning Art Ross Trophy winner Nikita Kucherov (Tampa Bay), and 100-point scorers David Pastrnak (Boston), Leon Draisaitl (Edmonton), and Mikko Rantanen (Colorado).
Utah’s prospect cupboards are well stocked after several pick-heavy drafts from the Arizona Coyotes. An August article from Steven Ellis of the Daily Faceoff ranked Utah’s prospect pipeline 10th out of 32 NHL teams. That means that scores of young NHL hopefuls will be spending time ripening with Utah’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners, before they reach the big club (see list below).
When it comes to Armstrong’s philosophy, patience with these prospects is key, even if it means leaving them in the development oven a little extra to brown the edges.
“It comes down to developing, and it takes time to develop players,” said Armstrong. “If you’re only playing 10 minutes in the NHL, you’re better off being in the AHL where you’re seeing all different types of situations, but most importantly, you’re accumulating minutes and reps on your body. That’s a big thing for us.”
Tourigny has seen plenty of young players get overwhelmed at the NHL level, and to play for Touringy, you need to be able to anticipate the next play.
“Sometimes things happen a little bit too fast for some players,” said Touringy. “It’s not that they can’t see it, but their reaction time is not there yet. We often use the language, ‘the game has not slowed down for him yet’. At some point, the game slows down and you can play one play ahead and see what the next play will be, not necessarily what’s happening now.”
Tourigny wants the club’s prospects to arrive at the NHL level expecting to win.
“Winning is a habit, and losing is as well,” said Tourigny. “When you win all the time, you expect to win. You want to have that culture of winning all the time at every level, and we want that in our organization.”
Most players on Utah’s roster have ripened in the AHL at some point in their career. Liam O’Brien spent seven seasons primarily in hockey’s top development league before becoming a full-time NHL player in 2021-22 with Arizona.
“I definitely needed that time [in the AHL],” said O’Brien. “I don’t think it hurts anyone to go play down there. I don’t think it should be looked at as a punishment or anything like that. It’s part of development, and it’s a great league, and there’s great coaches and great people down there.”
Veteran defenseman Robert Bortuzzo spent four full seasons in the AHL with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins before becoming a full-time NHLer in 2013-14 with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Another veteran blueliner Ian Cole has played in parts of 15 NHL seasons, but he started out playing parts of four campaigns with the AHL’s Peoria Rivemen before he was an NHL staple. Barrett Hayton, Utah’s top line center and a former fifth overall pick, bounced back and forth between the NHL and Tucson for three seasons.
Calling the AHL ‘the minors’ perhaps doesn’t do the league justice.
“It’s one of the best leagues in the world, it’s a hard league,” said Armstrong. “I spent a majority of my career there as a player and as a coach. I value that league and that organization and what it can do for us.”
Tourigny tells a story of how he used to educate his junior players on the level of play in the AHL.
“When I was coaching junior, I would do this exercise every year: I would take all the junior players who were 19 and 20 years old the year before and show the points they had [in the AHL] before Christmas. I was showing that to our players who were 19 and 20 years old, and I would say, ‘That guy had 120 points in junior, and now this year has one goal and two assists in the AHL after 32 games.’”
The AHL is one of the best and toughest proving grounds for Utah’s prospects, and it’s where many future NHL stars will mold their futures. There’s no time for ‘development’ once reaching the NHL, that’s where winning takes precedence, and that’s why the American Hockey League and the Tucson Roadrunners play a vital role in preparing the next wave of the Utah Hockey Club.
MEET THE TUCSON ROADRUNNERS
- Colors: Brick red, desert sand
- Arena: Tucson Convention Center (capacity: 6,791)
- Head Coach: Steve Potvin (4th season as head coach)
- Leading Scorer: Andrew Agozzino - 23 points (9G, 14A)
- Record: 17-12-1 (6th out of 10 in Pacific Division)
NHL teams can have up to 50 contracts on the books, and many of these contracts are held by players in the AHL. There are 21 NHL-contracted players that have appeared for Tucson this season, and 10 of them are recent draft picks that belong to Utah.
General manager Bill Armstrong has worked hard to ensure that Utah is competitive in its inaugural season, with moves to acquire the likes of Mikhail Sergachev, John Marino, Ian Cole, and others. Armstrong also works in conjunction with John Ferguson, Assistant General Manager of the Utah Hockey Club and General Manager of the Tucson Roadrunners, to ensure that Utah’s AHL affiliate has a competitive roster filled with positive role models.
“John Fergeson always does a great job at building teams down there along with our development staff and our coaching staff led by Steve Potvin,” said Armstrong. “It’s also the good older AHL veterans that we signed down there that are leading our young kids the right way not only on the ice but off it as well.”
Potvin is in his fourth season as head coach in Tucson and his seventh season with the organization. He has helped fuel the development of several noteworthy NHL players including Lawson Crouse, Matias Maccelli, Barrett Hayton, Michael Carcone, Conor Garland, Michael Bunting, and Dylan Strome.
DRAFT PICKS IN TUCSON: The Arizona Coyotes have made 42 draft selections over the last four years, more than any other NHL team, and those picks now belong to Utah. Most of those selections are still in college or junior hockey, but 11 of those picks are on NHL contracts and have played in Tucson this season.
- Noel Nordh (LW) - 3rd round, 2023 draft
- Maveric Lamoureux (D) - 1st round, 2022 draft
- Artem Duda (D) - 2nd round, 2022 draft
- Julian Lutz (LW) - 2nd round, 2022 draft
- Miko Matikka (RW) - 3rd round, 2022 draft
- Max Szuber (D) - 6th round, 2022 draft
- Josh Doan (RW) - 2nd round, 2021 draft
- Sam Lipkin (LW) - 7th round, 2021 draft
- Ben McCartney (LW) - 7th round, 2020 draft
- Aky Raty (RW) - 5th round, 2019 draft
CALLED UP: Utah has called up two players from Tucson this season that have appeared in NHL games: defenseman Maveric Lamoureux and goaltender Jaxson Stauber.
Lamoureux, 20, posted three points (2G, 1A) in four AHL games and recorded three points (1G, 2A) and 43 penalty minutes in 15 games with Utah before the former first-round pick was placed on IR.
