- Tij Iginla says he is ready for the NHL and wants to make the Mammoth out of training camp
- GM Bill Armstrong says Iginla and Caleb Desnoyers can walk in and take a veteran’s job
- Read below for Iginla’s development camp hat trick and Utah’s crowded center depth
Tij Iginla did not need long to answer.
Asked at Utah’s development camp whether he believes he is ready to play in the NHL, the 19-year-old forward jumped in before the question was finished.
“Oh yeah, I do,” Iginla said. “I think I am ready. I’m looking forward to a big summer of training and pushing it hard in the gym and everything like that. But yeah, I feel ready.”
Caleb Desnoyers got the same question. His answer ran one word: “Yep.”
Watch Iginla make his case at the podium in Salt Lake City:
General manager Bill Armstrong is not treating it as kid talk. He told NHL.com that both first-rounders will hit training camp with a real opening in front of them.
“Those guys are going to come into camp excited because they know there’s a spot there and there’s opportunity for them,” Armstrong said. “I think for them, having a little bit of that opportunity is a great thing. You never know, one of those kids could have a huge impact.”
Iginla did more than talk about it. He scored a hat trick in the July 2 scrimmage that closed the week and walked off with MVP honors.
Take a look at the goal that finished it off, and the hats that stayed on:
The confidence traces back to a healthy year in Kelowna. Utah’s No. 6 pick in 2024 put up a WHL career-high 90 points (41 goals, 49 assists) in 48 games and made the CHL Second All-Star Team, his first full season after injuries chewed up chunks of his junior career.
Desnoyers has a case of his own. The Mammoth took him No. 4 in 2025, and he racked up 78 points (22 goals, 56 assists) in 45 games for Moncton of the QMJHL last season.
Armstrong brought up the World Junior Championship, where Desnoyers slid from center to wing without a word of complaint.
“They asked him to move to the wing, he moved to the wing and he was excellent,” Armstrong said. “He’s the type of kid with his hockey sense and his skill and ability, he can play with really smart players.”
The catch is the depth chart. Utah added Anders Lee and Vincent Trocheck on July 1 and kept Barrett Hayton a week later, which leaves eight players for four center spots on a roster Nate Schmidt already sees as a contender.
Armstrong called the traffic jam the whole point.
“We talked about coming in and taking someone’s job. You’ve got to come back with a little bit of snarl,” Armstrong said. “Caleb and Tij have the ability to come in and make our team. When you have somebody that comes in and pushes to make your team, you can always make openings for that player.”
It has been a loud month for the family. Tij’s brother Joe went 65th overall to the Flames in June, and his sister Jade landed with PWHL expansion Hamilton at No. 18.
Camp opens in September. Iginla was blunt about what he wants out of it.
“My goal is definitely to make the team,” he said.
