Maveric Lamoureux walked into the Utah Hockey Club locker room Thursday morning and saw his name etched into the lineup.
“I was in the room so I didn’t want to scream or be too happy,” Lamoureux said. “But a big smile.”
It was confirmed. The 20-year-old defenseman would make his NHL debut Thursday night against the Colorado Avalanche at the Delta Center. Utah Hockey Club ultimately lost the game 5-1.
While the thinned blueline is not ideal, it has opened opportunities for promising prospects like Lamoureux to prove they can contribute on the sport’s biggest stage. Lamoureux was recalled from the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners on Wednesday as Utah deals with injuries on its backend.
Utah’s defensive game as a whole was not up to par against the Avalanche as it allowed five goals against. Ross Colton, Cale Makar, Casey Mittelstadt and Ivan Ivan all scored for Colorado. Lawson Crouse broke the drought for the Hockey Club at 15:28 of the third period with the team’s first goal in two games. Lamoureux was on the ice for the back-handed tally.
Through 18:50 of ice time on the second pair with Ian Cole, Lamoureux logged a team-high three blocked shots and two hits as well as one shot.
“I really liked my game. I feel like it just went uphill as the game went on,” Lamoureux said. “Playing my first NHL game is always special. Even though we didn’t win, I’ll always remember that game, that’s for sure.”
Getting the call-up
(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Hockey Club defenseman Maveric Lamoureux (10) looks to shoot during the game between the Utah Hockey Club and the Colorado Avalanche at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024.
Lamoureux was about to go to bed at his apartment in Tucson on Tuesday night when David Ludwig — Utah’s assistant general manager — called him with the news of his call up. The Quebec native was on a flight from Arizona to Salt Lake at 6 a.m. the next day and joined the team for Wednesday’s practice at Utah’s Olympic Oval.
“Pretty crazy,” Lamoureux said. “Right after I got the call I called my parents, called my agent.” “Both my parents were sleeping. I told them, ‘Wake up, I’ve got to tell you something.’ They were just really happy.”
Lamoureux was unsure if his parents would be able to make it to his first NHL game because they were in Montreal. However, the Hockey Club had already secretly gotten them to Utah for the special moment.
“I had no idea. That was a big surprise,” Lamoureux said. “After morning skate they were in the Ryan Smith suite and they just waited for me there. They landed last night and I had no idea. I was really happy to see them.”
The defenseman played four games with the Roadrunners before his promotion. Lamoureux posted three points (two goals, one assist) and eight shots in that time. It is Lamoureux’s first season in the AHL after playing for the Drummondville Voltigeurs in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) for the past four seasons. In 2023-24, Lamoureux had 33 points (nine goals, 24 assists) through 39 games.
But the pros are a different story.
“Practice is more intense. There’s no margin for error now,” Lamoureux said. “You’ve got to do everything right. It’s way more on the task. You do your job and that’s it.”
(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Hockey Club left wing Matias Maccelli (63) scores as Colorado Avalanche goaltender Justus Annunen (60) defends during the game between the Utah Hockey Club and the Colorado Avalanche at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024.
Lamoureux’s call-up comes after negative injury news for defensemen Sean Durzi and John Marino. The team announced Wednesday that Durzi underwent surgery on his right shoulder and will be out for four to six months; Marino underwent surgery on his lower back and will be out for three to four months.
“They’re not here. They will be in rehab,” Tourigny said. “They will start the rehab normally before the guys get to the rink. When the guys arrive, they’re leaving. That’s why it’s extremely tough mentally to be in that situation; for them to recover from long injuries.”
That process is one Lamoureux is all too familiar with.
Journey through injury
Lamoureux has gone through two shoulder surgeries in the prime years of his development.
The first surgery came in his 2022 draft year — in which Lamoureux was selected 29th overall by the Arizona Coyotes. The second shoulder surgery was in March.
At a time in which young, top-ranked players are usually building their resumes in Juniors or NCAA hockey, Lamoureux was forced to commit himself to a grinding rehabilitation and miss chunks of his seasons with Drummondville. So he pivoted his focus.
“Through the process of the shoulder injuries, they’re injuries where he was able to get on the ice and do a lot of individual development,” said Kurtis Foster who was a development coach for the Coyotes. “Power skating and really working on areas of his game that could help him improve.”
Lamoureux also worked with strength trainer Stéphane Dubé at his facility 45 minutes north of Montreal to keep pace with his recovery. Dubé first started training with Lamoureux when he was 14 years old and helped craft a physical, mental and diet plan for the defenseman as he battled back from both surgeries.
“Going through two rehabs, he kept the same attitude,” Dubé said “He never let himself down. He was never like, ‘Why me? It’s not fair.’ He’s not that type of person.”
(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) Maveric Lamoureux practices with the Utah Hockey Club at the Olympic Oval in Kearns, on Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024.
The two emphasized Lamoureux’s work away from the ice after his shoulder surgery in March as he prepared for Utah rookie and training camp. Along with lower-body exercises, Lamoureux’s food consumption increased to prevent him from losing a significant amount of weight while not playing. That diet included at least four meals during the day and a shake at night.
“Sometimes I was going to throw up before going to bed, but I had to eat. Had to get bigger,” Lamoureux said. “I had to do all the work. A lot of rehab, a lot of workouts, a lot of practices. It’s not fun to go through that, but I’m happy my shoulder is 100% now.”
Lamoureux has dealt with more injury rehabilitation than a majority of players his age. Despite the hardship, the experience offered Lamoureux a unique perspective on the privilege of playing hockey and what it takes to be at your best.
“I’m glad that he had that type of adversity early on in his career because he knows that he can bounce back from adversity,” Dubé said.
Defensive unicorn
Dubé still remembers the first day he met Lamoureux.
“I saw this young, very tall kid coming into my facility,” Dubé said. “The first thing I noticed was, ‘OK, we’ve got an athlete.’”
Lamoureux’s 6-foot-6, 196-pound build is what NHL teams pay big bucks for to have on their blueline. What makes Lamoureux unique, though, is what he’s able to do with, and despite, his size. He’s fleet-footed, physical, moves the puck well and has a strong shot.
“He’s the only guy at 6-foot-6 that skates like 5-foot-10,” Dubé said. “When he left here for training camp, he was a beast.”
Lamoureux is somewhat of a friendly giant. What people note as much if not more than his abilities on the ice is his personality. You could see it during Wednesday’s practice; off of four hours of sleep, Lamoureux had jump, hustle and was all but jittering with excitement in the media scrum.
“He’s got a magnetism to him,” Foster said. “He’s just a kid that always has a smile on his face. Is very genuine and just a kid people like being around. … His character is second to none and I think that’s why everybody is excited to see him get this opportunity.”
(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Hockey Club defenseman Maveric Lamoureux (10) looks to shoot during the game between the Utah Hockey Club and the Colorado Avalanche at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024.
The opportunity has come earlier than most expected; Lamoureux and his village are embracing it. The youngster’s defensive partner Cole has been talking with him in practice and throughout the game. Lamoureux said he’s learned a lot from the veteran’s experience.
Lamoureux will have to continue to earn playing time and a spot in the lineup. But Thursday was the start of what could be a long career for Lamoureux in the NHL.
“I can see Mav being a very special player because you rarely see a guy that tall skating that well. He’s got a good stick, he’s fast for his size and on top of it he’s a great human being,” Dubé said.
“Being a good player sometimes isn’t enough. You have to be a good person, good teammate — that’s what Mav is.”
