August 20th: Goaltender Connor Ingram has been cleared by the NHLPA to return to the NHL per Belle Fraser of the Salt Lake Tribune. He will return to the Utah roster looking to earn the advantage back from Karel Vejmelka, who posted a 9-6-3 record and .889 save percentage in 18 games after Ingram stepped away. Both goaltenders have years of NHL experience behind them, and strong cases for manning Utah’s starting role next season.
March 9th: Utah goaltender Connor Ingram entered the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program today and will be out indefinitely, Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic reports. In a corresponding move, the club recalled netminder Jaxson Stauber from AHL Tucson earlier Sunday.
Ingram, now 27, missed most of the 2020-21 season after entering the program while a member of the Predators organization. He later told NHL.com’s Amalie Benjamin that he sought help after dealing with undiagnosed obsessive-compulsive disorder throughout his career. After moving to the Coyotes in the 2022 offseason, he emerged as their starter for the 2023-24 campaign and won the Masterton Trophy for the “player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey” after a 23-win, six-shutout campaign.
Now the No. 2 option to Karel Vejmelka in Utah, Ingram missed over a month with the team initially termed an upper-body injury earlier in the season. Upon his return, he informed reporters his mother had passed away and, understandably, took extended time off (via Belle Fraser of the Salt Lake Tribune).
In 22 starts for the Club this season, Ingram has a 9-8-4 record, .882 SV%, and a 3.27 GAA. The 25-year-old Stauber has done quite well when called upon to elevate from his minor-league starting role, posting a .925 SV% and 2.23 GAA in four appearances earlier this season.
All of us at Pro Hockey Rumors wish Ingram the best as he takes time away from the lineup. He’ll be eligible to return to play upon the determination of program administrators.
That stinks. Seemed like he had his issues behind him.
not many pucks behind him with those 6 shutouts last season though, hopefully he recovers from his issues and gets back to form, he was essentially a steal from Nashville
The current solar cycle is contributing to the increased mental health imbalances felt by those who’ve previously had challenges finding balance and/or peace of mind. Healing vibes to those out there struggling.
That is one of the stupidest things I ever read.
It’s also one of the least empathetic things one could say in this situation.
It’s always scary when a player gets injured. Not just for the impact on their bodies and potentially their careers, but for the opioids prescribed by quack doctors and the amount of time left stewing in your own head.
Doesn’t even have to be quack doctors. I haven’t been an athlete in 25 years, am a senior citizen now, and with various health woes and a number of medications, one thing really strikes out at me: a lot of the times, the doctors are just GUESSING. Guessing what’s actually wrong, guessing what cocktail of medications will help, guessing dosage, and working with shibboleths of one-body-fits-all. (Take 98.6, for instance. That’s BS. MY standard body temp runs 97 even, always has.)
I take medication for what is ostensibly ADHD symptoms, although they were originally prescribed for anxiety and depression. One is a stop-smoking medication and one is a low-dose SSRI. Either of the two alone makes my symptoms worse, but the two in combination completely balances me out. It will likely be a lifelong med combination.
But getting there took 20 years of essentially experimentation, with doctors prescribing everything from Ritalin to Prozak, including Dexedrine, a now-banned amphetamine that is damned close to the street drug “speed”.
The reality is, doctors really are throwing darts at a board. Simple as. It’s really important to not only self-analyze, but to have an external observer, and be prepared to keep dropping and trying medications.
Where I take issue is the readiness to prescribe extremely dangerous, habit-forming medications for reasons that often don’t justify the risk. A guy I used to work with was prescribed oxycontin for a very minor muscle strain, something that probably could have healed with bed rest and physio, and wound up addicted. There’s experimenting with medications to see what works, and then there’s taking the nuclear option and destroying someone’s life without any real justification for doing so.
Ingram has posted on social media that this is entirely about his mental health following the loss of his mother due to breast cancer. Taking time away as he doesn’t feel like himself and wants to try and get right.
Let’s not add fuel to the speculative fire that this is a drug abuse issue (albeit valid points regarding the over reliance upon opioids for treatment)
Good to hear! Wish him the best.
As a fellow OCDer I can totally relate to what Ingram went through / is going through. People trivialize it and say things like “oh, I’m a little OCD about ___”, but it can completely derail your career and life if untreated.