Mammoth Sign Michael Hrabal To Entry-Level Deal

The Mammoth announced they’ve signed goalie prospect Michael Hrabal to a three-year, entry-level deal that begins next season. He’ll immediately report to AHL Tucson on a tryout basis to finish the current campaign. Per PuckPedia, the contract carries a cap hit of $1.075MM and breaks down as follows:

Hrabal, 21, was a member of the Coyotes’ final draft class in 2023, going quite early in the second round at 38th overall. Now, he’s ticketed as Utah’s likely goalie of the future.

The Czech native towers at 6’7″ and 216 lbs, now slated for his pro debut after three largely standout seasons of college hockey at UMass. He was particularly exceptional as a junior this season, racking up a 1.95 GAA, .937 SV%, and four shutouts for a 19-9-1 record in 29 games. That earned him both First Team All-Star and Player of the Year honors in the Hockey East conference, but it wasn’t enough to get the offensively challenged club to a national tournament berth.

If he wasn’t the clear-cut top goaltending prospect in the organization before this season, he certainly is now. Daily Faceoff’s Steven Ellis ranked him #6 in the Mammoth’s deep prospect pool last summer, still touting him as having “true star goalie” potential.

While he won’t be eligible to suit up in the NHL this year, he will get an early chance down the stretch to challenge AHL veterans Jaxson Stauber and Matt Villalta for playing time in Tucson. Neither has been particularly inspiring this season with sub-.900 save percentages, so the path is wide open for Hrabal to establish himself as Utah’s clear-cut #3 goalie entering training camp in the fall, potentially even putting forth a challenge to replace pending unrestricted free agent Vítek Vaněček as Karel Vejmelka‘s backup.

Hrabal will be a restricted free agent when his deal is up in 2029, but he won’t be eligible for arbitration. Utah will be on the hook for a $1.114MM qualifying offer.