Utah’s Connor Ingram to receive care from NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program
The NHL and NHLPA announced on Sunday that Utah Hockey Club goaltender Connor Ingram will be unavailable to play for an indefinite period while receiving care from the player assistance program.
While there is no timeline for a return, he will be eligible to return to team activities when the program’s administrators clear him for on-ice competition.
Ingram last appeared in an NHL game for Utah on Feb. 22, making 21 saves on 25 shots in a 5-3 loss to the LA Kings. Since then, Karel Vejmelka has started each of Utah’s six games, including a back-to-back spell against the Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks.
The 27-year-old Ingram is in his fourth season since joining the Arizona Coyotes and Utah Hockey Club Organization. He made his first three NHL starts with the Nashville Predators.
A native of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Ingram has a 39-44-15 record and a .904 save percentage in 201 NHL games. This season, he has only played 22 games, posting a .882 save percentage and 3.27 goals-against-average.
Before an upper body injury against the Washington Capitals took him out on Feb. 9, Ingram previously missed game time after going home to be with his family in December after his mother’s passing.
“Earlier this season, I lost my mother to breast cancer. After trying to make a return to playing, I have come to realize that I am not myself,” Ingram wrote on X. “At this point in my life, I need to put my health first and take the proper time I need away to come back at 100%.”
Sunday marks the second time Ingram has enrolled in the player assistance program, having previously joined during the shortened 2021 season after being a member of Nashville’s practice squad.
In 2024, Ingram was the recipient of the NHL’s Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy for perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey after sharing his battle with an undiagnosed obsessive-compulsive disorder, which led him to drink as a way to cope with anxiety.
“Though many may view the program as a resource for substance abuse, I want to recognize all that they do. I am once again privileged to have access to their network of world-class health professionals to hopefully avoid long-term negative effects of putting your health second,” Ingram added.
“With the program’s assistance, I look forward to getting the medical help I need and returning to a happy and healthy life.”
I’ll be back. 🩵 pic.twitter.com/c5HTbRqFdx
— Connor Ingram (@CBIngram1) March 9, 2025Utah recalled goaltender Jaxson Stauber from AHL Tucson earlier Sunday with Ingram unavailable.
After 63 games, Utah sits fifth in the Western Conference Wild Card standings on 66 points, four points short of the Calgary Flames, who hold the final spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Their next game comes Monday night against the Toronto Maple Leafs.