Two days before the start of the Utah Mammoth’s 2025-2026 season, every NHL player was with their team preparing for the 82-game battle ahead. Kevin Rooney was at home fighting his own battle, trying to earn a professional contract in North America, hopefully in the NHL.
Rooney was no stranger to the competition. Over his career, he had played in 330 NHL games, tallying 60 points. He had one of his best seasons of his career after playing almost a full season with the Calgary Flames and scoring 10 points, the third best of his career.
However, after the season, Rooney did not receive a contract offer from the Flames. He had to find work in a league that had seemingly bypassed him.
It took Rooney almost six months to get another shot at becoming an NHL player. It took him a trip to Tucson for people to realize it, but the veteran forward isn’t ready to give up his professional hockey career just yet. With his recent call-up, he is ready to prove that he is still a valuable NHLer.
A contract earned through hard work
Rooney’s offseason wasn’t filled with vacations and relaxation. It was full of work.
He went to the gym every day. He was on the ice every day. It was all with a purpose in mind. To earn a contract and be back in the NHL in October.
“I’m lucky,” Rooney said. “My family and my environment at home were there for me. I tried to go to the gym every day and go to the rink with a goal: to get better, to prove people wrong and to prove to people that I can still play even though I’m a little older.”
Rooney’s hard work eventually turned into a professional tryout deal with the New Jersey Devils. It’s a team he knows. It was the first NHL team to give him a shot after his four seasons at Providence College. He ultimately played five seasons in the Devils organization before signing with the New York Rangers.
Related: Mammoth’s Michal Kunc is all in on his NHL dream with a move to Tucson
In the preseason, Rooney played in three games with the Devils and produced one assist. While it wasn’t anything groundbreaking, Rooney proved he can still keep up with others in the league despite the NHL getting younger.
“The NHL has changed quite a bit and there are a lot of younger guys,” Rooney said. “You only get a limited number of those veterans. I wanted to keep working hard and show that I can compete with young boys.”
The gamble with the Devils paid off. On the night before the start of the NHL season, the Mammoth and Rooney agreed a two-year contract for one year.
That same evening, Rooney was sent to the Tucson Roadrunners of the American Hockey League (AHL). General manager Bill Armstrong made it clear what he wanted to see when Rooney entered Tucson. He also had a message for the veteran: be prepared.
“He (Amrstrong) was very transparent, right when I signed, he called me and let me know what he expected from me,” Rooney said. “Come down and try to be a leader in the locker room. Play hard and good things will come. Injuries happen, so you just have to be ready for your opportunity.”
A short but productive time in Tucson
Despite being one of the newest players on the team, Rooney is no stranger to some players at Mammoth. In Providence, Rooney actually assisted on the NCAA championship-winning goal that Brandon Tanev scored. During his tenure at Providence, the two were effectively roommates.
Rooney is also training with John Marino in the summer. He made sure to do his research with those two and other league players on the teams in Salt Lake City and Tucson before signing with the Mammoth.
“I’ve spoken to guys from all over the league,” Rooney said. “I know a lot of guys who have played here in Tucson and played for the staff. I tried to do my due diligence there, but it was really up to me to come in and play hard, try to be a leader and help the team in any way I can.”
To start the season with the Roadrunners, Rooney was lined up with Daniil But and Sammy Walker. He made an immediate impact when he scored the tying goal with 29 seconds left in the season opener against the Ontario Reign, which Walker later won in overtime for the Roadrunners. Rooney went on to score twice more and notch an assist in the next three games, earning four points in his first four games.
Alongside Rooney, Walker scored five points in four games, while the rookie But currently has three points. It’s the best lineup offensively for the Roadrunners yet, and Rooney has enjoyed playing with his two other teammates, especially young But who he’s trying to mentor as he chases his own dreams of making his NHL debut.
“I think each of us brings something different to the table,” Rooney said. “But he’s a young man who is still learning the language. We’re trying to help him as best we can, but he’s done a great job. It’s not easy for a guy like that to have success right away, so we’re very happy with the way he’s playing, and we’ll just continue to work with him and try to help him as best we can so he can go to the next level.”
Funnily enough, two of those first four games were against the Calgary Wranglers, his former team. While it was strange for Rooney to play against some of his former teammates, it felt good for him to get some points against his old team. Especially one that dropped it in the summer.
“It feels great to get some points against a team you didn’t really want,” Rooney said.
Roooooney with a big one in the 3rd, starts closing the gap in this one!
LOONEY TOONEY ROONEY#LetsGoTucson pic.twitter.com/dpoIjor7qA
— Tucson Roadrunners (@RoadrunnersAHL) October 20, 2025
Head coach Steve Potvin has coached many players over the past few seasons as coach of the Roadrunners. He has coached veterans who excelled in the AHL and probably don’t deserve to play in the league like Kailer Yamamoto did last season. For Potvin, while he wants to see his own team thrive, he doesn’t want to see a player on his team who deserves to play in the NHL.
Potvin says Rooney falls into that category. Still, he loved having the veteran forward in the team’s locker room and around younger guys like But and Maveric Lamoureux.
“He’s been great and he fits in with our group,” Potvin said. “He wants to play. He’s one of those guys that enjoys the game, and it’s a pleasure to be around him. Our guys are definitely going to appreciate being around him, and he’s going to help our team grow.”
Despite being in the AHL, it’s not a bad place Rooney has ended up. There are quite a few AHL markets that experience extremely cold winters. Tucson is not one of those markets.
Rooney is excited for his family to come over and watch him play. However, he is most excited to move into his apartment. Rooney has been living in a hotel since signing his contract with the Devils. He is happy that he finally has a real place to live.
“I’m moving into my new house soon,” Rooney said. “I’m very excited to get out of the hotel. It’s been a long time at the hotel since September 3. I’m ready to get out and get my family here. I’m also excited about the weather and getting to know people in the community.”
Calling Utah
Unfortunately and fortunately for Rooney, life in a hotel is not over yet for him. On Thursday, he was called to Mammothjust in time for their four-game road trip in the Midwest.
For fans unfamiliar with Rooney and his playing style, he is an aggressive bottom-six player who works hard and is not afraid to be physical. He was great on the Roadrunners’ penalty kill and gives it his all. Despite a good start in the AHL, Rooney doesn’t want his playing style to change even if he is called up to the NHL.
“I want to remain a hard-nosed man, a man who will lead by example,” Rooney said. “I want to be really good at taking penalties, help the team in the face-off and try to contribute offensively. It’s been a good start, but I want to keep working on it. I know there are areas in my game that I have to get better at to keep improving.”
It’s been a crazy few weeks for Rooney. He spent his life away from his family in a hotel room in two different time zones just for the opportunity to continue his career in the NHL.
However, Rooney’s path to getting a contract and now a call-up to the NHL is a great example of what can happen when you work as hard as you can to achieve your goals. It may have been the eve of the new season, but now Rooney is doing everything he can to prove to his new team that he is still a force to be reckoned with.
“I know it was a late signing but I kept working hard all summer and I’m glad things are paying off,” Rooney said. “It was a good start. Hopefully we can keep this up.”
Those endless nights in a hotel room in Newark and Tucson, away from his family, paid off. A hardworking summer was worth it. Rooney is an NHLer again. Even though his time with the Mammoth is short, the fact that he waited almost 100 days for another opportunity in the NHL to be back, thanks to incredible play in the AHL, shows true dedication to his desire to play professional hockey. What isn’t surprising is that it’s Rooney who does it, a player who has known nothing but hard work since Day 1 in the NHL.
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