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Anson Thornton, Allen Americans (Photo credit: Dave Dudich Photo)

Utah Mammoth’s 2024-25 Report Cards: Anson Thornton

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers
By Chase Beardsley | Last updated May 17, 2025 9:05 AM ET

The inaugural season for the Utah Hockey Club (now the Utah Mammoth) is officially over. The team finished with a 38-31-13 record while their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners, finished with a 34-32-4-2 record, which was good enough for the seventh playoff spot in the Pacific Division. The Roadrunners went on to lose in the first round of the playoffs 2-1 to the Abbotsford Canucks.

With the season in the books, it’s time to look at the 48 Utah players under an NHL contract (excluding Connor Ingram for obvious reasons) and grade their 2024-25 seasons. We’ll also reflect on how they did during the 2023-24 season and see if they improved or did worse, along with what their future holds. We’re going alphabetically by first name. Next up is Anson Thornton.

Last Season

After a memorable season with the Barrie Colts, Thornton turned pro after signing an entry-level deal as a free agent with the Arizona Coyotes back in 2021. He eventually got sent down to the AHL with the Roadrunners. However, he sustained a knee injury, which kept him out of action for a couple of months.

Thornton played his first AHL game in November, making 27 saves against the Chicago Wolves for his first-ever win with the Roadrunners. He appeared in three more games, picking up one more win and recording a .849 save percentage (SV%).

He was eventually sent down to the ECHL in February to the Reading Royals. With the Royals, Thornton compiled a 2-7-0 record and put up a .893 SV%. The team failed to make the playoffs, and Thornton was recalled to the Roadrunners.

Thornton did not play another game for the Roadrunners as the team eventually made the playoffs. They were swept by the Calgary Wranglers in the first round.

This Season

In the summer, Utah did a lot of work in their inaugural offseason with their minor league situation. The team signed Jaxson Stauber to shore up their goaltending depth. They also inked an affiliation agreement with the Allen Americans.

Thornton had a good rookie camp but was immediately sent down to the Americans. With the Americans, the goalie had a rough go, only recording two wins in his 31 appearances. His stats were just as horrible with a goals-against average (GAA) of 4.35 and a SV% of .888. However, throughout the season, he made 884 saves and was one of the main starters for the team with Luke Richardson.

Oh my, remember this Anson Thornton stop of Chase Bertholet in a 2-1 game (Allen leads). pic.twitter.com/63Rt27WpAs
— Justin A. Cohn (@SportsiCohn) December 15, 2024

While the Americans team in front of Thornton wasn’t good at all, as the team finished at the bottom of the ECHL with a 16-45-8-3 record, he also fell behind in Utah’s depth chart. Whenever the Roadrunners needed a goaltender, Dylan Wells was usually the call-up.

Not to mention, Thornton also dealt with injuries once again. Towards the end of the season, he sustained a lower-body injury during a game against the Utah Grizzlies that ended his season. It kept him from being recalled by the Roadrunners for their playoff series against the Canucks.

The Future

Thornton has one more year on his contract with the Mammoth. However, he’s currently behind Karel Vejmelka, Matt Villalta, Stauber, and Wells on the goaltender depth chart. With that being said, he will most likely once again be in the ECHL next season.

It’s unclear if Utah will have an ECHL affiliate next season, but wherever Thornton goes, he’ll most likely get the starting role, barring a bad performance out of the gate. However, Thornton will need to get better. Next season could be his last in the Mammoth organization.

Anson Thornton, Allen Americans (Photo credit: Dave Dudich Photo)

When Thornton was signed, the Coyotes didn’t really have any prospects in the goaltending department. However, two years after signing him to a contract, the team drafted Michael Hrabal, who was the best goaltender available in the 2023 Draft. With Hrabal most likely turning pro at the end of the 2025-26 season, the need for Thornton diminishes.

Final Grade

It’s hard to tell sometimes if a goaltender actually had a good season. When he’s on a bad team, the question pops up: Was it just the team in front of him that was really bad, or did that goaltender play a role as well?

The Americans were a really bad team. The worst in the entire ECHL this past season. The team in front of Thornton, including the coaching staff, was awful. However, the fact that Wells was also on that team, yet was the first call-up whenever the Roadrunners needed help, was a big tell on the organization’s faith in Thornton, who has yet to have a winning season under his belt ever since turning pro.

Thornton is only 21 years old. Goaltenders do tend to develop when they’re much older. However, outside of his time in the OHL, he’s failed to impress at any level. With Hrabel coming into the fold, seeing him stick around on an NHL deal is hard to see past next year, which is his final season under contract.

Overall, Thornton is getting a D for this season. While the Americans were a horrible team, Thornton didn’t do much to help them out and fell further down the organization’s depth chart. Outside of playing more pro games, there wasn’t much development in his game, and the future arrival of other prospects will only keep him further away from the NHL. Next season, he will most likely be contending for the starter role on whichever ECHL team the Mammoth decides to affiliate with.