Ben McCartney is making a case to be a call-up for the Utah Mammoth as he leads the AHL's Tucson Roadrunners in scoring. The former seventh-round pick continues to pursue his NHL dream.
High-energy? High-scoring? And a seventh-round pick?
That is Ben McCartney, a Utah Mammoth prospect playing for the Tucson Roadrunners. He's been in the AHL for the past four seasons, but is having a breakout campaign this time around.
The Manitoba native is eighth in AHL scoring with an 18.6 shooting percentage. His projected points total of 77 is the highest by a seventh-round pick or later since the 2013-14 season, and would be a massive 44-point increase from the 33 scored in the previous season.
“Confidence and learning each year (are key) on how to be a pro,” McCartney said. “Just coming from junior (hockey), I was still a kid, and it took a while to learn some things and every year, I just learnt from the little details, and kept bringing it into the year after, and I think this past couple of years, I feel like I’ve been able to trust my game.”
McCartney is in the midst of a five-game point streak, scoring eight points in that span, including a four-point game in his last outing against the Calgary Wranglers on Friday.
Furthermore, on Dec. 13, McCartney capped off a four-game point streak. On that day against the Bakersfield Condors, he recorded a career-best and franchise-tying five points (two goals and three assists).
The former WHL Brandon Wheat Kings product has the third-most penalty minutes on the team with 34. But whether it is impacting the scoreboard or literally the half-boards, McCartney is clear he wants to be “the go-to guy.”
“I think I want to play each game the same every night,” McCartney said. “I’m not going to be a guy who is going to be putting up points all the time. I’m the guy who brings energy to the team and the guy who wants to be trusted.”
Ben McCartney (Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images)Earlier in the summer, The Athletic released a series of articles ranking the different pipelines of the NHL, with the Mammoth in third. In the names featured to validate that ranking, McCartney’s name wasn’t mentioned at all. The 2020 draft pick has no time to care about that.
“I don’t try to worry about that. I got other stuff to be worried about,” McCartney laughed. “For some players it takes day, weeks, months to improve, and I think I like to play the long game. And yeah, I do feel like I’ve always had a chip on my shoulder my entire career, and I just want to keep on working hard and not worry about the outside noise and do everything I can to help the Tucson Roadrunners win.”
The Mammoth could use McCartney’s services right about now.
After losing eight of 14 games during December, Utah isn't any closer to a playoff spot in the Western Conference.
Not to mention Logan Cooley is on the injured reserve list, and while McCartney can’t replace Cooley’s hands, it does open a roster spot in the bottom-six, bringing in the 24-year-old’s grit as well as scoring.
The last time McCartney played in the NHL was for the Arizona Coyotes in November 2021. While he hasn’t heard anything from the Mammoth regarding a call-up, the Roadrunners' alternate captain would cherish getting back to playing in The Show.
“It would mean a lot playing in the NHL. At the end of the day, it is everyone’s goal. It is one of the best leagues in the world.”
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