The Utah Mammoth’s hearts were heavy this week as Clayton Keller battled through the unlucky lack of his father, Brian. As an alternative of taking some day without work, Keller opted to remain along with his teammates and family and get through it with them by his side. In a lovely accident, Keller and the Mammoth played against the captain’s hometown team on Saturday night in his second game for the reason that loss, and the Blues did a lovely tribute by having a moment of silence pre-game.
Keller took the chance after the sport to thank the organization. The Blues hold a special place in Keller’s heart due to the time he spent watching games along with his father and grandfather growing up.
POSTGAME
“First off, teammates, coaching staff, management, have been unbelievable towards me, my family. Big because of the Blues for all the things they did tonight. They didn’t have to try this. A number of memories at this rink. Growing up, coming to games here, sitting on my dad’s… pic.twitter.com/mXZbW88M80
— Utah Mammoth PR (@UtahMammoth_PR) November 30, 2025
The strength Keller is showing in playing through this unimaginable loss shows why he’s the Mammoth’s leader. Over and over, players resolve that continuing to play is what their lost loved one would’ve wanted, as we also saw last season when Mark Scheifele honored his father by playing within the playoffs.
Keller’s earliest journey into the hockey highlight was while fidgeting with the St. Louis Jr. Blues. He traveled with the team to the Quebec International Pee-Wee Tournament in back-to-back years from 2009 to 2011, and was one among the tournament’s top players, alongside then-teammate Matthew Tkachuk.
Clayton Keller moved on to Shattuck St. Mary’s in Minnesota after fidgeting with the Jr. Blues, and would never return to his home state to play. Nonetheless, his ties to town remain strong, and St. Louis still considers him one among its own.