Utah Grizzlies Set 2025-26 Opening Day Roster
ECHL Utah Grizzlies

Utah Grizzlies Set 2025-26 Opening Day Roster

Published on October 16, 2025 under ECHL (ECHL)
Utah Grizzlies News Release


Salt Lake City, Utah - The opening day roster for the 2025-26 Utah Grizzlies season has been announced. The Grizzlies begin the 2025-26 campaign with four straight road games, beginning on October 17 at Greenville. The home opener at Maverik Center is on Saturday, October 25 at 7:10 pm.

Goaltenders (2): Dryden McKay, Dylan Wells.

Defenseman (6): Christian Felton, Noah Ganske, Luke LaMaster, Christian Pyke, Luc Salem, Avery Winslow.

Forwards (11): Maksim Barbashev, Danny Dzhaniyev, Evan Friesen, Tyler Gratton, Reed Lebster, Luke Manning, Mick Messner, Griffin Ness, Jack Ricketts, Neil Shea, Ty Voit.

Reserve - Colby Enns, D; John Gelatt, F

Injured Reserve - Rilen Kovacevic, F (14 day IR)

Immigration Pending - Adam Berg, F, Aiden Hansen-Bukata, D.

Returning Grizzlies for the 2025-26 Final Hunt

There are 10 players with previous Grizzlies experience. Neil Shea had 19 goals and 20 assists in 36 games with Utah last season. Reed Lebster scored 19 goals and 27 assists in 67 games during the 2024-25 campaign. Lebster led Utah in scoring after February 1st (11 goals, 19 assists) in 32 games. He led Utah in scoring in both February (7 goals, 7 assists) and March (4 goals, 9 assists). Mick Messner led Utah forwards with 194 shots on goal last season, scoring 16 goals and 24 assists. Luke Manning had 18 goals and 21 assists during the 2024-25 campaign for Utah. Manning ended last season red hot as he scored 11 points (7 goals, 4 assists) in the last 8 games, including a 2-goal performance in the final game of the campaign on April 12, 2025 at Rapid City. Griffin Ness scored 3 goals and 7 assists in 14 games with Utah late in the season after being acquired in a trade with Toledo. Adam Berg returns for his third season with Utah. He scored 7 goals and 10 assists in 50 games with the Grizzlies last season. Evan Friesen is back in Utah for his first full professional season. Friesen led the WHL's Wenatchee Wild with 32 goals and 61 points during the 2024-25 season.

Defenseman Garrett Pyke split the 2024-25 season with the AHL's Colorado Eagles and the Grizzlies. In 19 games with Utah last season Pyke had 2 goals and 11 assists. Luke LaMaster returns to Utah for his first full professional seasons after making a strong impression towards the end of the 2024-25 season. Defenseman Luc Salem played in 2 games with Utah at the end of the 2024-25 season. Last year Salem split time with Indy and Kalamazoo.

New Grizzlies Forwards

Tyler Gratton led the Reading Royals with 20 goals during the 2024-25 season. Ty Voit scored 8 goals and 29 assists for Cincinnati last season. Voit was a 5th round pick by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 2021 NHL draft. John Gelatt spent the past four seasons at Holy Cross College. Maxim Barbashev played with the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack and ECHL's Bloomington Bison. Danny Dzhaniyev played at Penn State University for four seasons from 2021-2025, scoring 34 goals and 59 assists in 146 games. Jack Ricketts had 20 goals in 38 games with Quinnipiac College during the 2024-25 season. Rilen Kovacevic enters his rookie campaign after a stellar career in the WHL as he scored 128 points, 59 goals and 69 assists in 225 games.

Fresh Faces on the Grizzlies Blue Line

The Grizzlies have many new defensemen for the upcoming season. Aiden Hansen-Bukata played at Ohio State University last season and led his club with 29 assists. Noah Ganske was a +33 combined in his last two seasons with the Fort Wayne Komets. Christian Felton split time with the AHL's Abbotsford Canucks and ECHL's Kalamazoo Wings last season. Avery Winslow has 67 games of ECHL experience with Orlando and Wheeling. Colby Enns is in his first full season as a pro after spending a successful college career at Northern Michigan University and Merrimack College.

Two New Goaltenders for Utah This Season

In net Dylan Wells brings 8 years of professional experience as he has played with 5 AHL teams and 4 ECHL clubs. Wells has an AHL contract with the Tucson Roadrunners. Dryden McKay is the winningest goaltender in NCAA history with 113 victories and 34 shutouts. He spent last season with Bloomington and Greenville in the ECHL and Ontario of the AHL.

AHL Contract Guys

There are four players with AHL contracts with the Colorado Eagles (Evan Friesen, Garrett Pyke, Rilen Koavcevic, Neil Shea) and three players with AHL contracts with the Tucson Roadrunners (Maksim Barbashev, Jack Ricketts, Dylan Wells).

Staff

Head Coach: John Becanic - 1st season.

Assistant Coach: Ryan Anderson

Assistant Coach/Director of Skill Development: Jack Skille

Equipment Manager: DJ McFarland

Athletic Trainer: Brooke Timony

Director of Broadcasting: Tyson Whiting - 8th season as the "Voice of the Grizzlies"

John Becanic enters his first season as the ninth head coach in Grizzlies history. Ryan Anderson is the Grizzlies first year assistant coach. Anderson was an assistant coach with the Reading Royals last season. Former NHL forward Jack Skille is an assistant coach/Director of Skill Development. DJ McFarland is starting his first season as Grizzlies Head Equipment Manager after spending two seasons at assistant equipment manager. Brooke Timony joins the club as Athletic Trainer. Timony was with the Birmingham Barons, the Chicago White Sox double-A affiliate during the 2025 baseball season. Tyson Whiting has been the voice of the Grizzlies since the beginning of the 2018-2019 season.

Tickets for every Grizzlies home game are available at utahgrizzlies.com or by calling (801) 988-8000.

Check out the Utah Grizzlies Statistics

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