DENVER – As the Colorado Mammoth of the National Lacrosse League (NLL) continue to grow the game we’ve all come to know and love, the Burgundy Boys teamed up with LacrosseDen to change up the vibes for the 2026 Colorado Mammoth Summer Camp.
Foothills Fieldhouse will always be home to Training Camp and various Colorado Mammoth practices and even youth camps in the future, but when one of the team’s star forwards has a good thing going, it’s hard not to jump on board.
Enter Mammoth forward Jack Hannah, who’s a partner and daily instructor at LacrosseDen, a state-of-the-art lacrosse training facility in southeast Denver.
Denver has been a hotbed for lacrosse for some time now. But it’s athletes who are sticking around the Mile High City who continue to make it such a fun and eventful region to bring “The Creator’s Game” to life.
With Hannah having quite a successful collegiate stint at the University of Denver just a few years back, he’s made and continues to craft plenty of friends and partnerships along the way, with the area’s professional box lacrosse team now officially in the mix.
Naturally, Colorado’s Lacrosse Development Manager Dillon Ward called in some support for the three-day showcase, as the “player-coached” draw of the camp never gets old: For the kiddos coming out to sharpen their skills, for the parents who dedicate their days to getting them to camp and *especially* for the player-coaches, who get to pass something on to the next generation of athletes while spending some time with the community.
“It feels great and it’s good to be back. It’s good to see the guys and the kids, who will become the next generation of NLL players, hopefully,” Mammoth forward Ryan Lee shared.
Coming off a lower-body injury sustained early in the Mammoth’s 2025-26 campaign, Lee has spent the spring and summer slate recovery and getting back into shape for the approaching season.
And despite all of the wall ball, rehabilitation and athletic exercise he’s endured ramping things up, a little time with the team and community may be his best medicine yet.
The Creator’s Game has been known to heal, after all!
“It’s nice to see the young kids come out and play and take the same journey that we did when we were younger. Just being around professionals and seeing how they act, when you’re that age – It instills different competitive levels in where you want to get to and the kids are fun to be around,” Lee added.
“We want them to have fun, but we want to teach them as many skills as we can – Some stuff that we learned when we were younger that helped us along the way. We want them to become better lacrosse players, but ultimately it’s about having a good time with everyone.”
With a few dozen campers ranging between the ages of 7-14, Lee, Hannah and Ward were joined by Mammoth defenseman Warren Jeffrey and forward Will Malcom just the same, as the team has never been afraid to let some of its brightest stars connect with the community.
“I remember when I was younger at camps, the biggest thing is having access to the players. Being able to be taught by pros and people that you look up to and people that you watch play and having those person-to-person interactions is something that I’ll never forget,” Ward said.
“Jack does a great job with LacrosseDen and doing his part to grow the game and getting these kids to the next level. For us to be able to be here and get the Mammoth brand in this building and expose kids to this facility is awesome. For us to be able to use our resources to shine a light on a facility like this is something we’re proud to do.”
Between stretches and warm-up drills to mini-games, races and even a couple of scrimmage exercises, the competition was flowing and the tunes were bumping, with youth athletes getting a taste of some rock n’ roll their parents and coaches grew up with.
“It’s all about getting sticks in their hands, having fun and making new friends,” Ward concluded.
“Our goal at the end of the week is for them to be a little bit better than they were when they came here on Monday.”
There’s something special about taking past successes, memories and experiences and parlaying them into the future. And when the kids have glowing personalities, jokes and a few chirps mixed in, it’s hard NOT to have a good time!
And before we knew it, the three-day camp had come and gone, with tons of smiles had, skills improved and bonds created, if not renewed.
Mammoth fans can stay tuned to coloradomammoth.com and Colorado Mammoth social media channels for the team’s latest news, transactions and beyond.
