Mammoth Place Eli McLaughlin on Hold Out List as BC Native Commits to Firefighting Career

DENVER – The Colorado Mammoth of the National Lacrosse League (NLL) today announced the organization placed forward Eli McLaughlin on the Hold Out List, as the veteran has begun the onboarding process to become a member of the Vancouver Fire Department.

“While we’ll miss Eli’s leadership on the turf and in the locker room, we’re extremely proud of him for not only taking the next step in his professional career, but for his future efforts to protect and serve the communities in which he was raised in,” Mammoth General Manager Brad Self shared.

“As Colorado’s all-time goal-scoring leader, he’s demonstrated his ability to battle and compete against some of North America’s greatest athletes, so we know he will do an outstanding job serving the greater B.C. area as a firefighting servicemen and look forward to welcoming him back to the team at the appropriate time.”

Over the years, several NLL standouts have endured similar in-season training protocols which have caused them to miss time on the turf, including guys like: Brad Kri of the Toronto Rock, Matt Beers, Ryan Dilks and Jeff Cornwall of the Vancouver Warriors, Paul Dawson of the Buffalo Bandits, Jake Withers of the Halifax Thunderbirds, Evan Turner of the Rochester Knighthawks and beyond.

Mammoth defenseman Damon Edwards continues to serve the Toronto area as a firefighting professional, himself, while former Mammoth defenseman Scott Carnegie (who’s now the team’s Head of Player Development) also spent more than a decade fighting fires in Calgary, Alberta.

McLaughlin’s stint away from the team isn’t his first absence of the season, as he opted into missing a weekend of Training Camp during this year’s ramp-ups … (for good reason), as he received both the regional and national honors in fall of 2024 after being recognized as a standout athlete and member of the B.C. sports community.

RELATED: Mammoth Forward Eli McLaughlin Receives Regional, National Tom Longboat Awards

Having recorded 46 points (23g, 23a), 49 loose balls, one caused turnover and four penalty minutes in 12 regular season appearances, he was once again one of the team’s pillars. McLaughlin remains atop the organization’s all-time goal-scoring charts with 292 conversions amongst his 632 career points (292g, 339a).

Mammoth fans can stay tuned to coloradomammoth.com and Colorado Mammoth social media channels for the team’s latest news, transactions and beyond.