The Utah Hockey Club has won two of three games coming out of the 13-day 4 Nations Face-Off break — and the front office still believes the team can sneak into a Western Conference wildcard slot come mid-April.
After consecutive 2-1 victories over the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday and Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday, respectively, Utah is now just three points back of the final playoff berth in the conference.
And they have no desire to sell ahead of the March 7 NHL Trade Deadline, general manager Bill Armstrong told The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun earlier this week.
“We’re right in the race,” Armstrong said. “We’re right in the hunt. It’s kind of where we thought we’d be, to be honest with you. It’s what we always talked about, playing meaningful games and pushing to see if we get into the playoffs. I like our team. I like our fight.”
LeBrun points to a couple reasons why Utah is hesitant to sell, the main being the fact that the team has already been stockpiling draft picks as a rebuilding club for years. This time around, especially considering it’s the first year in Salt Lake City, they want to battle right to the bitter end.
“We’ve had a million picks,” Armstrong told LeBrun. “We think we have five really good, high-end prospects in our organization. … We have a lot of room on the salary cap. We have a good team on the ice. And we’ve got a lot of good prospects coming. So for us, we do want to start building it in front of our fans and continue to take a step. And we do that with the guys that are fighting (for a playoff spot) right now.”
Armstrong has already shown that he isn’t scared to make a splash after acquiring two-time Stanley Cup champion Mikhail Sergachev from the Tampa Bay Lightning during the summer. He also made another trade to bring John Marino to Utah ahead of the 2024-25 campaign.
As LeBrun reports, Utah is trying to add, not subtract, “and they hope to stay in the race long enough to continue on that path.” That’s especially true now that a roster that has been decimated by injuries is almost back to full health.
Could Utah Hockey Club be buyers in playoff quest?
Although Utah has a couple of key trade chips, including pending unrestricted free agent forwards Nick Bjugstad and Alex Kerfoot, it looks like Armstrong and the front office are strongly considering buying instead of selling.
“Right now, we like our group. We’re going to see what we can do,” Armstrong told LeBrun. “It’s got to be something dynamic to add into your group for us to make moves. Something dynamic that fits into our timeline.”
While the odds are still stacked against Utah, now that the roster is healthy, there’s certainly a path for this squad to make the playoffs in its first season in Salt Lake City.
It’ll be interesting to see what Armstrong does ahead of the March 7 NHL Trade Deadline — and whether it will be enough to help the franchise sneak into a wildcard spot come mid-April.
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