SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH - DECEMBER 18: Clayton Keller #9 jumps on Mikhail Sergachev #98 of the Utah Hockey Club after defeating the Vancouver Canucks 3-2 in overtime at Delta Center on December 18, 2024 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)
(Photo by Alex Goodlett/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY – While the Utah Hockey Club currently sits nine points back from a playoff spot with less than a one percent chance to make the postseason, one thing for certain is that the rebuilding process is visibly on schedule as the team continues to grow and develop.
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Time and again, Utah Hockey Club General Manager Bill Armstrong has shared that while plenty of teams in the NHL begin a rebuild, very few actually finish it.
Clearly recognizing the complexities of what it takes to hit the reset button and eventually reach the top of the mountain, there has been visible progress for the Utah Hockey Club during their inaugural season.
Looking back over the last few years after the organization officially began their rebuild, the team has improved every season in terms of points acquired in the standings and their ability to compete.
During the 2021-22 season, the former Arizona Coyotes squad registered 57 points with only 25 wins. From there, they acquired 70 in 2023, 77 in 2024 and just recently surpassed last season’s total with 8 games left on their schedule.
Earning their 78th point of the season, the Utah Hockey Club has now surpassed last year’s point total with 8 games left on their schedule.
It’s also the most points the team has registered since 2018 (86).
Progress 📈📈📈#UtahHC
— Cole Bagley (@BagleyKSLsports) March 30, 2025
Regardless if they make the playoffs this season or not, this is exactly the kind of pressure Armstrong wanted his team to experience.
An opportunity to really push for the first time in nearly half a decade.
“Let’s see if we can play some meaningful games down the stretch and I say we’re at 26 game sevens, you know? Here we go. I like that pressure for our group. I think it’s important that we experience it, and we learn to fight in it, and we learn to succeed in it,” Armstrong told KSL Sports following the Four Nations break.
“The only way you can do that is kind of going through it.”
Like any rebuild, the Utah Hockey Club has spent the last few years acquiring draft picks and doing their best to select talented players.
“Your core of the team has to be built in the draft,” Armstrong told KSL Sports. “You have to draft your core.”
So far, so good for the front office as they hit two potential superstar home runs in Logan Cooley and Dylan Guenther who’ve already made significant progress in their short careers.
For Cooley, the young center has already been upgraded to Utah’s top line and is on pace to finish the season with 61 points (38 percent increase year over year).
LOGAN COOLEY IS FASTER THAN YOU! 🫵 pic.twitter.com/LeTggcbq9V
— Utah Hockey Club (@utahhockeyclub) January 21, 2025
As for Guenther, the lethal sniper currently leads Utah in goals (26) and is on pace to finish with 57 points.
🫵 CAN’T STOP THAT! pic.twitter.com/fZSnqWgsHq
— Utah Hockey Club (@utahhockeyclub) March 25, 2025
Couple those two with recent veteran acquisitions Mikhail Sergachev, Ian Cole, Kevin Stenlund and Olli Mattaa, this team is following the winning recipe by surrounding their young talent with experienced leaders in order to alter the culture.
“They’re [Cooley and Guenther] going to continue to push the pace, and I think as a fan, you get to start cheering for these guys when they’re young men and that’s going to go on for a long time,” Armstrong said.
“I believe they’re going to be two men that are pushing this club to help be a championship organization for a long time.”
Perhaps the most significant aspect of where Utah currently sits in the rebuild is the fact that there’s still so much room for growth and improvement.
In addition to Cooley and Guenther showing signs of stardom, Utah still has a plethora of talented players in their prospect pool to continue drawing from.
Skaters like Tij Iginla, Cole Beaudoin, Michael Hrabal, Maveric Lamoureux, Daniil But and Dmitriy Simashev.
“We’re gonna be adding good players out of the draft to our team,” Armstrong said. “If we do this process right, we’ve got a chance to be good for about 10 straight years.”
Additionally, Utah has a deep pocket of roughly $22 million to go and get another legit player(s) this summer.
While they do need to extend Logan Cooley, there will be plenty of money to acquire one of the many talented upcoming free agents.
Players such as Mitch Marner, Nikolaj Ehlers, Sam Bennett, Ryan Donato or Brock Boeser who’d all look great in mountain blue and would undoubtedly elevate Utah’s ceiling.
So, while it’s unfortunate that Utah will likely miss the playoffs this season, the rebuilding process is on schedule and the proof has been on the ice all year long.
With a talented young core, seasoned veterans, more upcoming prospects and a deep pocket to spend, the Utah Hockey Club will look to take the next big step in 2025-26 and should be a playoff team a year from now.
The Utah Hockey Club will now return home to host the Calgary Flames on Tuesday night. The game can be viewed on SEG+. Fans can also tune in on air on the KSL Sports APP or on 97.5 and 1280 The Zone. Click here for the full schedule.
