NHL Utah will aim to add a top forward, defenseman

NHL Utah general manager Bill Armstrong is among those getting a fresh start from Smith Entertainment Group’s purchase of the Coyotes’ hockey operations assets. 

He’ll have a comparatively endless cash supply this summer, with the ability to spend up to the salary cap and roughly $43.25M in offseason space, among the most in the league.

Armed with a gigantic supply of second- and third-round draft picks over the next few seasons as well, many have speculated that Armstrong will be one of the most aggressive GMs in the coming months. 

That seems to be the case, with The Fourth Period reporting NHL Utah will scour both the free-agent and trade market for a second-line center, a top-six winger and a top-four defenseman to add to an already promising core of ex-Coyotes talent.

The Coyotes still fell far short of a playoff spot this year, but their 36-41-5 record was their best since the COVID-shortened 2021 season. Their success was mainly influenced by their best depth scoring in years. They ranked 16th in the NHL in scoring with 256 goals after finishing with 207 and 228 in each of the last two campaigns.

Team defense was still an issue, failing to control the majority of shot attempts and scoring chances at 5-on-5. Goaltending took a step forward in the form of Connor Ingram’s strong .907 SV% and six shutouts, but backup Karel Vejmelka’s poor season over his 38 appearances dragged the Coyotes' overall puck-stopping just below league average.

Still, the players who needed to improve did. 19-year-old Logan Cooley had a strong rookie season, finishing the year with 20 goals and 44 points while averaging 15:49 per game after a middling start to the season that saw him demoted to fourth-line usage at times. 

Offseason trade acquisition Sean Durzi was passable as their No.1 defenseman, putting up 41 points in 76 games with a 52.2 CF% at even strength to lead Arizona blue-liners.

The roster wasn’t built for playoff contention yet, especially after one-year UFA pickups Mathew Dumba and Jason Zucker both flamed out and were traded for scraps at the deadline. 

But with another step forward from Cooley and full seasons from youngsters Josh Doan and Dylan Guenther, both of whom put up great per-game numbers in more limited action, they should be expected to stay in the conversation for a longer period next season.

And that’s before adding any external pieces into the equation. Adding in a second-line center leaves Nick Bjugstad and Barrett Hayton to more comfortably slot into bottom-six roles down the middle after holding their own in top-six spot duty the past few campaigns. 

Options on the open market are slim — Elias Lindholm likely leads the way among true centers that are pending UFAs, but he still may cost a bit too much for Utah’s blood with its entire defense core, including RFAs Durzi and J.J. Moser, needing new deals. He’d also likely have options for more dedicated first-line minutes elsewhere after averaging north of 18:30 per game in six straight seasons.

There are some other capable options, like Chandler Stephenson, who will almost definitely go to market with the Golden Knights fresh out of cap space next season. Jonathan Marchessault is an understandably higher priority to re-sign. Max Domi has done well rebuilding his value in Toronto and could reunite with the new incarnation of the Coyotes club that drafted him 12th overall in 2013.

Some spicier and more impactful names exist on the winger market, dominated by Jake Guentzel, Sam Reinhart and Steven Stamkos. 

It’s hard to imagine them choosing what’s essentially an expansion market over other opportunities, but if Armstrong comes calling with a truckload of cash, the thought of playing an impactful veteran role to supplement Clayton Keller among Utah’s up-and-coming offense could be appealing. Someone like Viktor Arvidsson, Matt Duchene, Vladimir Tarasenko or Teuvo Teravainen is likely a more attainable target.

And they could end up being a better value proposition than the big names, something that could be important considering a top-four defenseman is their biggest hole to fill. 

Moser and Durzi are fine as a top pair but not ideal for a contending team — especially with very few proven commodities behind them outside Juuso Valimaki. 

Adding a right-shot defenseman will likely be the play to slot in with Valimaki behind Durzi. There are multiple true impact options available there, including Brandon Montour, Brett Pesce, Matt Roy and Chris Tanev.

It’s a tad early to know which names will pop up on the trade market, which Armstrong could likely use to plug their declared second-line center vacancy, given the lack of attractive options on the free-agent market.