With the NHL Entry Draft scheduled for later this month in Las Vegas, Nevada, Utah Hockey Club is poised to make a significant impression.
The general manager of Utah Hockey Club, Bill Armstrong, is reportedly open to trading the sixth overall pick in the upcoming draft, according to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period on this week's episode of the TFP Monday Mix podcast.
Since Bill Armstrong is anticipated to be rather active in the free agent market, it would seem that Utah's ownership, backed by Ryan Smith of Smith Entertainment Group, has no problem with the team spending almost the cap right away.
Bill Armstrong would need to receive a very compelling offer to convince him to trade the sixth overall pick, but his willingness to do so indicates that he intends to be competitive the next season and maybe qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs in their inaugural campaign. If they succeed, they will just be the second new team—Vegas in 2018—to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs in their inaugural season since 1991.
When the trade and free agent markets open on July 1st, Bill Armstrong will keep searching for players to complement Utah's core, which already includes Clayton Keller, Logan Cooley, and Dylan Guenther, among others. With the exception of a few players, this group of Utah players has very little playoff experience. Their last trip to the big dance came in 2020, when they were the Arizona Coyotes. Watch Utah closely this summer as there are a lot of high hopes for Year 1.
