Here’s what Utah Hockey Club can do this summer after its trade deadline moves

The NHL trade deadline week has come and gone.

Utah Hockey Club had a relatively quiet Friday afternoon ahead of the 3 p.m. ET cutoff as it took a bigger-picture approach to the moves made.

After acquiring players like Mikhail Sergachev, John Marino and Kevin Stenlund during the summer and then adding Olli Määttä and Nick DeSimone throughout the year, general manager Bill Armstrong felt comfortable with where his team stands in the final stretch.

“We’re moving in the right direction and you don’t want to break up that chemistry,” Armstrong said. “If there was a deal out there that put us over the edge with a dynamic player like a Sergachev or something we were all in — we have all the assets. But we want to move very smartly.”

With that in mind, let’s take a look at what Armstrong did get up to and what it means for the future of Utah Hockey Club.

Utah gets Shea Weber’s contract off its books

In the final minutes before the deadline, Utah Hockey Club made a deal most would not have considered. The team cleared out $7.8 million of cap space by trading Shea Weber’s contract and the rights of defenseman Victor Soderstrom and forward Aku Räty to the Chicago Blackhawks for a fifth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.

Weber – who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in November – finished his career with the Montreal Canadiens in the 2020-21 season before getting traded to the Vegas Golden Knights in June 2022. The team knew Weber was unlikely to play again due to foot and ankle injuries, and he was placed on long-term injured reserve.

The Coyotes took on Weber’s contract from Vegas in February 2023 in exchange for a fifth-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft.

The Blackhawks taking on Weber’s contract ensures they can reach the salary-cap floor – which is the minimum amount a team must spend on player salaries – next season when it is set to be $70.6 million.

For Utah, it has more money to spend when signing someone like Logan Cooley to what’s expected to be a hefty contract or other big-name free agents during the summer.

“A little bit of housekeeping on our end,” Armstrong said. “What this does is allow us to accumulate some cap space. Maybe next year at this time, if we need it down the stretch, we can go out and actually find a player who will fit in. It just gives you a little more flexibility when the contract is not on our books.”

According to PuckPedia, the Club has a projected $22.31 million in cap space for the 2025-26 campaign. Plus, it got to keep its team together.

“I think it’s great confidence for the group,” Armstrong said. “They deserve to fight together. That’s what they’ve earned the right to do.”

Belief in Matias Maccelli

Matias Maccelli’s name was subject to trade rumors as the deadline approached.

The 24-year-old forward has been a healthy scratch for eight consecutive games and 10 total this season. His production has taken a dip compared to previous years, but Armstrong and the organization have a strong belief that Maccelli can rediscover his game.

Maccelli had 57 points (17 goals, 40 assists) through 82 games last season while, this year, he has posted 18 points (eight goals, 10 assists) in 52 games.

“Matias is a good player. He’s found himself in a little bit of a rut here. … You have to stay positive,” Armstrong said.

There is one year (2025-26) remaining on Maccelli’s contract, which carries a $3.43 million average annual value. The hope is that Maccelli can become a difference-maker again during that time.

Armstrong compared Maccelli’s recent struggles to those of Jaden Schwartz who was a forward on the Stanley Cup-winning 2018-19 St. Louis Blues team. Armstrong was the assistant general manager there at the time.

Schwartz lacked consistency in the regular season and finished the year with 36 points (11 goals, 25 assists) in 69 games before the Blues’ playoff run. En route to the championship title, Schwartz had 20 points (12 goals, eight assists) in 26 games and got to lift the Cup at the end of it.

Armstrong’s experience in the league has shown him not to give up on players too quickly. That is the mindset he is maintaining with Maccelli.

“Even though it’s a down year, he’s got to come back,” Armstrong said. “He’s got to find a way to help us win down the stretch when it’s his turn up. He’s had a great attitude and he’s a pro about it.”

Connor Ingram’s future addressed

Utah Hockey Club has turned to Karel Vejmelka as its starting goaltender for the majority of the season. Vejmelka’s five-year contract extension – with a reported $4.75 million average annual value – only solidified the organization’s trust in him.

Since the Club ditched the goalie rotation, Vejmelka has started in six consecutive games, including a back-to-back, and has given his team a chance to win in all of them.

“He saved our season. He’s come in there and just done an amazing job,” Armstrong said. “We know who he is – he comes to work every single day, he’s great around his teammates.”

But, with Vejmelka locked in for the foreseeable future, what does that mean for his counterpart Connor Ingram?

Ingram missed around two months of action at the beginning of the season and has a 3.27 goals against average and .882 save percentage through 22 games. Last year, the 27-year-old earned the starting position in Arizona with a 2.91 GAA and .907 SV% through 50 games.

Things have changed, though, and with Utah on the bubble of the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference, the Club has shifted exclusively to Vejmelka.

“We’re in playoff mode in the way we approach it,” head coach André Tourigny said.

Ingram has one year (2025-26) left on his contract, which carries a $1.95 million AAV so, bearing any moves in the summer, he will remain with Utah through next season. Teams need two goalies to win in today’s NHL but – based on the term and money invested in Vejmelka – it likely will not be an even split moving forward.

“You’re going to need both,” Armstrong said. “In this day in age, there’s so many games played, back-to-backs – you need two good goaltenders.”

The team also has Jaxson Stauber – who is on a one-year, $775,000 contract – in the AHL with the Tucson Roadrunners. While a small sample size, Stauber proved he could be a reliable backup to Vejmelka when recalled to the NHL earlier this season. Stauber had a 2.23 GAA and .925 SV% in four games – including Utah’s first-ever shutout in which he made 29 saves against the Golden Knights.

Implications of Kerfoot, Cole and Määttä contract extensions

Utah invested in its veterans this week.

Olli Määttä kicked off the re-signing frenzy on Monday as he inked a three-year, $10.5 million contract. Alex Kerfoot and Ian Cole followed with one-year, $3 million extensions on Wednesday. Vejmelka’s five-year deal was made official Thursday.

Armstrong is keeping around the depth pieces that have played a significant role in the Club’s success this season. It shows he thinks his team has the tangible parts to take the next step in the rebuilding process.

“They’re really easy guys to like because of their play on the ice but also helping our culture grow and become a winning organization, a playoff organization, an organization that can take a step to winning a championship,” Armstrong said.

Kerfoot – who is an alternate captain – has been a leader on the penalty kill and locker room while showing his versatility on all four lines, too. He took a $500,000 pay cut to stay with the Club for one more year.

“He can kind of jump around and patch holes when we’re injured,” Armstrong said.

Utah has top-talent forward prospects in the system with players like Tij Iginla, Cole Beaudoin and Daniil, however, they are not NHL-ready yet.

Iginla had 32 points (14 goals, 18 goals) in 21 games with the WHL’s Kelowna Rockets before his season ended in December due to hip surgery. Beaudoin has posted 47 points (22 goals, 25 assists) in 45 games with the OHL’s Barrie Colts. But has 27 points (nine goals, 18 assists) in 51 games with the KHL’s Lokomotiv Yaroslavl.

Kerfoot’s deal helps bridge the time between now and when those young forwards sign their entry-level contracts, spend some time in the AHL – or, stay in their respective leagues – to develop. There is no need to rush their paths to the NHL – it’s also not Armstrong’s style. Kerfoot adds important depth and stability to the forward group before the transition.

The same goes for the veteran insurance Cole and Määttä offer on the backend.

While the organization is excited about Dmitriy Simashev, who was the Coyote’s sixth overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, he has not confirmed if he will be coming over from Russia next season. The 6-foot-5 defenseman has six points (one goal, five assists) in 53 games with the KHL’s Lokomotiv Yaroslavl and will need the time and space to adjust his game to the pro level once he makes the jump.

Similarly, defensive prospects in Tucson like Maveric Lamoureux and Artem Duda won’t be accelerated through their development simply because Utah needs bodies in the lineup. Lamoureux had 15 games up with the Club this season and, while it was a workable bandaid, it was clear he needed more time in the AHL. Duda has had a productive year with the Roadrunners with 21 points (three goals, 18 assists) in 51 games and can continue that trajectory instead of being the sixth or seventh defenseman on an NHL roster.

The deals both show Kerfoot, Cole and Määttä their inherent value to the team while buying Utah time for its youngsters to grow.

“Those guys are huge for our organization,” Armstrong said. “To be able to reward them with a contract and let everybody else know they’re coming back, they’re part of the team and we want to move forward with them – it’s a great statement for us as an organization to be able to do that at this time of the year.”

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