How is Utah Hockey Club approaching the trade deadline?

The NHL’s trade deadline is coming up.

General manager Bill Armstrong’s plans for Utah Hockey Club are not clear cut, partially because his team has kept things interesting late in the season as it’s on the bubble for a playoff spot in the Western Conference.

But, by March 7 at 3 p.m. ET, the league’s 32 teams will have made their decisions and either added or subtracted from the rosters they want to push forward with for the rest of the year.

Let’s answer some questions below about the first NHL trade deadline in Salt Lake City.

Where has Utah Hockey Club positioned itself?

With a few important wins following the 4 Nations Face-Off break, Utah Hockey Club has kept itself in the conversation as it hunts for the second wild card spot in the Western Conference.

From the beginning of the season — which marked the fourth year of Armstrong’s over-haul rebuild — players and management alike said they wanted to play meaningful games down the stretch. Now, the athletes have only one thing on their minds: making a first-round appearance.

“Playoff hockey is the best type of hockey,” Ian Cole said. “It’s the most fun, most at stake and it’s something I know I and a lot of guys in this room are really looking forward to. Our goal is without a doubt to win hockey games and make a playoff push.”

In his 15-year NHL career, Cole has missed the postseason just once and it was his rookie season with the St. Louis Blues in 2010-11. Since then, the veteran defenseman has been in the playoffs for 14 consecutive years. To him, it is somewhat of an expectation.

Cole also knows the uncertainty this time of year can bring. The 36-year-old was traded from St. Louis to the Pittsburgh Penguins in March 2015 at the deadline. Granted, he went on to win two Stanley Cups at his new destination.

“We don’t want to see anyone getting dealt. I think we like our squad, we like our team. But we need to win hockey games first and foremost,” Cole said. “There’s only so much we can control. The only thing we can control is winning hockey games. If that’s going to control the decision-making process, then we have to do our job.”

Armstrong has consistently stated that the team will decide what moves he makes — or doesn’t make — at the deadline. Utah has nearly played well enough to convince its general manager to not be a seller. But playoffs still are not a sure thing and, ultimately, hockey is a business.

“We make his decision. It’s not just these four games or whatever is left. It’s what we have done up to this point. He looks at us and he makes a determination,” Alex Kerfoot said. “If we are in a position where he’s keeping guys and we’re making a run then that is a sign of confidence that we’ve done enough.”

When postseason positioning is this close within reach, it is easy to think back to the games throughout the year Utah has dropped due to late leads lost, inability to force overtime and lack of consistency. That is all part of the learning process, though, and the team will have to make up for it now.

“We probably could be even higher in the standings. We’ve let some games slip away, haven’t found results in games that we should’ve,” Kerfoot said. “But we have belief that we can make the playoffs. Everyone in this room — that’s our goal. We’re not going to stray from that.”

It is clear the players believe in the group they have. But does management? Time will tell.

Who could get traded?

There are a few different directions this could go in.

If Utah goes on a losing streak before the deadline and falls far enough outside the playoff race, Armstrong could look to deal some of his players who are on expiring contracts at the end of this season and will become unrestricted free agents. That list includes Cole, Kerfoot, Nick Bjugstad, Michael Carcone, Olli Määttä, Robert Bortuzzo, Nick DeSimone and Karel Vejmelka.

If these players do not re-sign — whether it is a personal or team decision — Utah would not gain anything in return for them leaving. However, if they’re put in a deal at the deadline, the Club could get something — a player, prospect or draft picks — and part ways sooner.

“Ultimately, our job is to put ourselves in a position where we don’t have to worry about that by winning hockey games,” Cole said.

Kerfoot and Cole have been key depth pieces for Utah so one could see them sticking around for the rest of this year or beyond. With the way Määttä has played, the defenseman has arguably earned himself a new contract. These attributes, though, are valuable to any contender.

Bjugstad, on the other hand, has a veteran presence but has not hit his regular production rates this season. The forward has 15 points (five goals, 10 assists) through 50 games this year after posting 45 points (22 goals, 23 assists) in 76 games last year. He is in the last season of a two-year, $4.2 million deal. If Utah knows it does not want to re-sign Bjugstad in the summer, a trade could be talked about.

Selling off a goaltender like Vejmelka, too, could bring a good return at the deadline. But Utah would not do that if it believed it had a real chance at the playoffs.

“I try to focus on what we can control. I’m not the GM. The players are not in control.” “We talk a lot about stuff we can control. We know it’s there,” head coach André Tourigny said. “At the end of the day, we need to close that door, put that aside and move forward.”

The pressure of the deadline can be hard to ignore, though, as rumors start to swirl. Matias Maccelli has recently been at the center of them for Utah. Top NHL insider Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet mentioned Maccelli in the Feb. 24 episode of his “32 Thoughts” podcast.

“That’s one to watch,” Friedman said. “One of the things the Utahns have looked at is up front, they’re kind of small. I think they have some prospects coming that are bigger. But, they need some bulk up front…Right now I think Maccelli is one of the guys that’s kind of losing out because of that lack of size.”

The 24-year-old forward has been a healthy scratch for five consecutive games and seven cumulative games this season. Maccelli has 18 points (eight goals, 10 assists) through 52 games this season; he had 57 points (17 goals, 40 assists) through 82 games last season.

Maccelli has one season (2025-26) left on his contract with a $3.43 million average annual value before he becomes a restricted free agent. For some perspective, Barrett Hayton — who has 32 points (15 goals, 17 assists) in 58 games — is making $2.65 million a year.

If Armstrong feels comfortable proceeding with the current lineup, Maccelli could be in a player-for-player trade to try to strengthen Utah’s forward group. It would not make the Club sellers, per se, as it would look for a fresh face in return.

“We had discussions for what he has to bring. His A game has not been as productive as it has been in the past,” Tourigny said of Maccelli. “Right now we have competitiveness and guys who help us in different roles.”

What are the mental tolls of the trade deadline?

Despite the fact that the NHL is a business — and a winning one at that — the personal realities of the trade deadline sit in the back of players’ minds as the March 7 date creeps around.

Utah players who were part of the Arizona Coyotes for the past few seasons know that all too well. The Coyotes had been hardcore sellers since Armstrong took over and started the rebuild in 2020.

“It’s honestly kind of deflating. Last year in Arizona we lost a few guys and a few good friends, good teammates. But we put them in that position. As Bill said, it’s really up to us,” defenseman Sean Durzi said.

At the 2024 deadline, Arizona traded Troy Stecher, Matt Dumba and Jason Zucker to the Edmonton Oilers, Tampa Bay Lightning and Nashville Predators, respectively, in return for a slew of draft picks.

“I know that day is no fun for anyone. Guys are obviously thinking about it, standing by their phones. … It’s crazy because anyone can get traded at any time. I never thought I was going to get traded from LA to Arizona. I know a lot of guys get surprised and their families get surprised,” Durzi said.

“There are families as well who are in this. I know a lot of the wives are kind of watching at home. Kids are not thinking about it hopefully, but it’s a big deal. They have to change schools, change cities. Or they lose their dad for a few months.”

While not at the deadline, Durzi was dealt to Arizona by the Los Angeles Kings in June 2023 in return for a second-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft. Things have obviously worked out for Durzi — he signed a four-year contract extension with Utah in June — but picking up one’s life in a matter of hours is tough as is leaving a locker room of your teammates.

The Club understands, though, that to avoid those goodbyes all it has to do is win. The outcome of Armstrong’s first trade deadline in Utah is what his players make of it through their performance.

“If you’re in a playoff position you’re going to look to add. If you prove that you can be that type of team, you’re either going to add or stay put,” Kerfoot said. “If it’s the other way around, it’s because we collectively as a group haven’t been good enough. Like last year, we weren’t in a position where they felt comfortable so they had to do what’s best for the team. It’s that way across the league.”