Karel Vejmelka made his intentions clear.
The Utah Hockey Club goaltender wants to stay in Salt Lake City.
“I don’t have really reasons to change anything. It’s the first thing on my mind to be part of the team, especially with these kinds of players — we’re like a big family,” Vejmelka said. “I would like to be part of it for a couple more years, for sure.”
The 28-year-old is a pending unrestricted free agent and can hit the open market this summer if he and the team do not reach an agreement on a contract extension. Vejmelka signed a three-year extension with the then-Arizona Coyotes in 2022 and is in the last year of that deal which carries a $2.73 million average annual value.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Hockey Club goaltender Karel Vejmelka (70) as Utah Hockey Club hosts the Minnesota Wild, NHL hockey in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2025.
This season, Vejmelka has leverage.
He is a big reason why the Club sits just two points out of the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference with 21 games remaining in the regular season.
Utah has ditched the goaltender rotation with Connor Ingram after using it for a month and seemingly put its confidence in Vejmelka. Through 38 games this season Vejmelka has a 2.45 goals against average and .910 save percentage. Since getting the last four consecutive starts, Vejmelka has posted a 1.50 GAA and .932 SV%.
“Playing more consistently is more comfortable for me for sure. For my body, I’m more ready for every shift every night,” Vejmelka said. “It’s the kind of situation where I’m feeling more comfortable than the beginning of the year. It’s easier to play, I would say, but just trying to be ready for every game. It’s my job.”
Utah Hockey Club left wing Lawson Crouse (67) and goaltender Karel Vejmelka (70) hug after a win over the Minnesota Wild of an NHL hockey game, Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Vejmelka has proven he can handle a starter’s workload — getting breaks to recharge here and there — and he wants to use his skill to help push Utah into the next phase of the rebuild. That is, winning. And for him, likely getting heightened compensation in both dollar value and term.
“Obviously it’s a really important thing to me. My agent is working on it so I just try to focus for the rest of the season and we’ll see what’s going to happen,” Vejmelka said. “I’m just playing my best and trying to help us to get a win every night. It’s important to me to get the important points. Every point matters now.”
Vejmelka’s counterpart Ingram has one year (next season) remaining on his contract, which has a $1.95 million AAV. So, either way, Utah will have an experienced goalie next year. But when general manager Bill Armstrong looks to the future, who does he want leading the team in net?
Armstrong signed defenseman Olli Määttä to a three-year, $3.5 million contract extension on Monday ahead of the NHL trade deadline on Friday. There could be more where that came from.
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Hockey Club goaltender Connor Ingram (39) during an NHL hockey game at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024.
“I think it all plays itself out as the season comes to an end here,” Armstrong said. “For us, there’s still some guys we want to get signed on the team that are free agents. We’re still looking at all of those options.”
In Vejmelka’s four years with the organization, this season has shown his best performance numbers-wise. It hasn’t been a linear path to reach this success.
Vejmelka was a fifth-round pick of the Nashville Predators in the 2015 NHL Draft but opted to become a free agent and went back to his native Czech Republic to play five seasons there. The Coyotes signed Vejmelka to a one-year, two-way contract in May 2021 and he has found a way to stay around — through his play — since then.
“I won’t talk about contracts because that’s not my role. I like our players a lot; I like Vejmelka a lot,” head coach André Tourigny said. “I think he’s had a great season. It’s been four years with him — he’s grown a lot in his read of the game, his understanding of the game, his prep, his consistency. He’s been a warrior for us. That’s what I will say.”
(Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Utah Hockey Club goaltender Karel Vejmelka (70) during a game at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025.
What the front office decides to do with its goaltending group remains unknown.
Vejmelka knows what he wants, though. It is to stay with Utah Hockey Club.
“The fans and the crowd are incredible every night,” Vejmelka said. “It’s fun to play in front of them and it’s a great experience for me every night. It drives me to get better and play the best hockey I can.”
