Big moves ahead: It’s time for an aggressive offseason in Utah

By: Kaiden Brayshaw

With David Pagnotta reporting that Utah HC plans on being “big players” in the 2025 offseason, Bill Armstrong and company seem ready to push the Club into contention. Generally, rushing rebuilds is frowned upon and risky, but one more strong piece could bolster Utah as a threat in the Western Conference.

The report should not be a surprise, as Utah showed their willingness to acquire win-now players, when they acquired defenceman Mikhail Sergachev on day two of the 2024 NHL draft.

First things first

Bill Armstrong got ahead of the curve when he signed former 9th overall pick Dylan Guenther to an eight-year, $7.14 million contract extension in September 2024. Before spending on outside players, the franchise needs to extend star centre Logan Cooley.

Cooley has taken major strides in his second season, scoring 43 points in his first 50 games, before suffering a injury on Jan. 29 against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Cooley has one more season left on his entry level contact and becomes extension eligible on July 1st 

Signing Cooley to a long-term contract will secure the franchise’s future, with Keller, Guenther and Sergachev all locked up until 2028.

Eyes on the prize

If either of Mikko Rantanen or Mitch Marner do not sign extensions with their teams, Utah will be looking to scoop up one of the star forwards.

Both players are set to command over $13 million on the open market. If either player were to sign with Utah, they would become the team's highest paid player. 

Signing either player would give Utah a proven 100-point player and bolster their lineup

A top six with Dylan Guenther, Barrett Hayton, Clayton Keller, Nick Schmaltz, Logan Cooley and one of Rantanen or Marner would give the Club a lethal one-two punch of scoring lines. Considering a bottom-six could be made up of players like Matias Macelli, Josh Doan, Lawson Crouse, Alex Kerfoot, Liam O’brien and Nick Bjugstad, Utah’s lineup would be versitile and dependable from top to bottom.

Now or later 

The franchise, including Arizona, has selected within the top 10 picks of the draft since 2021. Signing a player in their prime would signal that Utah is looking to break the streak and begin contending now. 

 It would also indicate that other picks and prospects could be traded in the future, given the franchise would be favouring winning now over future hopes. 

With $26.575 million set to be open after the 2024-25 season, Utah has enough room to extend Logan Cooley and potentially sign Rantanen or Marner. If the team manages to sign either player, they would be ready to contend beginning next season.