October 23, 2024 | 5:12pm ET
TheFourthPeriod.com

UTAH NOT RUSHING TO REPLACE INJURED DEFENCEMEN

Sean Durzi, defenceman

The Utah Hockey Club were dealt a tough blow on Wednesday as they had announced both Sean Durzi and John Marino underwent successful surgery and will be out of action for a considerable amount of time.

Durzi had surgery to repair his right should and is expected to miss 4-6 months, while Marino underwent lower back surgery and will miss roughly 3-4 months.

Utah GM Bill Armstrong will begin to explore outside options, but he is not expected to pursue any additions via trade for the foreseeable future.

Young defenceman Maveric Lamoureux, drafted 29th overall by the franchise in the first-round in 2022 while they were in Arizona, has been recalled from the Tucson Roadrunners and is expected to make his NHL debut this week.

For now, Armstrong and the team plan on weighing out their internal options before pulling the trigger on any trade or going after a veteran free agent defenceman still available, such as Mark Giordano or Kevin Shattenkirk.

Utah has just over $8.274 million in current salary cap space to play with if they do decide to make an addition via trade or sign a free agent, but the team is being patient for the time being.