Utah Hockey Club reportedly exploring trades for former first-round pick
As Utah Hockey Club looks to be competitive in their first-ever season in the NHL, they're reportedly dangling a former first-round pick in trade talks, who could net them a piece to help right now.
When Utah was in Arizona as the Coyotes, their management and scouting staffs did a fairly good job through the draft, but one of their former first-round pick from back in 2019, Victor Soderstrom, hasn't been able to stick in the NHL since coming over to North America in 2021.
Soderstrom is currently a restricted free agent and while Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports is reporting that Utah is willing to re-sign the blueliner, he added that Bill Armstrong is exploring trade options for the Gavle, Sweden native.
Söderström, 23, has yet to establish any kind of NHL foothold, totaling 53 NHL games (1 G, 11 pts.) over the past three seasons." Morgan said.
Since coming over to North America in 2021, Soderstrom has spent the majority of his career in the American Hockey League with the Tucson Roadrunners, but has also appeared in 53 NHL games for the now-dissolved Arizona Coyotes.
This past season, the 23-year-old was pretty solid for the Roadrunners where he put up 32 points (nine goals, 23 assists), 34 penalty minutes and was a minus-eight.
As we get deeper into the summer, if Victor Soderstrom still isn't signed by Utah, it'll be interesting to see what Bill Armstrong has up his sleeve. Soderstrom has plenty of potential, but with the additions Utah has made in the off-season so far (Sergachev, Marino & Cole), his path to a role on their blueline on a full-time basis seems unlikely.
| POLL | ||
Will Utah trade Victor Soderstrom this summer? | ||
| Yes. A change of scenery will do him good | 35 | 68.6 % |
| No. He'll be back with the Roadrunners in the fall | 16 | 31.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
