Is Utah Hockey Club in a position to make the playoffs after adding Mikhail Sergachev and John Marino?

Mikhail Sergachev and John Marino: Welcome to Utah.

Utah: Welcome to the playoffs.

That’s an incredibly bold statement to make about a team that finished with 77 points last season. But it’s clear from their young, talented roster that this group is poised to make some noise in their inaugural season in Utah. The franchise formerly known as the Arizona Coyotes appears ready to take the next step, and their two new additions to the blue line should really help the cause.

Defense was Utah’s biggest concern heading into the offseason, with the main issue being a lack of top-tier talent. Sergachev immediately changes that as a player who has shown promise as a No. 1 defenseman throughout his career; he’s a strong puck mover who can create a ton of offense from the back end. He’s exactly what this team needed: an elite offensive engine.

Marino is also a top-tier defensive defenseman with solid puck-moving abilities. While Marino had a rough 2023-24 season on the surface, his work the year before gives plenty of reason to expect a rebound. That, along with his sparkling stats: he excels at retrieving pucks, getting them out, joining the rush, and defending his blue line. He is incredibly efficient with the puck, which is a huge upgrade over Janis Moser, who went the other way in the Sergachev trade.

Where Sergachev and Marino bring the most value is in the ability to make high-level plays with the puck in all three zones. This is something that has been missing from this franchise for years; a problem that was resolved in the span of 20 minutes during the draft.

Their presence should help unlock what already looked like an underrated offensive core with plenty of strength on the wing.

Yes, things still look dicey in the middle, but Utah has some real offensive strength on the perimeter that will be difficult to deal with. Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz lead the way as frontcourt players, but Utah also has a dynamic duo of Matias Maccelli and Dylan Guenther behind them that complements them well. Guenther, the ninth pick in 2021, was a revelation late in the season. There may not be a superstar among this quartet, but Utah’s top six wing players are still among the best in the league, top to bottom. Add Josh Doan and his excellent 11-game audition to the mix and Utah’s top nine looks pretty stocked.

The team’s offensive capabilities will depend on Logan Cooley’s progress in his second season, but he clearly has the potential to take a big step forward. He and the other pivots will be well protected by the wing support, and now by stronger support at the rear.

With Sergachev and Marino in town, the rest of the defense is coming together nicely. Sean Durzi and Juuso Välimäki form a solid second pair while Michael Kesselring is good on the third pair.

While this group is still lacking defensively, Utah not only has the offensive power to make up for it, but it also appears to have relatively stable goaltending to help as well. Connor Ingram has been fantastic for two straight seasons and if he can keep that up, the team looks well-prepared between the pipes.

As it stands, the team looks good enough to be a playoff team — if its young players progress as expected. Its projected net rating currently sits at plus-20, with nine goals added via age adjustment. With that in mind, next season looks to be a make-or-break season for the club, which is why the additions of Sergachev and Marino make a lot of sense. These are exactly the players who can help push a relatively green team into the playoffs.

Inexperience and a disastrous blue line helped sink the team last year, going 7-21-3 at mid-season, highlighted by a 14-game losing streak. This wiped out a lot of the good will that came from a strong start to the season (19-14-2) and a strong finish to the season (10-6-0), a lesson this group can use this season next to form a complete 82. The stability added by Sergachev and Marino should certainly help with the season-long consistency needed to achieve this.

What also helps is the likelihood that Utah isn’t done yet. The NHL’s new team entered the offseason with the best salary cap situation in the league, and while some of that was spent on its two new defensemen, it still has plenty of room to make serious damage.

Maybe it’s a pivot to strengthen in the middle. Maybe it’s another top-four defender. Either way, Utah’s situation looks extremely promising for the 2024-25 season.

The playoffs aren’t a guarantee for any team, much less one that finished with 77 points last season. But as things stand, Utah will likely enter next season with playoff chances north of 50 percent — a big deal for the team’s inaugural season.

It may sound bold, but this team truly feels like it has what it takes to be a problem in the West next season. After years of patient planning, Utah appears to have added the right pieces at the right time to become a playoff team. In year one, Utah is ready to reap the seeds planted in Arizona.

(Photo of Mikhail Sergachev skating in front of Nick Schmaltz: Christian Petersen / Getty Images)