Utah Hockey Club's GM Bill Armstrong has taken some mighty big swings this off-season.
On the second day of the draft, he acquired Mikhail Sergachev from the Tampa Bay Lightning and John Marino from the New Jersey Devils.
Now that they have essentially rebuilt 2/3's of their blue line, the focus turns to the forward group. As of right now, Utah only has 12 NHL forwards, which means there is a chance they are looking to add another player up front.
If so, they should take another massive swing and try and acquire Trevor Zegras from the Anaheim Ducks.
There have been rumours swirling about the potential of the Ducks wanting to move on from him. If it does materialize and he is available for trade, then Utah should toss its name into the hat.
Zegras has elite potential at the NHL level; unfortunately, it hasn't always shown largely because of his inconsistencies.
However, there may also be an element of the team and lack of success that could impact his inconsistencies.
Utah HC has bettered themselves this off-season and pushed their way up into the playoff contender category. If they could reel in another big fish like Zegras, they would find themselves in an even better spot heading into the 2024-25 NHL season.
Ultimately, it depends on the asking price. The Ducks may not value him a ton in their organization and want to change up the mix, but that doesn't mean that they won't value him as a trade piece.
Utah has the draft assets to blow most deals out of the water, but the Ducks will likely want an NHL player in return. Armstrong may be able to build a package centred around 23-year-old Matias Maccelli.
It is unlikely that Armstrong will want to part ways with Josh Doan, Dylan Guenther, or Mavric Lamoureux. Additionally, Tij Iginla and Cole Beaudoin aren't going anywhere, which means they will probably need to move a roster player and draft picks to get Zegras from the Ducks.
End of the day, it may be worth parting with a few picks and Maccelli to make the team stronger up front.