The NHL Draft a week away, Utah is gearing up for their first NHL Draft
The 2024 NHL Draft is right around the corner, and the Utah Hockey Club is preparing for their first-ever draft.
Now, that is just an organizational accomplishment; GM Bill Armstrong and his scouts have been at this for years throughout the NHL. They are experienced and have a good track record of picking prospects, like Dylan Guenther and Joshua Doan.
This year, the team has 13 draft picks. They may part ways with a few picks to add players to make their NHL team better. However, it is unlikely that they part with their first-round pick, as it is the sixth pick in the draft.
As we preview their draft, I'm going to look at some prospects they can select with their first-round draft pick and list a few options for the readers to get acclimated to.
Round 1 Pick 1:
- Tij Iginla (F, Kelowna Rockets, WHL)
- Sam Dickinson (D, London Knights, OHL)
- Zeev Buium (D, Denver)
If you look over Utah's roster, the biggest weakness heading into the draft would be defence. They have a good young forward core that they can add to via free agency.
With that said, if Tij Iginla impressed them at the draft combine and when interviewing, they may want to take him if he is available. However, it would be awesome for him if he could be selected at nine by the Calgary Flames and play where his dad, Jerome, did.
It seems very likely that Utah will pick a defenseman, which means their best options at six would be either Sam Dickinson or Zeev Buium.
Buium appears to be ranked a bit better in mock drafts than Dickinson, which could mean Utah selects Dickinson at six.
Either way, they would be getting a good mobile defenseman with a high IQ and the potential to be their number-one blue-liner for years to come.
Personally, if I had to pick between Buium or Dickinson, it would be Dickinson. He is a big, mobile defenseman who played his junior career with the London Knights of the OHL.
That is a winning program that teaches its players how to be the best of the best. Numerous examples around the NHL are products of the Knights, like Mitch Marner, Matthew Tkachuk, Robert Thomas, Nazem Kadri, and Evan Bouchard.