With Julian Lutz signing yesterday, does this mean Utah finally has some roster stability?
Yesterday, I wrote about Clayton Keller potentially being named captain signaling the start of a youth movement within the Utah NHL team.
With The Daily Faceoff reporting yesterday, and confirmed by KSL Sports, the Utah NHL team made its first big player-related move in signing Julian Lutz to a three-year, entry-level contract.
While this doesn't necessarily mean Lutz will be on the opening night roster in October, it certainly does give insight into what head coach Andre Tourigny and general manager Bill Armstrong, working in tandem with alternate governor Chris Armstrong and owner Ryan Smith, want to build.
It's now possible that Utah could also have found the core they want to build around.
Lutz joins Utah after a breakout year in the USHL, scoring 24 goals in just 50 games in Green Bay, according to Daily Faceoff, and center Logan Cooley will be coming off a rookie year where he scored 20 goals, while Keller added 33 more.
The upside is that Lutz is also eligible to play in the American Hockey League, too, which is probably where the German will start next season.
Keller and Cooley will likely be part of the top-six forwards for Andre Tourigny in training camp, and if Lutz keeps his form he found in Green Bay and in the IIHF World Championships rolling, he could soon find himself with those two on the same line.
Can you tell I'm not excited about this?
It's a season where many NHL fans will be cheering for Utah to finally get out of the cellar, and with this new youth movement, it's the season it could finally happen — all because they may have found what they needed to build around.