The 2024 NHL Entry Draft at the Sphere in Las Vegas marked the Utah Hockey Club’s first-ever draft. General manager Bill Armstrong was also active on the phone making three big trades. Utah selected forward Tij Iginla with their first-round selection at pick number six. Armstrong traded back into the first round at the 24th spot to take forward Cole Beaudoin. Trades were also made to better the blue line, bringing in defensemen Mikhail Sergachev and John Marino. However, despite the massive moves made over the past several days, Utah’s management continued to shadow similar approaches at this year’s draft as they did in previous years.
Ability to Bring in NHL Level Pedigree
While the current management was not around at the 2013 NHL Entry Draft to select Tie Domi’s son, Max, they were around to draft Shane Doan and Jarome Iginla‘s sons. Both Doan (1,540-game career with the Winnipeg Jets/Arizona Coyotes) and Iginla (1,300 career points) produced respectable legacies in the NHL. Now, those legacies have been passed down to their sons.
Related: Tij Iginla Carving His Own Path With Utah
Josh Doan (Shane Doan’s son) was the Coyotes’ first of three second-round picks in 2021. Doan became the first Arizona-born, raised, and trained player to suit up for the Coyotes. The Scottsdale native was the third former Arizona State Sun Devil to play in an NHL game. The American Hockey League (AHL) All-Star was called up after scoring 46 points in 62 games with the Tucson Roadrunners. In his NHL debut on March 26, 2024, against the Columbus Blue Jackets, the forward scored two goals in the Coyotes’ 6-2 victory. The 6-foot-1, 183-pound, right-handed shot notched nine points in his first 11 games at the NHL level.
Tij Iginla (Jarome Iginla’s son) was the second father-son duo to be drafted under Armstrong. The Canadian-born forward played with Utah’s winger Dylan Guenther for the Seattle Thunderbirds of the Western Hockey League (WHL) during the 2022-23 WHL season. After an 84-point season in the WHL with the Kelowna Rockets, the 6-foot, 192-pound, left-handed shot joined Beaudoin (Utah’s other 2024 first-round pick) to play for Canada’s U18 World Championship team. Speaking of teammates, Armstrong likes the idea of that too…
Strive to Group Teammates Together
In the past three drafts, Armstrong has drafted prospects that were teammates at the time of the draft. In 2022, it was Julian Lutz (third-round pick) and Maksymilian Szuber (sixth-round pick)…
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