Utah Hockey Club Places Defenseman on the NHL Waiver Wire

The Utah Hockey Club have been off to a solid start in their first season as an official NHL team, and now they're waiving 30-year old blue liner Dakota Mermis.

After promising performances early in the season, the Utah Hockey Club have now fallen to 11th place in the Western Conference standings, with a shot at the Stanley Cup Playoffs now a major longshot.

Perhaps the biggest reason for the team falling off the way they have has been the injuries suffered to their blue line, with the likes of John Marino and Sean Durzi both spending the majority of this season on the sidelines thus far.

That forced their hand early in the season, with the team picking up 30-year old Dakota Mermis on waivers from the Toronto Maple Leafs, and now, the veteran has been waived once more, according to top NHL Insider Elliotte Friedman.

That was later confirmed by the team's social media account, who have confirmed that he has been waived with the purpose of reassignment to the AHL's Tucson Roadrunners, with the team hoping that Mermis can serve as good organizational depth for their blue line.

Despite making his NHL debut back in 2017, Mermis has played in just 75 games since that point, with the one game he played for Utah this season seeing him tally no points and a -2 goal differential.

Throughout that career, Mermis has been given a shot by Arizona, New Jersey, Minnesota, Toronto and Utah, but ultimately he just hasn't been able to catch on anywhere, with major question marks now emerging over his potential to be a full-time NHLer.

With depth issues on their blue line, Utah will certainly be hoping that he passes through waivers, as he may be needed in a big way if they make a shock push for the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but with his experience, there's no doubt that he's a chance of being claimed.

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