Utah Hockey Club GM and Head Coach Address Media Amid Disappointing Season
During the 4 Nations Face-Off break, Utah Hockey Club GM Bill Armstrong and head coach Andre Tourigny addressed the media amid a disappointing season.
Ahead of the 2024-25 regular season, league analysts were split on the near future of the NHL inaugural Utah Hockey Club.
Being met with new excitement and some strong pieces, some expected the team to clinch a playoff spot while others saw them just missing out.
With only 26 games left in the season, Utah is fourth in the Western Conference Wild Card race, standing six points behind and .064 percent below the Vancouver Canucks, holding their Stanley Cup chances at next to none.
Now with the NHL fanbase following along with the 4 Nations Face-Off, team General Manager Bill Armstrong and head coach Andre Tourigny took the break to address the media about how this lackluster season has unfolded.
Armstrong and Tourigny had expressed hopefulness in the team's ability to skate into the playoffs during the preseason, yet even with all odds pointing against them, they both still expressed their belief it could still happen.
When asked if these prior beliefs met with expectations, GM Armstrong stated that a lot of what has turned their game upside-down comes down to injured players and back-up goaltenders: all of which will be remedied in the coming weeks.
Utah head coach Andre Tourigny expressed a similar sentient, arguing that the team is exactly where it wants to be with a far less demanding schedule for the remainder of the regular season.
Though both Armstrong and Tourigny are correct in their belief that there are enough games left to make a playoffs appearance, it relies on some heavy-hitting teams to make a sudden fall from grace.
Hopefully, regardless of this season's outcomes, both can learn how to improve Utah's chance at a Stanley Cup in their future.
| POLL | ||
FÉVRIER 15 | 449 ANSWERS Utah Hockey Club GM and Head Coach Address Media Amid Disappointing Season Will Utah Hockey Club make a Stanley Cup playoffs appearance in the next 3 years? | ||
| Yes | 161 | 35.9 % |
| No | 238 | 53 % |
| Unsure | 50 | 11.1 % |
| LIST OF POLLS | ||
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Tom Wilson | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Alexander Ovechkin | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Brendan Gallagher | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Anthony Cirelli | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Josh Doan | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Pierre-Luc Dubois | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Dylan Guenther | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Victor Hedman | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jack McBain | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Dylan Strome | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jake Guentzel | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Brandon Hagel | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Michael Carcone | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Christian Dvorak | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Zemgus Girgensons | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Nick Paul | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Brayden Point | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Cam Atkinson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| John Carlson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Nick Desimone | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Jets | 56 | 39 | 14 | 3 | 81 | |
Capitals | 55 | 36 | 11 | 8 | 80 | |
Oilers | 55 | 34 | 17 | 4 | 72 | |
Stars | 55 | 35 | 18 | 2 | 72 | |
Golden Knights | 56 | 33 | 17 | 6 | 72 | |
Panthers | 57 | 34 | 20 | 3 | 71 | |
Hurricanes | 56 | 33 | 19 | 4 | 70 | |
Wild | 56 | 33 | 19 | 4 | 70 | |
Maple Leafs | 55 | 33 | 20 | 2 | 68 | |
Avalanche | 57 | 33 | 22 | 2 | 68 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||