Trade decisions may not be made until right before Deadline, Mammoth GM says

It sets up an intriguing seven-day countdown to the deadline that will see teams bob and weave up and down, especially those vying for the two wild card spots in each conference.

The Mammoth (30-24-4), who hold the first wild card in the Western Conference with 64 points, have four games remaining before the deadline. They’re on an 11-4-1 run that has them in postseason contention and have a remaining home-heavy schedule that will see them play 13 of 24 games in the friendly confines of Delta Center, where they are 17-9-2.

All those factors have the Mammoth open to adding talent but only at the right cost.

“We wake up every morning looking to make our team better,” Armstrong said. “We’re never going to stop trying to improve. I think we’re going to evaluate like everybody else and see if there are hockey deals out there. 

“For us, where we’re at right now, rentals don’t make a lot of sense. I think for us, we did a lot of our depth building in the summer, putting a lot of the pieces in place. But, like I said, if there’s a hockey trade to be made to make us better, we’ll definitely look at it.”

Utah’s biggest offseason move was landing forward JJ Peterka, who is third on the team in goals with 20. The 23-year-old signed a five-year, $38.5 million contract with the Mammoth after they acquired him in a trade with the Buffalo Sabres on June 26.

This week they were boosted by the return of Logan Cooley, who had an assist in Utah’s 4-2 loss to the Colorado Avalanche Wednesday. It was his first game back after missing the previous 28 games with a lower body injury.

Cooley’s return can be seen almost like a trade deadline pickup, given how much time he’s missed. The 21-year-old has 24 points (14 goals, 10 assists) in 30 games and has stepped right back into the second-line center spot.

Utah made a late push for a postseason berth last season before fading to a 38-31-13 record, sixth in Central Division. They were close, missing the postseason by seven points. This time around, Armstrong expects the team to take the next step.

“Last year, our first season in Utah, we talked about playing meaningful games in March and April,” he said. “And we did that.

“This year, the goal is the playoffs. And right now, we have a chance. Right now, we’re about where I expected us to be. 

“And now it’s time for us to get the job done.”