The depth of Utah HC’s blue line is about to be tested in a major way after Sean Durzi and John Marino underwent surgeries that will sideline them well into the new year.
Durzi and Marino were penciled in as two of the team’s top-three defensemen entering the season and that duo was viewed as a strength of the NHL’s newest club in tandem with Mikhail Sergachev.
However, Marino went down with an injury during training camp while Durzi was sidelined in an Oct. 14 game in New Jersey.
Utah confirmed the worst fears about the status of those players Wednesday when it announced that Durzi would be out four to six months following surgery on his right shoulder while placing a three-to-four-month timeline on Marino’s expected return after he underwent a procedure on his lower back.
INJURY UPDATE pic.twitter.com/RwO9R6DQbk
— Utah Hockey Club PR (@UtahHC_PR) October 23, 2024
The team recalled 20-year-old defenseman Maveric Lamoureux from AHL Tucson. The 29th pick from the 2022 draft has four games of pro experience under his belt — all with the Roadrunners this season.
It’s a sign of how Utah plans to navigate the immediate path forward. The team intends to patch things together with internal solutions in the absence of Durzi and Marino, at least initially, according to league sources.
Utah has been playing veteran defenseman Robert Bortuzzo over the last week and is leaning more heavily on Michael Kesselring, having given him at least 20 minutes of ice time in four straight games since Durzi was injured. Sergachev leads all NHL skaters with an average of 26:23 per game. Ian Cole, Juuso Välimäki and Vladislav Kolyachonok are all seeing an increased role.
Lamoureux could soon make his NHL debut.
With Sergachev, Durzi and Marino all under contract through at least the 2026-27 season, the trade market isn’t viewed as an attractive short-term option for the club because it would cloud the picture once everyone is healthy. That approach could change, however, depending on how well or poorly the team performs while Durzi and Marino are out.
There’s an internal belief that the club’s season may be defined by the stretch of schedule between now and early January. It features 10 games against Central Division opponents and three four-game road trips.
Utah is off to a 4-2-1 start in its first season since moving from Arizona.
(Photo: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)
