YOUNG DEFENSEMAN COULD DITCH UTAH TO PLAY HOCKEY OVERSEAS
One of the remaining restricted free agents around the NHL is Utah defenseman Victor Soderstrom. He has made it known that he wasn’t a fan of how things went last season when he only got into three games with the Coyotes after playing in 30 in 2022-23.
While the plan seemed to be for him to remain in North America for the upcoming season, that may not be the case anymore. Aftonbladet’s Hans Abrahamsson and Tomas Rose report that Utah is not inclined to part with the 2019 first-round pick. Meanwhile, while Soderstrom’s preference would be to sign an NHL deal, it appears as if he’s unwilling to do so with Utah at this time, resulting in him looking into overseas options.
Abrahamsson and Rose note that quite a few Swiss League teams and SHL squads have shown interest in the 23-year-old with his old team in Brynas believed to be finalizing a deal with him. In doing so, Soderstrom will be leaving some money on the table compared to other offers out there but it would allow him to return to the program he spent several years in before being drafted by Arizona.
Last season, Soderstrom played in 62 games with AHL Tucson, notching nine goals and 23 assists, both career-bests at that level but it didn’t seem to help his fortunes for a recall. Now, with Utah overhauling its back end with the additions of Mikhail Sergachev, John Marino, and Ian Cole, securing a roster spot to start the season will be even more difficult.
It’s worth noting that Soderstrom is now waiver-eligible so had he signed an NHL deal, he’d have had to go through waivers to return to the minors, giving other teams an opportunity to add him. Instead, it appears as if he’ll return home at least for the upcoming season. Utah will retain his rights as a restricted free agent and the stalemate between the two sides will continue for the foreseeable future.
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