Veteran defensemen Mikhail Sergachev and John Marino were each acquired by the Utah Hockey Club in the second round of the draft on Saturday.
The Tampa Bay Lightning initially traded Sergachev for JJ Moser, Conor Geekie, a 2025 second-round draft pick and the 199e total choice from Saturday’s auction.
The New Jersey Devils then traded Marino and the 153e This year’s overall pick vs. 49e pick (became goaltender Mikhail Yegorov) and a second-round pick in 2025.
Sergachev is finishing up the first season of an eight-year, $68 million ($8.5 million/season) deal he signed with the Lightning on July 13. He has 19 points (two goals, 17 assists) in 34 games this season. He finished last season with 64 points (10 goals, 54 assists) in 79 games, a top among Lightning defensemen. In 2020 and 2021, he helped Tampa Bay win the Stanley Cup.
The ninth overall pick in the 2016 draft by the Montreal Canadiens, Sergachev has 257 points (48 goals, 209 assists) in 475 regular season games, then 34 points (nine goals, 25 assists) in 100 playoff games.
“Mikhaïl has proven that he is a winner and capable of producing, in addition to being one of the best defensive defensemen in the NHL in a long time,” commented Utah general manager Bill Armstrong . “You can’t have success in this league without an elite defender. We look forward to Mikhail being the leader of our defense for the next few years. »
Moser, 24, has 26 points (five goals, 25 assists) in 80 games with the Arizona Coyotes this season.
Chosen by the Coyotes in the second round (60th overall) of the 2021 NHL Draft, Moser has 72 points (16 goals, 56 assists) in 205 regular season games.
Geekie has yet to play in the NHL. He has 99 points (43 goals, 56 assists) in 55 games with the Swift Current Broncos and Wenatchee Wild of the Western Hockey League (WHL) in 2023-24. He is the 11e overall pick in the 2022 draft.
Marino, Utah’s other addition, has 25 points (four goals, 21 assists) in 75 games this season. He has 107 points (18 goals, 89 assists) in 328 regular-season games with the Devils and Pittsburgh Penguins and six assists in 29 playoff games.
