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Utah Hockey Club Sign Starting Goalie to Extension

The Utah Hockey Club completed another contract extension, this time with their starting goalie.

Jacob Punturi

Feb 9, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Utah Hockey Club goaltender Karel Vejmelka (70) celebrates with teammates after defeating the Washington Capitals during the third period at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images
Feb 9, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Utah Hockey Club goaltender Karel Vejmelka (70) celebrates with teammates after defeating the Washington Capitals during the third period at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images / Amber Searls-Imagn Images

The Utah Hockey Club has been keeping its players very happy recently. As the team tries to stay alive in the Western Conference playoff race, the organization is also taking care of multiple pending free agents. After signing veterans Ian Cole and Alex Kerfoot to extensions, the team locked up their starting goaltender with a new deal.

The Utah Hockey Club announced they signed starting goalie Karel Vejmelka to a new five-year contract with an average annual value of $4.75 million. This extension keeps Vejmelka with Utah through the 2030 season. In the team's press release, their general manager, Bill Armstrong, shared how much they value the veteran netminder.

"Karel has been integral to the success of our team this season,” he said. “He is a talented goaltender that competes every night he takes the net and has solidified one of the most critical positions on our team. We are thrilled to have Karel signed for the next five years."

This year, Vejmelka has started 35 games for Utah. He's compiled a record of 16-16-4, with a 2.45 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage. He's on pace to record the best GAA and save percentage of his NHL career.

The 28-year-old goalie was a bit of a late bloomer in the NHL. This is only his fourth season in the league, but he's spent his entire playing career with the Utah Hockey Club and Arizona Coyotes organization. The Nashville Predators originally drafted him in 2015, but he played professionally in the Czech Republic before signing with the Coyotes as a free agent in 2021.

Since debuting in the league, he's been an underrated yet solid goalie. He's started 166 games, earning a record 60-91-15, with a career GAA of 3.26 and .901 save percentage. With this new deal finalized, it appears Utah has its goaltending depth secured for the next five seasons.

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Jacob Punturi
JACOB PUNTURI

Jacob is a featured writer covering the Pittsburgh Steelers for Steelers On SI and the NHL for Breakaway On SI. He also co-hosts the All Steelers Talk podcast. Previous work covering the NHL for Inside the Penguins and The Hockey News.

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