SALT LAKE CITY – Utah Hockey Club announced the signing of 27-year-old defenseman Patrik Koch to a one-year, two-way contract.
The team announced Koch’s deal on Thursday, June 20.
Koch is the first defenseman to officially sign a new deal with Utah Hockey Club. Earlier in the week, Utah Hockey Club signed forward Noel Nordh, forward Julian Lutz, and goaltender Matt Villalta.
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Terms of Koch’s contract weren’t disclosed by the club.
.@utahhockeyclub signs defenseman Patrik Koch to a one-year, two-way contract.
Koch played one game for the @ArizonaCoyotes last season.#UtahHC @kslsports
📷: Getty Images pic.twitter.com/GFpdTCRv50— Kyle Ireland (@kyleireland) June 20, 2024
Koch was originally acquired by the Coyotes as an undrafted prospect.
Last season, the Malacky Slovakia native played one game for the Arizona Coyotes and 63 with the franchise’s AHL affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners. With the Roadrunners, Koch recorded one goal and 14 assists. He also posted 97 penalty minutes.
The new Utah HC player recently competed with Slovakia at the 2024 World Championship. He appeared in eight contests and had one goal, three assists, and six penalty minutes.
𝗦𝗜𝗚𝗡𝗘𝗗 ✍️
We have signed defenseman Patrik Koch to a one-year, two-way contract.
Read more: https://t.co/8bqQb8plsn pic.twitter.com/hsTJIkjC7h
— Utah Hockey Club (@utahhockeyclub) June 20, 2024
Before his time with the Roadrunners, the defenseman posted three goals, nine assists, and 69 PIM with Czech Extraliga’s HC Vitkovice over the course of 46 regular season games. During the postseason with HC Vitkovice, Koch added another goal and three assists.
Koch played three seasons with Vitkovice.
Before his time with HC Vitkovice, Koch played eight games with HC Kometa Brno from 2015-17 and was teammates with Utah goalie Karel Vejmelka.
Utah will begin its inaugural season as an NHL team in the fall. The team will play its home games at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City.
Kyle Ireland is a Utah Hockey Club Insider for KSLSports.com. Follow him on X (@kyleireland), Threads (@kyleirelandksl), and Instagram (@kyleirelandksl).
