The Utah Hockey Club has activated defenseman Robert Bortuzzo off of injured reserve. Bortuzzo sustained a lower-body injury in December 10th’s game against the Minnesota Wild. He returned for eight minutes of ice time in Utah’s January 2nd win over Calgary, but wasn’t back to full health and had to step back out of the lineup. Bortuzzo missed 44 games of action in total with this injury and will now return with just nine games left in Utah’s season.
Bortuzzo played in 14 games before falling to injury. He recorded two assists, 22 penalty minutes, and a minus-two, while averaging just 11 minutes of ice time. After years of a dwindling role, Bortuzzo has fallen firmly into the role of seventh defenseman after signing a one-year, two-way, league-minimum contract with Utah this summer. The end of the season will be his chance to finally affirm that contract, though the signs of retirement could be shining for the 36-year-old defender.
If Bortuzzo does hang up his skates at the end of the year, he’ll leave behind a strong 14-year career in the NHL. His career began with the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2011-12 season, but he spent the vast majority of it with the St. Louis Blues after a trade in the 2014-15 season swapped him for fellow veteran defender Ian Cole. Bortuzzo went on to record 424 games with the Blues – routinely serving in a depth role and never managing more than 13 points in a single season. Still, his gritty physicality and veteran depth helped support St. Louis to a Stanley Cup in 2019 – and made him a valuable addition for the injury-riddled New York Islanders blue-line last season.
Bortuzzo could quickly find his way back into Utah’s lineup on Sunday, with vet Olli Määttä designated as a game-time decision for the matchup per Cole Bagley of KSL Sports. Määttä left Utah’s Friday game early with a lower-body injury. If he can’t go, the Hockey Club will be pushed to decide between Bortuzzo and current extra defender Nick DeSimone. Määttä has been an oft-used member of Utah’s blue-line. He’s averaging a career-high 20 minutes of ice time in Salt Lake City and has so far scored 15 points in 63 games. But Määttä is also in the rut of a cold-streak, with no scoring and a minus-three over his last nine games. A spot absence could be a chance for Määttä to make sure the mental and physical are both on the right track – as he prepares to serve a confident top-four role while Utah clings on to their playoff hopes.