SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Hockey Club’s practice had concluded about 30 minutes earlier on Tuesday, and most of the locker room had cleared.
The only players remaining at their stalls were Ian Cole, Olli Maatta, John Marino and Robert Bortuzzo.
“Makes you feel at home,” said Logan Cooley, a Pittsburgh native.
Understandably so.
Four of Utah’s defensemen once manned the blue line for the Pittsburgh Penguins and a bond very much remains.
“There’s no doubt about that,” Marino said with a smile. “Little bit of overlap, but we’ve all gotten to know one another and it definitely made it more comfortable coming out here.”
Cole, the comedian of the group, tried to break it all down.
“Missed Johnny in Pittsburgh, but Olli was one of my best buddies there and still is,” Cole explained.
Then he pointed at Bortuzzo.
“I never played with him in Pittsburgh,” Cole said.
Then he paused for dramatic effect.
“But I was traded for him once. And I always heard what a nice guy he was. So it’s been nice actually getting to play with someone you were traded for. The four of us get along great. It’s made life really nice here.”
They have all taken different paths to the NHL’s newest city.
Marino was curiously traded from Pittsburgh following three strong seasons to begin his NHL career. After two successful campaigns in New Jersey, he was a salary cap casualty and was dealt to Utah. The 27-year-old is appreciative that the Penguins gave him his break in the NHL, but doesn’t particularly like discussing the deal that sent him away.
“It is what it is,” he said, shrugging his shoulders.
Cole was involved in the Derick Brassard trade in 2018, which effectively was the day the music died on the Penguins’ mini-dynasty. He has since played for Columbus, Colorado, Minnesota, Carolina, Tampa Bay and Vancouver. This summer, he made his way to Salt Lake City.
It’s no secret that Cole and Mike Sullivan endured some friction over the years. Cole doesn’t indicate any animosity on the surface, but he never wished to leave the Penguins.
“Those were incredible times in Pittsburgh,” he said.
Ian Cole and Olli Maatta as teammates with the Penguins in 2016. (Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)
Maatta was traded from Pittsburgh to the Chicago Blackhawks, then went on to play for the Los Angeles Kings and Detroit Red Wings before an October trade sent him to Salt Lake City. He was an instant sensation, making the Penguins’ roster at age 19 in 2013. Health problems hampered him and prevented him from being a star, but more than a decade later, he’s still a solid NHL defenseman.
Bortuzzo played in St. Louis for nearly a decade and won a Stanley Cup ring there before finally being traded to the Islanders in 2023. He signed with Utah last summer.
Between the four, there have been 20 stops for 13 different NHL franchises along the way. The years they spent in Pittsburgh, however, continue to bond them.
“It’s cool for me to watch because I grew up watching some of these guys,” said Cooley, the 20-year-old West Mifflin, Pa. native who is a blossoming star in Utah. “I remember watching Ian Cole and Olli Maatta play for the Penguins, winning Cups, when I was a kid. It’s so cool being on their team now.”
Cole is on the back nine of his career and turns 36 next month. He’s enjoying a resurgence in Utah.
“This guy,” defenseman Juuso Valimaki said, “has at least five years left in his career.”
In his 15th NHL season, Cole is only 125 games away from his 1,000th career NHL game.
“It’s a personal goal of mine to get to that point,” Cole said. “I want to play for as long as I can. I still love this game and I want to play for as long as I’m still playing well. And I think I am. I actually think a lot of my game has improved as I’ve gotten older. My reads are better. Better positioning. Making fewer mistakes. It’s all been a benefit to my game, playing smarter and learning more about the league as you get older. And I don’t think my skating or mobility has deteriorated at all, to be honest. I feel really good about my game.”
Cole has been around long enough to understand that receiving a spot on a roster is hardly a given.
“Not in the least,” he said. “You aren’t handed anything in this business. If I want to have a contract next year, I have to play well this year. And hopefully that will happen. Then the year after that, the same thing. I want to keep going. For me, it’s just a focus on playing as well as I can. It’s much more of a micro view than a macro view for me.”
Marino is nearly a decade younger, but his tone isn’t unlike Cole’s. There is a small sense of resentment from both in regards to being traded from the Penguins. Marino appeared to be a blossoming star with the Penguins, especially after his unforgettable rookie season. He also played at a stellar level during his first season in New Jersey and looked like a building block.
He’s now been traded three times, first by the Oilers to the Penguins when he was a prospect. This is a player who is ready to make a name for himself and remain in one city for a while.
Salt Lake City might as well be it.
“(The) Pittsburgh (trade) surprised me more than (the) New Jersey (trade), with the cap issues and everything,” Marino said. “But it just feels good to be here right now. Still coming back from an injury but I feel pretty good about my game and about myself.”
Some familiarity has gone a long way.
“It sure makes the transition easier when you’re going to play a place where you already have something in common with people there, and you end up playing with some guys that you know,” he said. “I’m actually really happy here. Everything about the organization is first-class. I love the city. And yeah, these guys and me, we do have a connection and we’ve become pretty tight as a result.”
The Utah Hockey Club is sitting pretty far out of a playoff spot but there seems to be a pretty strong belief in this locker room that a turning point is coming.
These four players know what a winner looks like, as they all played roles, big and small, in the Penguins’ success during their glory days.
“We’re building something here and we’re all happy to be a part of it,” Cole said. “It’s nice being together with Olli again, and getting to know the other guys who played in Pittsburgh. Special group.”
(Photo of Karel Vejmelka, Olli Maatta, Ian Cole and Kevin Stenlund: Hunter Dyke / NHLI via Getty Images)