Utah NHL team: Difference between revisions
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====History of ice hockey in Salt Lake City==== |
====History of ice hockey in Salt Lake City==== |
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{{further|Ice hockey in Utah}} |
{{further|Ice hockey in Utah}} |
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[[File:2002 Winter Olympics flame.jpg|thumb|upright|Lighting of the [[Olympic flame]] by the [[United States men's national ice hockey team|1980 U.S. men's hockey team]] during the [[2002 Winter Olympics]]]] |
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Prior to the arrival of the NHL, Salt Lake City had a limited hockey history. The first team to call the area home, the minor-league [[Salt Lake Golden Eagles]], played 25 seasons across the [[Western Hockey League (1952-1974)|Western Hockey League]] (WHL), [[Central Professional Hockey League|Central Hockey League]] (CHL), and [[International Hockey League (1945-2001)|International Hockey League]] (IHL) from 1969 to 1994. Playing out of the [[Salt Palace (arena)|Salt Palace]] for their first 22 seasons and the then-new [[Delta Center]] for their final three, the Golden Eagles won two [[Adams Cup (ice hockey)|Adams Cup]] championships in the CHL and two [[Turner Cup]] championships in the IHL, before ultimately being sold and relocating to [[Auburn Hills, Michigan]], as the [[Detroit Vipers]] after the [[1993–94 IHL season]]. |
Prior to the arrival of the NHL, Salt Lake City had a limited hockey history. The first team to call the area home, the minor-league [[Salt Lake Golden Eagles]], played 25 seasons across the [[Western Hockey League (1952-1974)|Western Hockey League]] (WHL), [[Central Professional Hockey League|Central Hockey League]] (CHL), and [[International Hockey League (1945-2001)|International Hockey League]] (IHL) from 1969 to 1994. Playing out of the [[Salt Palace (arena)|Salt Palace]] for their first 22 seasons and the then-new [[Delta Center]] for their final three, the Golden Eagles won two [[Adams Cup (ice hockey)|Adams Cup]] championships in the CHL and two [[Turner Cup]] championships in the IHL, before ultimately being sold and relocating to [[Auburn Hills, Michigan]], as the [[Detroit Vipers]] after the [[1993–94 IHL season]]. |
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Revision as of 23:45, 19 April 2024
| Utah NHL team | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Western |
| Division | Central |
| Founded | 2024 |
| History | 2024–present |
| Home arena | Delta Center |
| City | Salt Lake City, Utah |
| Owner(s) | Ryan Smith |
| General manager | Bill Armstrong |
| Head coach | Andre Tourigny |
| Captain | Vacant |
| Minor league affiliates | Tucson Roadrunners (AHL) |
| Stanley Cups | 0 |
| Conference championships | 0 |
| Presidents' Trophy | 0 |
| Division championships | 0 |
| Official website | nhlinutah |
The Utah NHL team is a professional ice hockey expansion team that will be based in Salt Lake City. The still-unnamed team will compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and will begin play during the league's 2024–25 season. It will play its home games at the Delta Center.
On April 18, 2024, the NHL Board of Governors approved the establishment of a franchise in Salt Lake City, to be owned by businessman and Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith, and with the hockey assets of the suspended Arizona Coyotes franchise.[1] The team name, logo, and colors have yet to be announced, though it has been confirmed that the franchise will use the "Utah" regional moniker, rather than Salt Lake City.[2]
The franchise will play at the Delta Center, currently the home of the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA), while a new, more hockey-capable arena is developed for both teams.[3]
History
Background and establishment
History of ice hockey in Salt Lake City
Prior to the arrival of the NHL, Salt Lake City had a limited hockey history. The first team to call the area home, the minor-league Salt Lake Golden Eagles, played 25 seasons across the Western Hockey League (WHL), Central Hockey League (CHL), and International Hockey League (IHL) from 1969 to 1994. Playing out of the Salt Palace for their first 22 seasons and the then-new Delta Center for their final three, the Golden Eagles won two Adams Cup championships in the CHL and two Turner Cup championships in the IHL, before ultimately being sold and relocating to Auburn Hills, Michigan, as the Detroit Vipers after the 1993–94 IHL season.
After just one season out of hockey, Salt Lake received another IHL franchise in 1995, as the reigning Turner Cup champion, the Denver Grizzlies, having been replaced by the newly-relocated Colorado Avalanche of the NHL, relocated to the Delta Center for the 1995–96 season as the Utah Grizzlies. The Grizzlies spent two seasons in Salt Lake City proper, including a second consecutive Turner Cup championship in 1996; notably, the Cup-clinching game 4 of the Turner Cup Finals saw an attendance of 17,381, at the time the largest attendance in minor-league hockey history.[4] The Grizzlies later moved to the newly-constructed E Center (since renamed the Maverik Center) in the suburb of West Valley City for the 1997–98 IHL season, and joined the American Hockey League (AHL) in 2001 alongside five other surviving IHL franchises upon the latter's collapse. However, the Grizzlies voluntarily suspended operations for the 2005–06 season, before being sold to Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert and relocating to Cleveland, Ohio, as the Lake Erie Monsters for the 2007–08 season.
The AHL iteration of the Grizzlies were subsequently replaced by a relocated ECHL franchise of the same name; the franchise had most recently played in Lexington, Kentucky, as the Lexington Men O' War, but had become dormant after the 2002–03 ECHL season. The new Grizzlies began play out of the E Center in 2005, immediately after their AHL predecessor had gone dormant, and have played 19 seasons in the ECHL since. However, the franchise has been comparatively unsuccessful; although they have missed the playoffs only three times, they have won just one division championship and no conference championships, only having reached the conference finals twice.
In addition to these teams, the Delta Center has previously hosted multiple Los Angeles Kings preseason games as part of the NHL's Frozen Fury series.[5][6] However, the arena was not considered well-suited to host hockey on a permanent basis, owing to poor sightlines and broadcasting capabilities.[7] Furthermore, the aforementioned Maverik Center, as well as the Peaks Ice Arena in the suburb of Provo, hosted Winter Olympic hockey in 2002, which featured NHL players.
Establishment of the team
Salt Lake City initially emerged as a potential NHL destination in June of 2023, with rumors regarding the Arizona Coyotes' potential relocation spreading after the failure of the New Tempe Arena referendum.[8] Six months later, in January 2024, Ryan Smith, owner of the NBA's Utah Jazz and co-owner of Major League Soccer's Real Salt Lake, petitioned the NHL to begin the process of expansion to Salt Lake City. Discussions to bring an expansion team to the city were revealed to have been underway since early 2022,[9] with the Utah State Senate passing tax legislation in February 2024 to support a new hockey-capable downtown arena proposed by Smith.[10]
On April 13, 2024, it was reported that, with the NHL's permission, the Coyotes were making efforts to relocate to Salt Lake City following concerns about an indefinite timeframe on a new arena and the effects of continued play at the 4,600-seat Mullett Arena.[11] The sale, which involved the NHL buying the franchise from Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo, then reselling it to Smith, was finalized on April 18 after the NHL Board of Governors voted to establish a team in Utah using the Coyotes' hockey assets;[12] however, rather than formally relocate, the Coyotes franchise was instead marked "inactive", with Utah considered an expansion team in a similar situation to the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League. Of the reported $1.2 billion sale price,[13][14] $1 billion was paid to Meruelo, with $200 million paid to the NHL's other owners as a relocation fee.[15] According to Smith, the team sold more than 11,000 season-ticket deposits in the four hours after going on sale, with 6,000 sold in the first two hours.[16]
Team information
Broadcasting
Television
On April 18, 2024, shortly after the establishment of the team, it was announced that the team had reached an agreement with the E.W. Scripps Company to broadcast Utah NHL games on their Provo-based station KUPX-TV.[17] KUPX, branded as Utah 16, had previously served as a regional affiliate of the Vegas Golden Knights' television network,[18] and also broadcasted select Arizona Coyotes games.[19]
Players and personnel
Current roster
Updated April 19, 2024[20][21]
Owners
The team is owned by Smith Entertainment Group, which is controlled by businessman Ryan Smith and his wife Ashley.[22]
General managers
- Bill Armstrong, 2024–present
Head coaches
- Andre Tourigny, 2024–present
References
- ^ "NHL BOG approves establishment of new franchise in Utah". NHL.com. April 18, 2024. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
- ^ Cotsonika, Nicholas. "'Utah's ready for a team,' new owner says". NHL.com. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
- ^ Gubbi, Mythili (April 16, 2024). "Salt Lake City Council begins process of discussing, reviewing plans for new downtown arena". Fox 13. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
- ^ Turner, Tim (June 9, 1996). "ORLANDO OUSTED IN OT". Orlando Sentinel.
- ^ "LA Kings to Play Frozen Fury Preseason Game in Salt Lake City". NHL.com. Retrieved October 1, 2021.
- ^ "Salt Lake City Shows Out For Frozen Fury NHL Game". October 6, 2021.
- ^ Larsen, Andy (October 6, 2023). "The NHL's only Utahn thinks the state is ready for hockey's best. Is a major league team ready for Salt Lake?". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
But the Delta Center simply isn't an ideal NHL venue at this time. Fans sitting in certain seats struggled to see the corners, TV cameras for the game had to be propped up in the row where broadcasters typically sit. The broadcasters and scorekeepers seated near me sometimes struggled to do their jobs as a result.
- ^ Cluff, Jeremy (June 6, 2023). "Arizona Coyotes to Salt Lake City? Relocation speculation swirls around NHL team in Utah". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
- ^ Fox, Derick (January 24, 2024). "Utah sports mogul Ryan Smith submits bid to bring NHL to Salt Lake City". ABC4. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
- ^ Romboy, Dennis (February 27, 2024). "Utah Senate passes bill for potential downtown hockey arena". Deseret News. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
- ^ "Coyotes bid Arizona farewell with bittersweet win over Oilers". ESPN.com. April 17, 2024. Archived from the original on April 18, 2024. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
There could be a new arena -- eventually. Meruelo had been pursuing a tract of land in north Phoenix to build it. When delays pushed the land auction until June, the NHL and the players' association got cold feet about continuing to play at Mullett Arena, the loud-but-bandbox-sized venue shared with Arizona State University. Meruelo was adamant about not selling the team despite constant offers since he bought in 2019, but he also didn't want the players stuck playing in a 5,000-seat arena -- by far the NHL's smallest -- that wasn't up to league standards. With no guarantee he would have an arena and with no other options, Meruelo agreed to sell the franchise.
- ^ Cotsonika, Nicholas. "'Utah's ready for a team,' new owner says". NHL.com. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
- ^ Friedman, Elliotte (April 10, 2024). "NHL, Arizona Coyotes preparing for possible relocation to Utah". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
- ^ "Report: NHL, Coyotes make progress on framework for Utah relocation". Sportsnet.ca. April 10, 2024. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
- ^ Boudway, Ira (April 18, 2024). "Billionaire Ryan Smith Gets His NHL Team, Moving Arizona Coyotes to Utah". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
- ^ Gould, Mike (April 18, 2024). "Ryan Smith says Utah NHL team has already sold more than 11,000 season ticket deposits". Daily Faceoff. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
- ^ Tavss, Jeff (April 18, 2024). "Utah NHL games to air free on Utah 16". Fox 13. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
- ^ Urban, Andrea (August 27, 2023). "Stanley Cup champions stop in Ogden on 'road trip'". KSTU. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
- ^ McCarter, Rebecca (October 5, 2023). "Arizona Coyotes, Scripps Sports Form Multi-Year Broadcast Partnership". Scripps.com (Press release). Retrieved October 5, 2023.
- ^ "Arizona Coyotes Roster". National Hockey League. Retrieved April 17, 2024.
- ^ "Arizona Coyotes Hockey Transactions". The Sports Network. Retrieved April 17, 2024.
- ^ Soshnick, Eben Novy-Williams,Scott; Novy-Williams, Eben; Soshnick, Scott (April 18, 2024). "In Unique $1.2 Billion Coyotes Deal, Buyer Never Met Seller". Sportico.com. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
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