As temperatures drop, the Utah Hockey Club brings action to the ice along with the other professional sports Utah already hosts, such as the Utah Jazz and Real Salt Lake.
When the ice hockey team Arizona Coyotes were looking for a new home after they were unable to find a permanent place to play, Utah businessman Ryan Smith saw an opportunity to bring hockey at the highest level to Utah. Smith is already the owner of the Jazz in the National Basketball League and a co-owner of Real Salt Lake in the Major League Soccer, and he believes that hockey has a chance to thrive in Utah.
Despite the seemingly crowded market that exists in Utah with both the NBA and the MLS already in town, the Utah Hockey Club will flourish over time. Smith has proven that Utah fans are more than capable of showing out for the local teams during his tenure as the owner of the Jazz, and will continue to bring that enthusiasm to the ice.
“Utah was in a spot to do it,” Smith said. “No matter how great we are, or how well-funded we are, or how ready we are, the state is going to carry the day. The city is going to carry the day; the people showing up are going to carry the day.”
Utah, while not a huge market, has earned a reputation as some of the best sports fans. The Jazz have a 292-game sellout streak despite not making the playoffs for the past few seasons and will undoubtedly come out to support the new team on the block.
When season tickets became available, 34,000 deposits were made in the first 48 hours and only 8% of the deposits were Jazz season-ticket holders, according to Chris Barney, Smith Entertainment Group president of revenue and commercial strategy. Despite the huge following the Jazz have garnered in Salt Lake City, the Hockey Club is attracting new eyes and continuing to strengthen the sports community in Utah.
“So we immediately became very, very bullish on the demand from the community,” Barney said. “Another really interesting nuance about that group is 63% of those people hadn’t even been to an arena event in a year. You don’t really get the chance in sports to cultivate a new audience.”
Even though the Jazz and Real Salt Lake have already strengthened the sports community in Utah, bringing the National Hockey League to Utah will only bring that further. It’s been proven that bringing the hockey team to Utah has already attracted new eyes who have not been attracted to the sports mainstays, adding to the community that will only continue to build as the team gains its footing in Utah.
Along with building up the fandom that already exists for the other professional teams, bringing the NHL to Utah will bolster hockey as a whole in Utah. The Jazz were able to aid in the growth of basketball through programs such as the Junior Jazz, and the Hockey Club has an opportunity to do a very similar thing. Starting similar programs to Junior Jazz, hockey would have a similar effect on growing the game in Utah, especially with the support of a professional team for players to look up to.
“I think once the team starts, you’re going to see a lot of interest, and kids are going to start choosing the hockey stick over a basketball or soccer ball or football,” Paul Taylor, general manager and coach for Utah Outliers, said.
While the Utah Hockey Club has had a smooth transition to Utah, especially with their 3-1-1 start to the season, they still have a long way to go. The Coyotes had not made the playoffs the previous four seasons, and they will certainly hope to turn a new leaf in Utah. The team has also yet to pick an official name and logo, which they will decide at the end of the season.
Picking a name quickly after the season and allowing fans to take part in it will be instrumental in the growth of the team going forward. A team name and logo allows fans to build a culture around the team, something the current name doesn’t allow. Some of the currently proposed names include the Yetis, Mammoths and Outlaws.
Despite this, they have a chance to spread the NHL to a new audience of hockey viewers and help move the sport forward as a whole in the state of Utah.
