</p> <p><p>by Alixel Cabrera, Utah News Dispatch <br />April 24, 2024</p> </p> <p><p>Hundreds of Utah kids, most of them part of youth hockey teams, ditched school on Wednesday morning and headed to the airport instead. They waited for the arrival of the former Arizona Coyotes, who are poised to become Utah’s future National Hockey League team.</p> </p> <p style="text-align:center"><img decoding="async" src="https://stlouisblues.myjerseyhub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Zf6Ptq0ofh.jpeg" alt="utah jazz purple jersey" title="utah jazz purple jersey"></p> <p><p>Though the name of the team is yet to be determined, many of them chanted “Utah Yetis” repeatedly. Some waved hockey jerseys from different local teams — including the Aggies, the Ogden Mustangs, and the Utah Grizzlies. A lot of them had mullet haircuts and many waved hand-drawn posters with welcoming messages and references to their missed day of school, such as “will you sign my school release?” </p> </p> </p> </p> <p><p>Later that day, thousands of Utahns congregated outside the Delta Center, starting at 10 a.m. for a team welcome party that was scheduled to begin that afternoon at 4aatos koivu. The arena quickly filled up when the doors opened and, at times, their cheers were strident. Some of the kids who were at the airport in the morning were featured on the wide screens, taking part in the chants.</p> </p> <p><p>Emotions among fans ran high throughout the day. Some called it a historic moment and a day to remember. Some said the 0.5% Salt Lake City sales tax that could help fund a home for the NHL franchise will be worth it.</p> </p> <p><p>Chelsea Stuart, a Centerville resident who waited at the tarmac in the morning with her two children, said the sales tax is “fine” because bringing the team would be beneficial for her hockey community.</p> </p> <p><p>“I’m in Salt Lake every weekend to go out and everything else,” she said. “I love that they’re keeping (hockey) at the Delta Center. I love that they’re keeping it downtown.”</p> </p> <p><p>Her 11-year-old daughter Zoey and her 7-year-old son Zane play hockey on a Davis County team. There’s little ice in Utah, so the family starts its mornings early and drives to other cities — sometimes hundreds of miles away — for games. They hope bringing an NHL team can expand Utah kids’ opportunities to play. So, they celebrated the occasion, even if that meant pulling Zoey out of school after she completed some state testing.</p> </p> <p style="text-align:center"><img decoding="async" src="https://stlouisblues.myjerseyhub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2380Bg3.jpg" alt="utah jazz purple jersey" title="utah jazz purple jersey"></p> <p><p>“How do you miss something like this?” Stuart said. “You can’t do it.” They are among the 29,000 fans who bought deposits for season tickets.utah hockey team expansion draft</p> </p> <p style="text-align:center"><img decoding="async" src="https://stlouisblues.myjerseyhub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/56We0fZ6Xt.jpg" alt="utah jazz purple jersey" title="utah jazz purple jersey"></p> <p><figure><i></i> Children meet Utah’s new NHL team at the Signature Aviation Airport terminal on Wednesday, April 24, 2024. (Alixel Cabrera/Utah News Dispatch)</p> </figure> <p><p>Zoey, carrying a poster with multiple signatures from the team after the airport meeting and sporting a Davis County Youth Hockey Association shirt, said she was excited to see new ice nearby.</p> </p> <p><p>“Some of my friends who do hockey with me, they have to drive out for like 45 minutes just to get to the ice,” she said.</p> </p> <p><p>Others, such as Cherie Harper, who now lives in Canada but grew up in Magna and happened to be in Utah visiting her parents, said they don’t believe the sales increase was necessary. </p> </p> <p style="text-align:center"><img decoding="async" src="https://stlouisblues.myjerseyhub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/36Lq8m.jpg" alt="utah jazz purple jersey" title="utah jazz purple jersey"></p> <p><p>“I don’t appreciate that. I think a team should be able to sustain itself. And I think in time it should and that tax should be revoked. But we all know once they impose a tax, they don’t revoke it,” Harper said. “So hopefully that tax will continue to go to the team and improve arenas, maybe around Utah for kids, because hockey is an amazing sport.”</p> </p> <p><p>But, she still is excited for hockey to come to the state. She was two hours early to grab a seat at the Delta Center and see the newly-bought team.</p> </p> <p style="text-align:center"><img decoding="async" src="https://stlouisblues.myjerseyhub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/3xXSj.png" alt="utah jazz purple jersey" title="utah jazz purple jersey"></p> <p><p>“I’ve been waiting for this forever. And I’ve just been waiting for the Coyotes to fall down south and get treated properly up here,” she said.</p> </p> <p><figure><i></i> Fans wait outside of the Delta Center ahead of an NHL team welcome party on Wednesday, April 24, 2024 (Alixel Cabrera/Utah News Dispatch)</p> </figure> <p style="text-align:center"><img decoding="async" src="https://stlouisblues.myjerseyhub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/2380Bg3.jpg" alt="utah jazz purple jersey" title="utah jazz purple jersey"></p> <p><p>For some of the players, it was their first visit to Utah. They toured the Delta Center, which is set to undergo renovations to accommodate ice, and visited the training site for the Utah Jazz, the state’s National Basketball Association team.</p> </p> <p><p>“It’s really overwhelming to see all these people. There’s not even a game. This is just to introduce the players and introduce the sport to Utah,” said Sen. Dan McCay, R-Riverton, who sponsored SB272, a bill that draws a path to fund part of an arena that could host professional hockey and basketball. </p> </p> <p><p>Now that the Utah Legislature has approved the bill and Gov. Spencer Cox has signed it, it’s up to the Salt Lake City Council to give the final nod to increase its sales taxes by 0.5% for about 30 years to raise up to $1 billion to fund redevelopment plans in downtown Salt Lake City, including a new arena. The new facility plans may not come through as initially planned, Ryan Smith, owner of the Smith Entertainment Group, said last Friday. The idea is now to renovate the Delta Center to make room for both sports. </p> </p> <p><p>The deadline to finalize those plans, which are still described as early concepts, is September. </p> </p> <p><p>As for the legislation that propelled the NHL move to Utah, McCay said there have not been any final decisions on whether there would be tweaks to it. </p> </p> <p><p>“I think we’re largely going to be working closely with the city to find (that) out. We have all the tools we need to be successful,” he said. “And the No. 1 thing we want to do is make sure that we’re successful, not just for the NHL, not just for the Olympics, but for the community that surrounds this area.”</p> </p> <p><p>But, on Wednesday, it was all about the sport and the new faces that many in Utah will root for.</p> </p> <p style="text-align:center"><img decoding="async" src="https://stlouisblues.myjerseyhub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/20508DW04t.jpg" alt="utah jazz purple jersey" title="utah jazz purple jersey"></p> <p><p>The team, after a warm welcome from Utahns, signing jerseys, posters and shoes, smiled and cracked jokes on a stage at the Delta Center. Their coach, André Tourigny, said at a news conference on Wednesday that the move represents a transition to more stability. Seeing Utahns’ enthusiasm and walking through the arena made him excited.</p> </p> <p><p>“I think it’s my best day in the NHL so far,” he said.</p> </p> <p><figure><i></i> An artist paints an NHL mural outside of the Delta Center ahead of a team welcome party on Wednesday, April 24, 2024. (Alixel Cabrera/Utah News Dispatch)utah hockey team nhl keychain</p> </figure> <p><p>Utah News Dispatch is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charityis there a nhl team in utah. Utah News Dispatch maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor McKenzie Romero for questions: info@utahnewsdispatch.com. Follow Utah News Dispatch on Facebook and X.</p> <p style="text-align:center"><img decoding="async" src="https://stlouisblues.myjerseyhub.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/76n6v2C.jpg" alt="utah jazz purple jersey" title="utah jazz purple jersey"></p> <p> utah jazz future draft picks arizona coyotes draft
