Utahns show overwhelming support for NHL with nearly 20,000 season ticket deposits

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — If there were any doubts about the NHL’s success in the Beehive State, Utahns put those doubts to rest.

Now an owner of a yet-unnamed Utah NHL team (more on that later), Ryan Smith said over 6,000 deposits had been made on season tickets in the first two hours of the Smith Entertainment Group opening them up. By the end of the night, that number nearly doubled to over 11,000.

On Friday afternoon, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said the number was up to 20,000.

“Utah is amazing!” Smith posted on Twitter/X.

NHL Board of Governors approves Coyotes sale to Salt Lake City

The $100 deposit per seat opened on Thursday night, April 18, just hours after the NHL Board of Governors approved the sale of the Arizona Coyotes to Salt Lake City. While final pricing for each season ticket has not been released, the $100 deposit “secures your spot in line” to see Utah NHL’s inaugural season at the Delta Center.

While there have been some previous concerns about seating at the Delta Center, Bettman said there are plans to address that.

“There are 12,000 unobstructed seats, 4,000 obstructed. They have plans that I have seen to take it up to 17,000 in the two summers after this,” said Bettman. “They’ll be up to 17,000-plus in short order so it’s an improved situation.”

Of course, that does leave the question of how many season tickets will be made available and what will happen to the thousands who made deposits and failed to secure a season ticket for the inaugural season.

Coyotes win final game before move to Utah

The Smith Entertainment Group won’t have long to figure that out. Much like the process to bring the Arizona Coyotes moved fast, the Utah NHL’s first season is rapidly approaching. The first official game will be in the 2024-2025 regular season, which is expected to start in mid-October.

The process has been so fast that the team may not even have a name for the fans to rally behind. Bettman told reporters in Arizona the league will have those kinds of discussions with the Smith group on “an ongoing basis.”

“To find a name, to trademark a name, to make sure there are no conflicts to then have a campaign to unveil the name, you can’t do that in this timeframe,” said Bettman, later adding, “If the team doesn’t have a real name to start out that will be the case.”

Bettman did promise that “at some point” Utah NHL will have an official name. Hockey Insider Greg Wyshynski said he heard there would be a fifty-fifty chance Utah NHL has a “temporary name” for Year 1 or it could even be a permanent brand name.

Wyshynski said the Utah NHL team will be in Salt Lake City next Wednesday for a “fan and media event” and to tour the facilities.

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