- Utah was awarded an NHL franchise as the league used assets from the Arizona Coyotes to expand in April 2024.
- The Utah Hockey Club defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 5-2 in their first-ever game.
- Goalie Igor Shesterkin turned down the New York Rangers’ contract offer, which would have made him the highest-paid goaltender ever.
Professional hockey is back in the state of Utah for the first time since 2005. “The Beehive State” has hosted preseason games in the past, and there have been minor-league teams. But Utah now has an NHL team: the Utah Hockey Club.
Utah played their first-ever game on Tuesday night at the Delta Center. They gave the home crowd something to cheer about as they defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 5-2.
Guenther Scores Twice for Utah, Ingram Stops 24 Shots in Victory
Utah played in front of a crowd of 11,131 for their franchise debut, and Dylan Guenther scored the first goal in Utah’s NHL history just 4:56 into the first period. A Clayton Keller goal put the Hockey Club up 2-0 by the end of the first, and Barrett Hayton made it 3-0 8:46 into the second period.
Teuvo Teravainen got Chicago on the board later in the second period, while Blackhawks’ captain Nick Foligno cut the deficit to one goal 4:48 into the third period. It was a nervous end to Utah’s first game, but Guenther added an empty-net goal for his second of the night with 52 seconds left. Lawson Crouse sealed the deal, scoring with 22 seconds remaining in the game.
It was a successful night overall for the Utah Hockey Club, who essentially inherited the Arizona Coyotes’ team. The league bought the Arizona Coyotes for $1 billion, and Utah owner Ryan Smith paid $1.2 billion as an expansion fee to the NHL’s owners. With that, Utah also got all of Arizona’s players, as well as staff. Arizona will be called an “inactive” team.
If you’re looking at daily NHL player props, and you see a Utah player, it’s most likely Clayton Keller, who was named the first captain in Utah’s history. Keller had 33 goals and 43 assists for 76 points for the Coyotes, who finished seventh in the Central Division last season. However, keep an eye on Guenther. He was picked ninth by the Coyotes in the 2021 NHL Draft, and he’s still 21 years old.
Can the Utah Hockey Club Win the Stanley Cup?
Utah’s Stanley Cup odds aren’t good, but it makes sense for a couple of reasons. They’re an “expansion” team by name, but they’ve also inherited a team that isn’t very good. The Arizona franchise went to the playoffs just once since 2012-13. That was in 2019-20 when the league was suspended due to the global pandemic.
The Arizona franchise finished eighth, seventh, and seventh in the Central Division in each of their last three years, and they were consistently had low attendances. Hockey is very popular, and Salt Lake City has hosted the Winter Olympics in 2002, and they will again in 2032.
It’s probably going to be a long season for the Utah Hockey Club in the standings. Utah probably won’t be a popular nightly pick at hockey betting sites. But they got off on the right foot for their inaugural game, so the fans can be happy for at least one night.
Shesterkin Turns Down Rangers’ Contract Offer
In other NHL news, goalie Igor Shesterkin turned down the latest contract offer from the New York Rangers. The team offered Shesterkin $88 million over eight years, which is $4 million more than Montreal gave Carey Price in 2017.
Shesterkin will be an unrestricted free agent after this season, and he has said he doesn’t want to negotiate during the season. According to The Score, Shesterkin wants to “reset the goalie market”. The Score report reveals that Price’s contract carried a $10.5 million cap hit, which was 13.2% of the salary cap. If Shesterkin were to get 13.2% of the Rangers’ cap, which is projected to be $92 million next summer, it would be a $12.15 million hit.
The Rangers have other free agents that they would like to re-sign next summer, such as Alexis Lafreniere, Reilly Smith, and Kaapo Kakko. Star winger Artemi Panarin’s contract is up ahead of the 2026-27 season.
Shesterkin has the most wins in the NHL since 2021, and he won the Vezina Trophy in 2022. The-28-year-old Russian has also been fantastic in the playoffs as Shesterkin’s .928 save percentage in 44 games is third among goalies with 40 or more playoff starts. But if the Rangers give him what he wants, it’s going to be a huge constraint on the team’s salary cap.
