Utah Hockey Club exceeds NHL expectations ahead of opening game

SALT LAKE CITY – NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman appeared on stage Tuesday with Utah Hockey Club owners Ryan and Ashley Smith outside the Delta Center, less than six months after the league launched a new franchise here.

In a press conference before Utah's opening game against the Chicago Blackhawks (10 p.m. ET; ESPN+, ESPN, SN, TVAS), Bettman said Smith Entertainment Group exceeded the NHL's extremely high expectations in an unprecedented time frame.

“We are grateful to be here in Salt Lake City and we are grateful to have the Smiths as owners of an NHL franchise,” Commissioner Bettman said. “So thank you for everything you’ve done and we know it’s going to be a great run.”

Since the NHL created the franchise on April 18, Utah has acquired the hockey assets of the inactive Arizona Coyotes franchise and relocated executives, coaches, players and staff to Salt Lake City.

SEG, which includes the NBA's Utah Jazz, has completed initial renovations to the Delta Center while planning more for the future, building a temporary practice facility while breaking ground on a permanent facility, designing inaugural jerseys while working on a lasting brand identity much more.

“Basically, you all gave up your summer vacation,” the commissioner said. “They didn’t have a break from jazz and everything else that was going on. Again, what you have achieved is both unprecedented and remarkable.”

Ryan Smith called SEG employees “true heroes.”

“You keep taking off your SEG badge and putting on the Utah badge, and I just hope you take a moment to appreciate what you all have accomplished,” he said.