Is Salt Lake City Getting an NHL Franchise?

UPDATE: The answer is yes. Salt Lake City, Utah IS getting an NHL franchise. On April 18th, the NHL Board of Governors unanimously approved the creation of a new Utah-based NHL franchise to be owned by Smith Entertainment Group. The group, lead by Ryan and Ashley Smith, who also own the NBA’s Utah Jazz, will now relocate the the assets of the Phoenix Coyotes to Salt Lake City and rebrand as a to-be-named-later Utah NHL hockey team.

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On January 24th, 2024, the Smith Entertainment Group asked the NHL to “initiate the expansion process” in order to bring a team to Salt Lake City.

Smith Entertainment Group — owners of the Utah Jazz — ask NHL to “initiate an expansion process” to bring a team to the state. pic.twitter.com/2xq5MAr4p5

— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) January 24, 2024

In the press release, the group highlighted the area’s history with hockey, which dates back to the Salt Lake Golden Eagles’ debut in 1969. The International Hockey League’s Utah Grizzlies won a championship during the 1995-96 season and currently the Colorado Avalanche’s ECHL affiliate, the Utah Grizzlies, call the city their home.

Additionally, Salt Lake City’s robust economy, a young active population, the presence of an NHL-ready arena in the Delta Center, and an active Winter Olympics bid are mentioned as draws for the NHL.

The Delta Center, the current home of the Utah Jazz of the NBA, would be the interim home for an NHL franchise, but not a long-term solution. Although it has hosted preseason games for the Los Angeles Kings in the past and would allow for an immediate move, it was opened in 1991 and ice out of date. A permanent home would need to be constructed in an undisclosed location. The Smith Entertainment Group underscored the need for a permanent solution for professional and Olympic hockey.

Vivint SmartHome Arena (now once again known as The Delta Center), where the Utah Jazz play, and a potential temporary home for a Salt Lake City NHL franchise

The release also underscores Salt Lake City’s “long-standing reputation as one of the greatest winter sports capitals in the world.” An NHL franchise would be the cherry on top of that boast and would solidify the city’s bid for the 2034 Winter Olympic Games. SLC has already been named as the “preferred bidder” for the games according to Front Office Sports.

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman has publicly stated that the NHL has no plans to expand past the 32 current teams. Telling reporters that “we have continuous expressions of interest from places like Houston, Atlanta, Quebec City, Salt Lake City, but expansion isn’t on the agenda. If something were to progress along where you say, ‘Well, this could be ready to go,’ then I’ll bring it to the owners and we’ll discuss it. But we’re not in a mode where I’m saying, ‘OK, if you’re interested in expansion, submit your applications and we’ll evaluate them,’ like we’ve done previously. We’re not there.”

But like with all professional sports leagues, you can never say never to the idea of expansion. In an official response to the Smith Entertainment release, the NHL said that “Utah is a promising market, and we look forward to continuing our discussions.”

The notion is a solid one. Utah is one of the fastest growing states in the country — the fastest according to the 2020 U.S. Census, and Salt Lake City’s metro area population has increased nearly 1% every year since 2021 and reached 1,214,000 people in 2024. Utah’s economy has experienced robust growth recently, with a GDP growth rate of 6.1% per year as of the 3rd quarter, 2023. It has been ranked as the state with the No. 1 best economic outlook for 16 straight years.

Although the Salt Lake City-Murray, UT MSA has only 1,266,191 people, which would make it one of the smallest in the US to host an NHL franchise, the larger Salt Lake City-Provo-Ogden, UT Combined Statistical Area has a population of 2,701,129 people and ranks ahead of Pittsburgh, Columbus, Las Vegas, Raleigh-Durham, Nashville and Buffalo — all of which currently house an NHL team.

The TV market size of SLC according  to 2023-24 Nielsen Ratings is 27th in the nation, one spot ahead of Pittsburgh and one behind Nashville.

Salt Lake City’s climate might not be on par with wintry Montreal or Ottawa, but the city is surrounded by mountains and the Köppen climate classification of either Mediterranean climate (Csa) or dry-summer continental climate means cold snowy winters. And if the NHL can thrive in Texas, Florida and Southern California, they should have no problem with putting a franchise in Salt Lake City.

IMMEDIATE SUCCESS FOR EXPANSION TEAMS IN THE NHL

In years past, expansion teams were saddled with aging veterans and washed-out prospects, banished to the league’s basement as they worked to build their franchises through trades, free agency and the draft.

So what would an NHL expansion team in Salt Lake City look like? Thanks to the NHL’s new expansion draft rules, the last two teams to enter the league, the Vegas Golden Knights and the Seattle Kraken were able to quickly find success in the NHL.

LAS VEGAS, NV – FEBRUARY 15: Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury (29) warms up before the start of a regular season game against the New York Islanders Saturday, Feb. 15, 2020, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by: Marc Sanchez/Icon Sportswire)

On December 4, 2018, the NHL officially voted to approve the bid of the Seattle Kraken and in 2021, the Seattle Kraken took part in the league’s latest expansion draft. The rules were nearly the exact same as the draft that saw the Vegas Golden Knights put together a Stanley Cup Final capable team just a few years prior, save for a new provision that exempted Vegas from losing a player. The Kraken finished their inaugural season with a paltry 27 wins in 82 games and missed the playoffs, but in their second season, they were one of the surprise teams in the league, earning 100 points, finishing 4th in the Pacific division and pushed the Dallas Stars to 7 games in the second round of the NHL Playoffs.

The same season that saw the Kraken emerge as one of the top teams in the West saw the previous expansion team, the Vegas Golden Knights win the Stanley Cup in just their sixth season in the league. After coming into the league in 2017-18, the Golden Knights shocked the hockey world by mowing down the West en route to a Stanley Cup final appearance. Their luck finally ran out versus the red hot Washington Capitals in the Cup Final, losing four games to one. The next few seasons saw varying levels of success until a nadir in the 2021-22 when they missed the playoffs for the first time as a franchise. Finally, 2022-23 was a different story as everything came together for the Golden Knights. A 1st place finish in the West and a franchise record 111 points propelled the team back to the Stanley Cup where they defeated the Florida Panthers in five games. With the win, the Golden Knights became only the second expansion team since 1993 to win a Stanley Cup, after the Anaheim Mighty Ducks in 2006-07.

Members of the Vegas Golden Knights celebrate after they defeated the Florida Panthers 9-3 to win the Stanley Cup in Game 5 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Finals Tuesday, June 13, 2023, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

The moribund first seasons suffered by previous NHL expansion teams like the Anaheim Ducks, Tampa Bay Lightning, San Jose Sharks and Ottawa Senators–which saw record breaking losses were just a distant memory. The NHL Expansion Draft assured teams were no longer at a huge disadvantage coming into the league and an expansion team in Salt Lake City should enjoy many of the same benefits that the Golden Knights and Kraken have, chiefly, a competitive NHL franchise right out of the gate.

HUGE NHL FRANCHISE FEES MAKES ADDING NEW TEAMS A VERY TEMPTING PROPOSITION

Adding a new franchise to the NHL is also a lucrative endeavor for the league and its owners.

The Vegas Golden Knights paid $500 million dollars in 2017 and the Seattle Kraken ponied up an astonishing $650 million in 2021 to join the league. These substantial paydays from the two most recent franchises represent massive increases over the $80 million the Columbus Blue Jackets and Minnesota Wild paid in 2000.

While the NHL has been steady in recent years, the specter of relocation still hangs over the league (and all professional sports leagues, see Oakland’s move to Vegas in both the NFL and MLB). The last team to make a move was the Atlanta Thrashers, who departed for Winnipeg in 2011. But there are seven active NHL teams that were the product of relocation and there are 19 defunct or relocated teams.

I made a diagram of every active NHL team relocation.
byu/fiftythreestudio innhl

Is there a plan in place to relocate or place a team in Salt Lake City right now? Only Gary Bettman and the NHL head brass know the answer to that. Publicly, they are preaching patience with the idea of expansion and have been very vocal against the idea of a potential team like the Arizona Coyotes relocating elsewhere. However, the Coyotes have been in constant flux since being kicked out of Glendale and rejected by Tempe. The team is currently playing in Mullett Arena which holds a paltry 4,000 seats and is the home of the Arizona State college hockey team. The latest attempt to buy property for a new arena has failed and the NHL is running out of patience according to Elliotte Friedman. Will the NHL finally tire of the Coyotes saga? It’s looking more and more likely.

It’s not a guarantee that the NHL would pick Salt Lake City as the relocation destination for the Coyotes, but it makes a lot of sense. And now with the full-backing of the Smith Entertainment Group, the chorus of voices pushing for an NHL franchise in SLC, either as an expansion team, or as the new home for the relocated Coyotes, is growing.

The high probability of the Winter Olympic Games returning to the area in 2034, the robust economic growth in the city and state, and the large franchise fees that the NHL would take in make it a very intriguing possibility, one the NHL would be wise not to pass up.