The day Salt Lake City opened its arms to its new NHL team will not be forgotten anytime soon. The players and coaches were overwhelmed by the love and support shown by the community.
The day began at the airport, where an estimated 2,500 hockey-crazed kids greeted the team, bringing tears to their eyes. “You could see the joy in their faces when they saw the kids,” said general manager Bill Armstrong. “I don’t know if the kids will ever understand how much that meant to the players.”
The party continued at the Delta Center, where over 13,000 fans packed the arena, with thousands more turned away at the door. Any doubts about fan support for an NHL team in Utah were quickly dispelled.
“You guys are amazing,” center Barrett Hayton told the crowd. “I can’t thank you more for showing out, and we look forward to showing up for you guys in October.”
“Thank you guys all for showing up,” said center Alex Kerfoot. “This is honestly one of the coolest experiences I think we’ve all had is as hockey players. You guys are the best.”
Center Liam O’Brien, known as “Spicy Tuna,” quickly became a fan favorite.
“Let’s go!” he exclaimed. “My name’s Liam O’Brien, but you guys can call me Spicy Tuna. I cannot wait to get this place buzzing! Let’s go!”
Head coach Andre Tourigny said, “The energy you give us today, we cannot wait to feed off your energy next year. I’m already excited.”
“Just to know how passionate the Utah fans are, we want to rev it up in here,” Armstrong said. “We want to become the loudest building in the NHL.”
The team that these fans will be cheering for is young, high-scoring, and eager to end a four-year playoff drought.
“We’re in the fourth year of the rebuild,” Armstrong said. “So what fans are going to get from this team is an exciting, young team that can score goals.”
“I do believe we’re a playoff team,” added leading scorer Clayton Keller. “We have a lot of great players in all positions, and we have depth. I think we’re a fast, skilled team and we can play with anyone.”
The outpouring of support from the Salt Lake City community made a lasting impression on the team.
“This will be my seventh year in the NHL,” Tourigny said. “And I said to my wife, I think this is my best day in the NHL so far.”
“I just want to say on behalf of the whole team, how amazing this whole experience is for us,” added center Nick Bjugstad. “So thank you, guys.”
