Utah Hockey Club officially eliminated from playoff contention following Wild’s victory

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SALT LAKE CITY – Following the Minnesota Wild’s 8-7 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday night, the Utah Hockey Club has officially been eliminated from playoff contention in their inaugural season.

Utah Hockey Club officially eliminated from postseason contention

With only four games left on Utah’s schedule, it is now mathematically impossible for the Utah Hockey Club to secure the final wild card spot.

After the Wild picked up two more points in the standings against the Sharks, they successfully delivered the dagger to Utah’s playoff hopes with an unattainable 93 points.

While the elimination is certainly unfortunate, Utah’s inaugural season was another year of solid progress for the team as they surpassed their point total from a year ago for the fourth straight season.

Additionally, with the emergence of players like Logan Cooley and Dylan Guenther, Utah’s deep pipeline of talented prospects and roughly $22 million in cap space to spend this summer, this is just the beginning of a remarkably bright future in Salt Lake City.

Anticipating continued growth and some new additions to their roster between the pipeline and free agency, expectations will certainly rise in year two.

Utah Hockey Club’s new practice facility

Located at southeast end of The Shops at South Town, the facility recently reached completion of the structural phase of construction and is set to open on September 1, 2025, for team use while the community spaces are expected to be ready by the end of 2025.

“This is just the beginning here,” Utah Hockey Club owner Ryan Smith said. “Since we have broken ground and started here, we might as well just rename this place sports town because there’s going to be some cool stuff that’s going to exist here.”

As the team’s official headquarters, the 115,780 square-foot building will feature two NHL-standard regulation ice surfaces, training and medical facilities, team offices, a world-class locker room and spaces for visiting teams.

The team will also have access to a player’s lounge, gym area, and recovery pools.

“This is where we are going to put down all of the habits and the identity of this team for the future as we pursue a Stanley Cup for Utah,” President of Hockey Operations Chris Armstrong said.

The Utah Hockey Club’s new practice facility is a community asset

By late 2025, early 2026, the new community spaces at the Utah Hockey Club’s practice facility will officially be opened to the public.

In addition to both rinks, the community will have access to eight locker rooms, equipment rentals, a team store, pro shop and other open spaces.

Whenever the rinks are not being used by the Utah Hockey Club, the ice will be used for youth and amateur skating programs, figure skating and other recreational activities.

“The boys will get off the ice and youth hockey will jump on this ice,” Ryan Smith said.

“It’s one of the coolest things that I’ve learned and seen about hockey…every one of these guys grew up playing youth hockey and they remember that moment because they were that kid…it’s in the culture.”

According to Smith, fans will also be able to watch the Utah Hockey Club practices at the new facility.

The practice facility is another step in the right direction for growing hockey in Utah

Whether it’s at the professional level, youth or amateur, the Utah Hockey Club’s new practice facility represents a monumental step in the growth of the game along the Wasatch front.

While the Olympic Oval served as a worthy home during the inaugural season, the club was in need of a more permanent space featuring world class facilities to help the players prepare and recover at the highest level.

“It’s going to be unbelievable. Top three, top five in the league for sure in terms of having everything that we need,” Clayton Keller said.

“Awesome for the community to watch practice. It’s going to be great to have that connection.”

Additionally, the facility will not only aid in attracting bigger NHL names to the club, but it will also fast track the youth game as a focal point of hockey in the state of Utah.

“We’re definitely a destination. I think we already feel that in hockey, but we’ve got to continue earning that,” Smith said.

“This is the next step.”

As the new facility serves as one of the first major accomplishments to grow the game in the state, Smith envisions Utah playing a significant role in the development of USA Hockey as more kids gain access to the sport.

“We can play a massive part in that (USA Hockey’s upward trajectory). That’s pretty unique to have a hand in the development of what could be part of the USA team in the future…that’s how big this vision is going to become,” Smith explained.

“There’s nothing we’ve seen like this in sports in this state where you’ve got a big four franchise with this much access to the community. I think that’s what inspires dreams.”

Read the full story at kslsports.com