The multi-year process of choosing a name for Utah’s new NHL team is making some progress. Earlier this month, the team launched a fan vote to help choose the new name from a list of twenty finalists. The first round of voting concluded last week, and the club is now narrowing down the choices based on fan feedback.
In an appearance yesterday on the Pat McAfee Show, team owner Ryan Smith updated the naming process: “Well, we’ve got our four; I think Mammoth’s up there. I think that Yeti’s up there. I think a couple of other ones are up there. It should be good.”
If internet chatter is any indication, seeing Mammoth and Yeti as top contenders is really no surprise. The two are frequently listed among hockey fans’ favourite options, likely due to their uniqueness and the ability to shape an interesting identity around them.
We've got an update on some possible names for the Utah franchise… 👀
— NHL (@NHL) May 30, 2024
(🎥: @PatMcAfeeShow) pic.twitter.com/dTX5coZBjj
A Yeti is a mythical creature said to inhabit the Himalayan mountains. It would pair well with the Seattle Kraken, another NHL team named for a mythical creature, or the nearby Colorado Avalanche, which had used a Sasquatch footprint as a shoulder patch for several years. A mammoth is an extinct woolly elephant. The National Lacrosse League’s Colorado Mammoth have used the name for over twenty years. Yes, two top contenders have some significant Colorado sports ties.
Smith mentioned there were “a couple of other ones” that were “up there.” The eighteen other finalists are Black Diamonds, Blast, Blizzard, Canyons, Caribou, Freeze, Frost, Fury, Glaciers, Utah HC, Hive, Ice, Mountaineers, Outlaws, Powder, Squall, Swarm, and Venom. From what I’ve been reading, Outlaws seems popular, so I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that they have cracked the top four as well.
As previously reported, Utah’s NHL team will begin its first season without a permanent name or logo. Instead, it’s looking like the team will use a temporary design featuring “UTAH” in large block letters beside the NHL shield, with “EST. 2024” below, and a similarly plain uniform. It also looks like the team’s colours for this inaugural season will be black with a very light blue trim colour. We expect this branding to be used for just the 2024-25 season before a new permanent name, logo, and uniform are established for the 2025-26 season.
While taking over from the Arizona Coyotes, the Utah NHL team is considered an entirely new franchise by the NHL. This isn’t the first time a new franchise has absorbed the roster and staff of a suspended or cancelled franchise; when the New York Americans joined the NHL in 1925, they got the roster of the Hamilton Tigers. Just one year later, the Detroit Cougars (now Red Wings) took the roster (and name) of the old Victoria Cougars and the Chicago Black Hawks with the Portland Rosebuds when the Western Hockey League of which they were members folded in 1926. The Coyotes franchise is officially suspended and could potentially return within five years if a suitable arena is found.
Utah’s new NHL team still plans to announce the next round of fan favourites and further details on the naming process later this summer. Stay tuned to SportsLogos.net for all the latest updates on Utah’s NHL team and the naming process.
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