If I had $50 Tuesday night for every time I heard or saw the words “history” and “historic” at the Delta Center, I might have enough money to buy a decent seat for a single upcoming Utah game. Hockey Club. I must have heard and seen those words a hundred times. Maybe you can even buy a hamburger and a coke.

And it was history-making and historic, in the sense that Utah never had its own NHL team to cheer for. Now it is. Hockey fans in and around Salt Lake City no longer have to settle for adopting someone else’s team, the Golden Knights or the Avalanche, or pretending they actually care about the minor league in which the Grizzlies play. And the sold-out crowd on hand for the grand opener here cheered their hearts out as UHC faced the Chicago Blackhawks and won 5-2.

There was only one thing missing…

Can this outfit just land on a silly name, embrace it, and throw away all this Utah Hockey Club nonsense? That’s what it is: a lot of hyped-up, foolish, unnecessary procrastination. Not that anyone here should worry too much about what people outside of Utah think, but… Utah Hockey Club? Real? People laugh at that. The NHL loves Utah, but every other team in the league has a name. This is not a way or reason to stand out or be cute or special or different.

Nowadays it’s like watching a baby take its first step and you haven’t even completely filled out the birth certificate yet.

It’s not that complicated. Give this team what every other NHL team has. I don’t even care what it is… Outlaws, Venom, Blizzard, Magpies. Whatever. Just go ahead and give the players and fans the name, the identity they deserve.

Where were we? Oh yes, from the moment the Hockey Club took the ice, people in the newly reformed seats in the Jazz’s home were waving towels around and making their joyful noises. They roared as What’s-His-Name, a skater from Canada, fired the puck into the Chicago net.

(See how hard it is to not give something a good name?)

It will take time to learn these guys names, let alone their games. Let’s see… there’s a Matias Maccelli from Finland, an Alexander Kerfoot from British Columbia, a Mikhail Sergachev from Russia, a Jusso Valimaki from Finland… eh, this is worth taking some time to get used to and become completely familiar.

I walked around the arena talking to people dressed in crisp black, blue and white T-shirts with “Utah HC” plastered on them. I asked a random sample if they were hockey fans. “It’s me now,” was a common response. I asked a guy dressed in a Coyotes jersey if he could handle the transition from what was in Arizona to what was now in Utah, and he said it was no problem because he’s really a fan of the San Jose Sharks. Another person in Utah gear said he’s still learning the difference between “icing” and “slashing.” I think he was joking, I’m not sure. However, some said they know, love and have always loved Bobby Hull’s game. Oops, that must have been Blackhawks fans.

Anyway, this was an evening to remember. Oops, wasn’t that the title of an old book and movie about the sinking of the Titanic? The ice was much friendlier on this occasion.

The Club’s players performed well in front of their new, enthusiastic crowd, feeling the enormity of the moment and probably thrilled to be able to do their passing, shooting and controlling business in front of thousands and thousands and thousands of partisans in an authentic NHL arena – if that’s what they do. the Delta Center is here now – instead of hundreds and hundreds and hundreds on a college track in Tempe.

Indeed, the seats burst for the opener, the music was loud, the energy palpable, the curiosity high, the drama electric, the learning curve – at least for some – steep, but even the pre-game introductions were met with a din that sounded like a squadron of F-35 fighters landing on center ice. As the entire team raised their batons in a circle to honor the fans, more applause broke out.

Then the puck dropped.

Dylan Guenther, who is all of 21 years old, scored UHC’s first-ever goal early in the first period. The kid from Edmonton, one of the Club’s rising stars, shot off his stick like lightning with an assist from Logan Cooley of Pennsylvania, another newcomer. Just a few weeks ago, Guenther told me how much he wanted to play in Utah. His exact words: “The city is buzzing. This place is beautiful. The people are nice. I’m excited to play here. It will be cool to play in a big arena, in front of a big crowd. I can’t wait.”

On Tuesday evening, he said in the aftermath: “That building was special.”

That building enthusiastically cheered him on in Game 1, on his first goal and later after another.

Missouri team captain Clayton Keller scored the second goal of the game in the early period after a nice sequence that ended when the puck hit the net. Great photo, and we also found out that Keller likes to play ping pong and has a dog named “Lucky.”

From there, the skaters in black and blue – guys like Nick Schmaltz of Wisconsin, and Barrett Hayton and Sean Durzi of Ontario, and Karel Vejmelka of the Czech Republic – built their lead with some nimble skating, passing and shooting. and then held it like a glove on a stick through some sloppiness in the third period. Goaltender Connor Ingram, of Saskatoon, helped save the night.

I don’t mean to overstate this, but all in all, it was a sports experience that allows Utah fans to mark their roots life. Hockey may be seen by some as a physical, downright brutal sport, and that may be true, but when played at a high level it is a beautiful team game that is almost poetic.

“The camaraderie on this team is really good,” Guenther said. “The great thing about hockey culture is that you have to come together as a team.”

The first poem written here in hockey history – that’s another 50 bucks – was first rhythmic and then rough in the final minutes, all of which matched on the ice with what came out of the stands.

Even the Blackhawks noticed and appreciated the scene. Forward Nick Foligno said: “I didn’t know what to expect. Honestly, I’ve heard great things, and it lived up to the hype. They were loud, they were energetic and you could tell they were excited to have hockey here. As far as the fans are concerned, it was a great night of hockey in Utah. As a league, we’re very happy to have (Utah) here. It was definitely loud, and they are avid fans, so I would give them a lot of credit. They were definitely looking forward to it tonight, and hopefully it stays that way all year long.”

So everyone had a good time, every Jack and Jill, every Viktor and Vladislav, especially the expert fans in Utah as well as the people who don’t know a dangler’s deke yet, a forecheck from a five-hole. By the end, the Utah players themselves seemed as satisfied with their victory as they were emotionally exhausted.

“It was a crazy day,” Keller said. A historic – yes, another $50 – one.

What everyone was absolutely certain of late Tuesday evening was the difference between winning and losing. “We won. That is what I will remember,” said UHC coach Andre Tourigny. And so he should. The Club got what it wanted on its first attempt at the highest level of the game of Bobby Hull, Wayne Gretzky or Gordie Howe. The Utah game was on October 8, 2024. The names? Well…we’ll all work on that.