Utah Hockey Club is a professional hockey team that plays in the National Hockey League (NHL). The team competes in the Central Division of the Western Conference. Utah plays at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The Utah Hockey Club franchise originated as the Winnipeg Jets in Manitoba, Canada, in 1972. The Jets first played in the World Hockey Association (WHA), a professional league in competition with the NHL. Winnipeg was a dominant team in the WHA, winning three league championships. After the WHA disbanded in 1979, the Jets joined the NHL. The team played in Winnipeg until moving to Phoenix in 1996. The team began playing as the Phoenix Coyotes for the 1996-1997 season.
In 2001, NHL scoring leader Wayne Gretzky joined the Coyotes as a part owner. Gretzky served as the team’s head coach from 2005 to 2009. The National Hockey League took over ownership of the team in 2009. A group of private investors assumed ownership in 2013. The Coyotes were called the Phoenix Coyotes until the 2014-2015 season, when they became known as the Arizona Coyotes. In 2024, the team announced that it would move to Salt Lake City beginning with the 2024-2025 season.
Stars of the franchise have included defensemen Phil Housley and Oliver Ekman-Larsson, goalie Bob Essensa, left winger Keith Tkachuk, right wingers Shane Doan and Teemu Selänne, and center Dale Hawerchuk.
