Utah hockey fans welcome the former Arizona Coyotes to their new home
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Utah hockey fans welcomed the former Arizona Coyotes to their new home Wednesday.
Players and coaches were greeted at the airport in morning by a crowd of approximately 100 players from local youth hockey programs. The kids chanted “Go, Utah! Go, Utah!”
The team attended a fan celebration at the Delta Center in the afternoon. The arena was packed for the free event, with many fans turned away at the doors.
“We’re 70 people who got traded the same day and we’re going to the same place,” coach André Tourigny said. “I think all of that creates some magic. I think we’ll just be tighter with that. When you want to win championships, you need to go through the trenches together. We went through some trenches this year.”
The challenges uprooting from Arizona are tempered by the energetic reception the club has received in the state and a chance to build a new culture.