When I think of Utah's football stadium, I think of Alex Smith. Next January, will the former star quarterback be there?
"What you're going to see," answered Mammoth owner Ryan Smith, "is a majestic mountain backdrop that you can't un-see."
"Even before we closed the deal on the team, I had seen the outdoor game. I said, 'Even if you can't give us a team, let's do an event there. Let's do the outdoor game.'"
Smith got both. The Winter Classic is headed to the Beehive State in 2027 — a massive victory for a franchise in its second NHL season.
"The speed with which they have accomplished things is breathtaking," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said. "You remember, we announced the (move from Arizona) in April (2024). It closed in June. They were up and running. September, the players were in for training camp. They managed to put together a temporary training facility. They then in the year built the training facility that you yourself quoted people as saying was spectacular. They designed it and built it in a year. They've retrofitted half of the arena and the fans have been engaged and connected in ways that are just spectacular. Everything they've done has exceeded our expectations, and our expectations were incredibly high to begin with."
"It's been less than two years since (Smith and wife Ashley) bought the team and they've turned it into a major NHL market. The response has been incredible from the fans and they've earned the right."
"It's not only a celebration on the game it's also the celebration of a new beginning for an entire market," Smith said. "It's the 2034 Olympic opening ceremony venue."
"The amount of people I wouldn't have believed are hockey fans, who have turned into hockey fans is something that I shouldn't be surprised with at this point, but it's unbelievable to me. I'm driving out of the arena at night. It's 10:30 or 11 p.m., and I'm two blocks down and all I see are black Mammoth sweaters. Cooley and Sergachev and Keller and you can't un-see it. It is different than anything I've ever been a part of. It's just this wave that, whoa, two years ago, this didn't exist."
The date and time are not yet set, but it will be in the usual window. (Bettman did say that sunlight is a major factor, making sure it does not have negatively impact the ice or the players' ability to see.) Colorado is the opposition. Vegas also made sense, but it's believed the Golden Knights will be Dallas's opponent in the Stars' 2027 outdoor game.
"We don't have an NFL team," Ryan Smith added, "But it's either the Raiders or the Broncos (on television in Utah). To have that natural rivalry come in…that's what makes it even greater. I mean, we've got, I don't know, six flights a day going into Denver. I hope they all come out, right? It's not a far drive. Whoever was in charge of that was smart, because I think it's gonna be, it's going to be a really cool thing that I think a lot of people in two states look forward to."
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