Utah owner Smith calls 2024 NHL draft ‘milestone’ for new franchise

Las Vegas — Ryan Smith knew how big draft night would be for the Utah hockey club before it even happened.

“This is a first, a first moment,” the Utah co-owner said before the start of the 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft at the Sphere in Las Vegas. “There’s a kid who has worked his whole life to get to this moment and he becomes the first overall draft pick in Utah franchise history. It’s pretty incredible. It’s something no one else will ever be able to say. “I’ve learned in life that you can tell a lot of story, and it’s a great story to tell.”

Tij Iginla has a story to tell. He will always be known as the first choice for the newest NHL team.

Smith and his wife, Ashley, stood on the stage at the Sphere and announced Iginla, the son of Hockey Hall of Famer Jarome Iginla, as the No. 6 pick in the draft for the Utah Hockey Club.

Iginla said he had “a little bit” of an idea Utah would take him, but at the moment it didn’t matter. Emotions took over, a combination of the realization of a lifelong dream and the realization that he, and only he, could claim to be the first choice by the Utah Hockey Club.

“It’s definitely a big honor,” said Iginla, who scored 84 points (47 goals, 37 assists) in 64 games for Kelowna of the Western Hockey League last season. “It would have been a surreal feeling to have my name called by any team, but it feels really good to be a franchise’s first choice.”

It was three years ago when the Seattle Kraken made forward Matty Beniers their first draft pick and selected him No. 2 in the 2021 NHL Draft.

Beniers, who announced the Kraken’s first-round pick of Berkley Caton at No. 8, said Iginla should feel special about being Utah’s first pick because it’s an honor and it still means a lot to him. means a lot.

“It’s pretty cool to think that you might have cemented some kind of place in the history of that team,” Beniers said. “I don’t want to say there’s a little pressure, but I think it’s cool, it’s exciting and it’s a cool thing to think that you’re the first one.”

After selecting Iginla, Utah made a move back in the first round to select Cole Beaudoin from Barrie of the Ontario Hockey League with the No. 24 pick.

“The new franchise and the second pick ever, it’s incredible to even think about,” Beaudoin said.

Utah traded three picks to the Colorado Avalanche to move up to No. 24, proving how much they value Beaudoin. They sent the Avalanche picks No. 38 and 71 in this year’s draft and a 2025 second-round pick that previously belonged to the New York Rangers.

Utah general manager Bill Armstrong said, “To me, his work ethic can change the culture of our organization, just how hard he plays the game.”

Armstrong also had some very high expectations for Iginla.

“When I met him I told him, ‘We have 20 goal scorers on our roster, we’re looking for a 50 goal scorer. No pressure,'” Armstrong said. “We really love him, not only as a person but as a player. He’s everything we love.”

Beyond Iginla and Beaudoin, it was a significant moment for NHL hockey in Utah, months before a game was played at the Delta Center.

The draft is the first NHL event since the establishment of the franchise.

The NHL Board of Governors approved the establishment of the Utah Hockey Club on April 18, and Smith officially closed the deal with the NHL to bring hockey to Utah on June 13.

“It’s a big day for the state of Utah, it’s a big day for this new franchise,” Smith said. “It’s a milestone for all of us, for our state and I mean hockey. We’re excited. We couldn’t be more thrilled that it’s happening, but I’d tell you, if you told me in February. If we were sitting here at the draft, I would have said you are crazy, but we know that the state is ready, and today is a big moment and a milestone for everything. We are working.”

Armstrong said it was appropriate that Smith was on stage to announce that Iginla was the No. 6 pick, given how hard he had worked to bring an NHL team to Utah.

“What better way to enter that era than when they’re out on the field,” Armstrong said. “It’s one of the greatest places I’ve ever seen to hold a draft. It’s an amazing place. It was an amazing first day for us. We targeted some guys and we got lucky. They were there. ”

And now they’re part of history, with Iginla and Beaudoin sharing the unique distinction of being the first two first-round picks by an NHL team in Utah.

“It’s a very nice symmetry,” Beniers said. “This is where you’re starting your professional career and obviously with a franchise or a new expansion team, this is their start as well.”