Rangers give Utah positive review after playing in state for first time

SALT LAKE CITY — Delta Center became the 91st unique venue in which the Rangers have played a regular-season game Thursday night when they beat Utah Hockey Club, 5-3, for the first time. There’s always a sort of buzz to a team that’s competing in a new place, and the Blueshirts were no different. The NHL era in Utah came quickly thanks to the diligence of owner Ryan Smith, who had been working on getting a team since 2022.When arena and ownership issues hit a breaking point in Arizona back in April, Smith purchased the Coyotes assets from owner Alex Meruelo for $1.2 billion. Now, Utah is the 25th state or district in which the Blueshirts have played. In October, the Salt Lake City Council voted unanimously to approve and help fund Smith Entertainment Group’s renovation plans of Delta Center, which was constructed for the NBA Jazz and needs to be fixed for dual use with hockey now on the schedule, too. The remodel, which is expected to unfold in three phases and address the 4,000-5,000 seats with obstructed views of the ice, is expected to be completed by the start of the 2027-28 NHL and NBA seasons. “It felt pretty good,” Braden Schneider told The Post of his first touch of Delta Center ice.

“I think it’s a cool rink.It’s a little different, it’s pretty steep.

It looks nice.Everything that’s here with it is really nice.

I think it’s a positive review from me.” The commitment to making hockey work in Utah is evident in the city’s planned contribution of $900 million, as well as in SEG’s pledge to invest a minimum of $3 billion, according to the Sports Business Journal. Hockey, however, already had a presence in Salt Lake City. Before Utah H.C., which is supposed to announce a permanent name between the end of this season and the draft, there were the Utah Grizzlies (now of the ECHL) and the Salt Lake Golden Eagles (defunct). Peter Laviolette played for the Denver Rangers in 1988-89, which was also the last time the Rangers h...