Did Utah GM Bill Armstrong accidentally disclose franchise's new name at the 2024 NHL Draft?

Utah Hockey Club General Manager Bill Armstrong accidentally revealed Utah's new NHL team's name. In a media interview after selecting center Tij Iginla from Kelowna (WHL) in the first round of NHL Draft, Armstrong called Utah 'Utah Yeti.' It was among the few names selected after voting conducted by the club.

"When we hit pick five, that's when we knew he was going to be a Utah Yeti. I'm not allowed to reveal the name, but I think the kids in Utah vote about 25 times a day, so I think they got it," Armstrong said.

Back in May, Utah conducted a vote among the fans to pick their favorite name for the franchise from a list of twenty names. After the process, the club narrowed down the list to six teams. Here are the names:

• Utah Yeti
• Utah Hockey Club
• Utah Outlaws
• Utah Venom
• Utah Mammoth
• Utah Blizzard

The Club revealed its temporary name, jersey colors, and logo for the upcoming NHL 2024-25 season. The jerseys will be of rock black and salt white colors. It will also feature mountain blue and salt-white accents on the rock black jersey. The uniform will be graced with rock black and mountain blue highlights.

The Club tweeted from its' official X handle:

"Our 2024-25 season jerseys inspired by our love for Utah and our passion for hockey. #UtahHC"

The final colors, jerseys, and name of the franchise are expected to be finalized before the upcoming season.

Background of the Utah Hockey Club's origin

On April 18th, the NHL Board of Governors unanimously approved the $1.2 billion sale from Alex Meruelo to Ryan and Ashley Smith, owners of Utah Jazz. This move took place after months of speculation and finally cleared the way for the franchise to move to Utah after going through Arena and financial challenges.

“We expressed our interest publicly with the NHL,” Ryan Smith via (AP News). “It’s probably been two years where we’ve said, ‘Hey, look, we really believe Utah can be an incredible hockey town.’"

Because of Smith's continuous efforts, the NHL finally moved the team out of Utah. The Coyotes team's rights remain with Alex Meruelo to revive the franchise after fixing the Arena situation.