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Deseret News archives: Utah Hockey Club found it tough to replicate the Golden Knights’ first season?

Editor’s note: This story was originally published on June 7. 2024.

A look back at local, national and world events through Deseret News archives.

On June 7, 2018, the Washington Capitals claimed their first NHL title with a victory over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final in Las Vegas. Great news for Capitals fans, but the Golden Knights fans also enjoyed the thrill of a most successful inaugural season.

And in 2023, the Golden Knights did win it all, becoming one of a handful of sports franchises to win a championship early in its history.

Of note: The Golden Knights are also in the Stanley Cup Finals in 2026, in a tight battle with the Carolina Hurricanes.

Winning the elusive title

According to research, about 90 of the approximately 125 top level sports teams — from the NHL, NBA, MLB and NFL — have won titles. Fans of the other 35 franchises (sigh, Utah Jazz fans, sigh) continue to dream of the day.

Per ESPN, the Milwaukee Bucks won an NBA title three years after the team began play in 1968, while it took the MLB’s Arizona Diamondbacks four seasons to win a World Series in 2001. It took the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens just five seasons to win a Super Bowl (2002), and took the Edmonton Oilers five seasons to claim their first Stanley Cup trophy in 1984.

The Ravens had moved from Cleveland, so the franchise was not a brand new organization, similar to how owner Ryan Smith’s NHL team is moving from Arizona to Utah.

Update: Looking back on the Utah Hockey Club’s first season, there were plenty of great moments, despite the squad not making the playoffs. UHF finished 38-31(13) with 89 points, good for sixth in the Central Division.

In this May 2, 2018, photo, people watch a second-round playoff series hockey game at a Vegas Golden Knights watch party outside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The expansion Golden Knights, Las Vegas' first major sports franchise, have taken the league and their hometown by storm in their first season. | John Locher

Who knows when the now Utah Mammoth will taste postseason or Stanley Cup success, so here are some archived Deseret News stories about the Golden Knights’ first year:

“Capitals face Golden Knights in improbable Stanley Cup Final”

“Vegas Golden Knights make stop in Salt Lake City”

“NHL expansion team gets a name: Vegas Golden Knights”

“Photo gallery: LA Kings beat Las Vegas Golden Knights in Utah ‘Frozen Fury’ exhibition”

Oh, and season tickets for the yet-to-be-named, but soon-to-be-revered Utah hockey team went on sale today.

Hopefully on the way to the championship.

By the way, when the Capitals defeated the Golden Knights for the Stanley Cup title in 2018, it was their first title in franchise history, which began play in 1974. Take heart, Jazz fans.

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