SALT LAKE CITY — Watching the Utah Hockey Club home opener unfold, it was like living in a double reality. These realities could not have been more different from each other.

To the north of that reality, politicians from both sides of the aisle appeared to be celebrating the arrival of their new team. Business executives, community leaders and fans were in attendance as owners Ryan and Ashley Smith joined NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman on stage for a celebratory press conference on the plaza outside Delta Center.

Four hundred miles south, Coyotes fans watched the festivities with a mixture of sadness and anger. Anger over the series of ownership groups that have caused Arizona’s demise. Anger at the politicians who refused to support and fight for the franchise. Sadness at the thought of this emerging team and these beloved personalities finding success in another city.

As soon as the press conference at Delta Center ended, ESPN went live from the Square with a GameDay-style set for the NHL’s triple-header of games with host Steve Levy and analysts Mark Messier and PK Subban.

It was a party.

There was live music. There were free games. There was UHC merchandise. There were food trucks and a beer garden. There was a flyover of planes and large screens in the plaza for those who couldn’t get tickets for the team’s first NHL game against the Chicago Blackhawks.

“If you’re not excited about rooting for this team,” Ryan Smith said, “I don’t know if sports are for you.”

In Arizona, the atmosphere was more like a funeral.

On the one hand, it was rejuvenating to see how much the team had set Salt Lake City on fire. It was encouraging to hear how supportive the Smith ownership group has been to the team – a point underscored by General Manager Bill Armstrong, by coach André Tourigny, by the coaches, by the support staff and by players like Clayton Keller, Lawson Crouse, Dylan Guenther. , Logan Cooley and Sean Durzi.

As one hockey ops guy put it, “We keep asking for things and so far they haven’t said ‘no’.”

On the other hand, it reminded you of what would have been in Arizona if the same kind of owner had come along for the past 25 years. It made you wonder what would have happened if Richard Burke hadn’t sold the team. It made you wonder what would have happened if Steve Ellman had stayed with Scottsdale instead of moving to Glendale to build his precious shopping center.

It made you wonder what would have happened if IceArizona had been as concerned about its product as it was about its profits. It made you wonder what would have happened if Andy Barroway had had anywhere near the money the league told us he had. It made you wonder what would have happened if Alex Meruelo hadn’t burned down every bridge in the city through bullying tactics, then short-changed the Tempe campaign when he was so close to the perfect arena setup.

The scene at Delta Center took me back to 1996, when the Coyotes first arrived from Winnipeg. The energy I felt on Tuesday was just like the energy I felt at America West Arena.

Utahns didn’t care about the arena’s shortcomings or a still-developing team. They didn’t care that the team didn’t have a name, or that the jerseys didn’t have a logo. They just wanted to watch their new team. They just wanted to watch NHL hockey.

It reminded you of what sport can be when freed from the clutches of greed, incompetence and ego, as well as the burden of the past.

As I surveyed the Delta Center’s obstructed-view seats, it reminded me of the man who sat in the front row of AWA’s dilapidated north end for the Coyotes’ first home game – back when there were no nets around the rink to protect fans. I remember his baseball glove and his proclamation, “I’m going to catch me a puck.” I remember thinking that he had no idea of ​​the mortal danger he had placed himself in.

I didn’t want to rain on his parade that day, and I didn’t want to rain on Tuesday’s Utah parade either. I wanted them to enjoy the game. I wanted them to enjoy their first victory. I wanted them to enjoy the arrival of their new team, but as I watched, I couldn’t stop thinking about the thousands of Coyotes fans at home who were still grieving, and for whom this game undoubtedly caused even more pain.

In reality, it was difficult to watch this game in person. I wanted this trip to be therapeutic. I wanted to move past the pain of losing a team I had invested so much sweat equity into and developed so many relationships with. I wanted the joy of a new fan base and the long-deserved happiness of the people on this team to be enough for me – and for all of us.

But life is not that simple. There is no healing either.

Until Coyotes fans get what they deserve after nearly 30 years of dedication and suffering, this story simply won’t feel complete.

Until I can write them a happy ending, this story will never make sense.

Top photo of players introduced during Utah’s home opener via Getty Images

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