Clayton Keller has been named the first-ever captain of the Utah Hockey Club, a significant milestone for both him and the team. This decision comes as no surprise since Keller has been a central figure ever since Oliver Ekman-Larsson was traded away in 2021. Over the past three seasons, he’s proven himself to be a formidable player, nearly averaging a point per game. Last season alone, Keller took 228 shots on goal, scoring 33 times and assisting on 43 other goals, totaling 76 points in just 78 games.
Keller is set to lead Utah’s offense in their inaugural year, but he won’t have to do it all by himself. The groundwork laid by general manager Bill Armstrong during the team’s time in Arizona is expected to bear fruit now that they’ve moved to Salt Lake City. New faces like Josh Doan and Dylan Guenther are stepping up as full-time NHL players for the first time. Meanwhile, Logan Cooley is looking forward to building on his rookie success of scoring 20 goals and earning 44 points.
Fans might wonder if Utah can make it into playoff contention this season . With John Marino and Mikhail Sergachev strengthening their defense line-up, there’s hope they could make waves in the wild-card race for quite some time. Yet if postseason hockey is indeed coming to Salt Lake City by 2025, they’ll need their new captain to reach even greater heights than before.
Building A Future:
The future looks promising with these young talents ready to shine under Keller’s leadership; however unpredictable things may get! Sometimes fans think about how quickly fortunes change—one moment you’re cheering victory songs; next day lamenting losses over breakfast cereal! But hey… isn’t unpredictability what makes sports exciting?
As we look ahead at Utah’s journey into uncharted territory with Clayton at helm—what do you think will happen next?
