While they still missed a large part of the west coast in their push to become a National League, the Echl seemed to throw their “East Coast” advantage with teams that started to start the mountain time zone. The Idaho Steelheads have long been one of the best Echl clubs, the newly established Tahoe Knight Monsters want to build on the success of their first season, and the Utah Grizzlies are a strong franchise since they moved from the Ahl to the Echl in 2005. It seemed to be the danger to be the danger from then out of Utah Grizzlies announced that this season would be their last in Utah.
Announced by the competition todayGrizzlies Hockey Club, LCC has transferred the controlling interest to Pro Hockey Partners, LLC who will move the team from West Valley City, Utah – a suburb of Salt Lake City in the southwestern corner – to Trenton, New Jersey before the start of the 2026-27 season. Trenton has not excluded Grizzlies as their name for next season, but I suspect that the “Titans” might be a name that is accepted by the team thanks to the former Echl team that played in Trenton. Anyway, the Echl will leave Utah next spring.
For me this is a bitter pill to swallow since the IHL season 1994 saw the introduction of the Denver Grizzlies. Butch Goring led that team to an incredible record of 57-18-6 that season with Kip Miller who led the team in scoring, with 46 goals and 106 points in 71 games. Among other things, remarkable names that played in Denver that season were the second leading Scorer Chris Taylor who would skate for the islanders and Sabres, old Nhler Andy Brickley, NHL defender Doug Crossman, and a child named Zigmund Palffy. Gord Dineen, a young Derek Armstrong, and Norman Rochefort were also Grizzlies, and they had a Swedish man named Tommy Salo who stopped Pucks for them.
After winning the IHL’s gymnast Cup in 1995, the announcement of the Quebec Nordiques that moved to Denver was falling on the franchise, so the Grizzlies moved to the west to the Delta Center of Salt Lake City, while the E -center in West Valley City was built. That movement did not hurt the opportunities of the Grizzlies to win because they gathered in 1996 to win their second consecutive Turner Cup that played much better defense with a much younger team. Utah wiped the Orlando Solar Bears in the Turner Cup final in which the Grizzlies defeated two other IHL teams with 110 points or more -Orlando (110 points) and Las Vegas (122 points)!
Things were never as good as those first two seasons for the Grizzlies, and the final merger of the failing IHL in the AHL saw them become members of the new competition in 2001-02. They are affiliated with the Dallas stars for the first three seasons before the Phoenix Coyotes jumped into that affiliation agreement, but the Grizzlies struggled both on the ice in all four seasons and with the costs of running a franchise of a Minor League while the rest of their Division. As the red ink about the financial statements grew in 2005, there had to be a little earlier instead of changing later.
The above article omits some important information. The Grizzlies Applied for and Received Permission to Suspend Their Franchise In May 2005 Before the Franchise was Sold To An Ownership Group Led by Dan Gilbert, Owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Who Relocated The Franchise To New Euhip The Lakepome The Lakepome in Become The Lakepome in Become The Lakeippome in Become The Lakeipip Bought the Utah Grizzlies Names and Rights, and the Echl Granted a Franchise to this Group Who would operate the team from the E -center in West Valley City. That is short, but the ECHL team is not the same franchise as the IHL/AHL team.
The Grizzlies would jump in the Echl in 2005-06, where they were solid, but never completely championship caliber. The Grizzlies of 2007-08 fell in the semi-final of the Las Vegas Wranglers, while the 2021-22 Grizzlies in the Echl quart finals of the Walleye of Toledo would fall. The team never came from the division rounds in another season during his two decades run and missed the play-offs in just four seasons. However, two of those seasons were the last two seasons.
Last season, however, the landscape changed, while the mammoths in Utah stamped as the “Utah Hockey Club”, making the market for Minor League hockey considerably smaller. It is clear that the Grizzlies were confronted with challenges before the Utah Hockey Club landed in Salt Lake City, but it is difficult to overcome the power of an NHL team as an independent Minor League team. By saying that, this step should probably not surprise anyone. It’s just bad that it happens.
Regarding moving to Trenton, the Echl has a history in that city. The Trenton Titans played there from 1999-2007 and won a Kelly Cup in 2005 while he fell into the Kelly Cup final in 2001. The New Jersey Devils that were connected to the team in 2007 and immediately changed their name to the Trenton Devils that still annoys me to this day.
Those four seasons saw the Devils make the play -offs once, and the Devils sold the franchise after accumulation of financial losses in the midst of poor attendance figures. Blue Line Sports, LLC bought the team, immediately changed the name back into the Titans and again connected to the Philadelphia Flyers. However, that was of short duration, because the team missed the play-offs in both seasons before the franchise folded on April 23, 2013. In the last season, however, a future NHL goalkeeper with the name Scott Wedgewood saw his professional career!
For Grizzlies fans in Utah, I can empathize with you because losing your favorite team sucks. I assure you that your support has been assessed by the team, but it still does not fill that gap that has been left by the team. As the image on the right says, go outside for “The Final Hunt” this season, cheer loudly and make this season as memorable as possible. A version of this team – IHL, AHL or Echl – has been a supporting pillar in the Salt Lake City community for two decades, so go to the E center and see them playing from Utah for good. Take the children, go to the ice rink and let the Grizzlies hear you roar!
If the stands are full, who knows what can happen. Maybe the Grizzlies can encourage something of the magic of their first season in Utah when they were champions? How great would that be?
Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!
#Moving #east #coast