SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Hockey Club selected Finnish standout Veeti Väisänen with the No. 96 overall pick during the third round of the 2024 NHL Draft.
The 62nd NHL Draft was held at the Sphere in Las Vegas, Nevada from June 28-29.
RELATED: Utah Hockey Club Holding Scrimmage At Delta Center
Väisänen was the seventh defenseman selected in the third round.
With the 96th pick, the Utah Hockey Club selects Veeti Vaisanen 🩵 #UtahHC | #NHLDraft pic.twitter.com/3JKyiByWN0
— Utah Hockey Club (@utahhockeyclub) June 29, 2024
Last year in the Finnish Hockey League, Väisänen posted 10 total points with two goals and eight assists.
“This has been a dream for me,” Väisänen said. “It’s an unbelievable moment.”
Veeti Vaisanen says the whole experience of getting drafted by @utahhockeyclub feels “crazy.”#UtahHC #NHLDraft pic.twitter.com/RPujxabUyd
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) June 29, 2024
Utah Hockey Club entered the draft with 13 picks, including No. 6 overall in the first round.
Rounds 2-7: Saturday, June 29 at 9:30 a.m. (MT)
It's officially @NHL Draft week! 🏒#NHLDraft #NHL #UtahHC https://t.co/1CWbFjgqfU
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) June 23, 2024
Rounds 2-7: NHL Network and ESPN+
In April, the NHL announced the addition of Utah as the league’s newest franchise under Ryan Smith and Smith Entertainment Group’s ownership. As part of the transaction, players and personnel from the Arizona Coyotes were transferred to Utah. The Coyotes became an inactive franchise following the move.
On June 13, the team officially closed its deal with the NHL and took on the temporary name Utah Hockey Club. The team’s permanent nickname underwent a second round of fan voting and will be announced in the future.
The club will wear sweaters with “Utah” on the front during its inaugural season in 2024-25. Utah HC has primary colors of rock black, salt white, and mountain blue.
Utah Hockey Club will open its seven-game preseason schedule against the St. Louis Blues at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa. Utah HC’s first preseason game at home will be against the LA Kings on September 23.
View this post on Instagram
Kyle Ireland is a Utah Hockey Club Insider for KSLSports.com. Follow him on X (@kyleireland), Threads (@kyleirelandksl), and Instagram (@kyleirelandksl).
