Clayton Keller Named First Utah Hockey Club Captain

Oct 4, 2024 , 7:56 AM | Updated: 3:59 pm

Comments

COLE BAGLEY


Utah Hockey Club Insider

SALT LAKE CITY – On Friday, the Utah Hockey Club named former franchise first-round-pick and NHL All-Star Clayton Keller their first ever team Captain. As one of the longest tenured players on the team and the franchises offensive production leader, the announcement comes as no surprise.

Arizona’s Captain History

Since their move from Winnipeg to Arizona, the Coyotes franchise only had four team captains from 1996 to 2021. After Keith Tkachuk and Teppo Numminen wore the “C” in the late 90’s and early 2000’s, Shane Doan captained the team from 2003 to 2017. Following Doan’s leadership, Oliver Ekman-Larsson became the Coyotes final captain from 2018 to 2021 before the franchise relocated to Salt Lake City this past summer.

A New Beginning For Keller In Utah

With the announcement, Keller becomes the newest franchise captain and the first ever to wear the “C” on a Utah sweater.

“I’m extremely honored to be named captain of Utah Hockey Club,” said Keller. “I’m grateful for this opportunity and want to thank the entire organization for believing in me. I understand it’s a privilege to be a captain in the NHL, and a huge honor to know that management, coaches, and my teammates have the belief in me to lead this team. It’s a huge responsibility and one I have prepared my whole life for. We have a room full of great leaders and together, we will work hard to achieve our goal of becoming a playoff team.”

In addition to being the main source of offense and the team’s best player, Keller was the obvious choice to be named captain. He has weathered the recent storms. He was the primary rebuilding block for the organization and has lived up to that expectation. Keller has overcome some significant injuries during his career but always returned to peak form. He’s also been one of the primary voices as the team has quickly transitioned to a brand-new home in Utah.

Related: Get To Know The Utah Hockey Club: Who is Clayton Keller?

As captain, Keller will officially be the face and primary leader for the Utah Hockey Club. His responsibilities will include communicating with referees for explanations of calls, rallying his teammates on and off the ice, and certain ceremonial duties such as pre-game faceoffs.

“As a leader, Clayton exemplifies the values of our organization and the identity we want to build for our franchise here in Utah. Indeed, we are proud to name him the first captain in the history of Utah Hockey Club,” said Chris Armstrong, president of hockey operations of Utah Hockey Club. “On the ice, he leads by example as one of the game’s premier players. Off the ice, he earns the respect of his peers, coaches, and our training staff every day through his relentless desire to get the most out of himself and his teammates. He is ready for the responsibility and will be an excellent captain.”

With the captain now determined, the club will likely name several alternate captains who will share in the leadership responsibilities alongside Keller.

<iframe src=”https://shows.audiocdn.com/s/bonneville/jj-alex/utah-hockey-club-s-clayt-8b81fc/embed/standard-horizontal/v2″ width=”100%” height=”173″ frameborder=”0″ scrolling=”no”></iframe>

Utah Hockey Schedule

Fans can watch Captain Keller in his first game for the Utah Hockey Club on October 8 against Connor Bedard and the Chicago Blackhawks. Click here for the full schedule. 

Cole Bagley is the Utah Hockey Club insider for KSL Sports. Keep up with him on X here. You can hear Cole break down the team on KSL Sports Zone and KSL 5 TV.

Take us with you, wherever you go.

Download the new & improved KSL Sports app from Utah’s sports leader. You can stream live radio, video and stay up to date on all of your favorite teams.

Utah Hockey Forum