Colorado is already Utah's natural geographical rival, but who else should fans be hating already?
There's nothing like a good, old-fashioned, NHL rivalry.
Without them, there is no NHL, let alone hockey as a sport.
But as the expansion era has brought the heat recently, let's consider three potential rivals for the Utah team as their fans watch the rest of the playoffs.
Colorado Avalanche
Both states are known for their incredible snow sports, and it would only make sense their mascots pay homage to it.
This also is the most sensible rival for the team, considering Colorado is in the Central Division, and is the team to beat in said division.
They're also playing tonight against the Dallas Stars, which gives the fans all the more reason to not cheer on the Avs as they attempt to rally from a 3-1 deficit.
Vegas Golden Knights
These two teams are separated by under 500 miles, and Vegas played annually in Salt Lake during the preseason up until this year.
And while Sin City is popular for many Utahns, there are also a lot of Vegas fans in Utah. Imagine those two fanbases in the same arena!
Vegas is definitely the villains of the NHL league-wide, but a rivalry like this would add a little more "Venom", if you will.
Los Angeles Kings
In a recent post on Reddit, All Sports Culture said the most hated team in Utah was the Los Angeles Lakers.
Why not add the Kings to that list?
They played annually in SLC in the preseason since 2021, and they'll make at least three more trips to the Beehive State starting next year — and those games will mean something.
The Kings are also a perennial playoff contender as well, having knocked Utah (as the Phoenix/Arizona Coyotes) out of the Western Conference Final in 2012 in controversial fashion. You think the Utah players would remember?
Of course, this is the NHL, so rivalries can spring out of nowhere. Regardless, whoever comes to Utah next season will definitely feel like they're not in Kansas anymore.
Just missed the cut: Calgary Flames (snow sports), Dallas Stars (plenty of expatriate Texans in Utah), St. Louis Blues (infamous 1838 "extermination order" of Latter-day Saints)