Utah Hockey Club owners Ryan and Ashley Smith made an appearance with KSL-TV Monday night discussing their journey to owning an NHL team and more.
Behind every great team, there's great ownership.
The Utah Hockey Club is fortunate to have such great owners in Ryan and Ashley Smith, whom general manager Bill Armstrong called the best in the league in a press conference after the Upper Deck NHL Draft.
The Smiths finally got a chance to sit down and discuss that and much more in a special interview with KSL-TV's Carole Mikita, aired Monday night.
In that interview, the Smiths discussed not only their purchase of the team and the current effort to revitalize downtown Salt Lake (which cleared a major hurdle Tuesday), but also their similar paths that led them to each other.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znoZgzSOmG8[/embed]
The Smiths, Bill Armstrong, and president of hockey operations Chris Armstrong have all done their part to add to their shared vision, which Chris Armstrong called a "precedent setter" for other franchises in North American sports.
It's no secret, then, why the Smiths look at both Armstrongs as equals, not as a president or general manager alone, and it's no surprise that it has created the most unique working environment and working bonds in the NHL.
You add into that some great players, and you can tell why excitement is continuing to build towards opening night on October 8.
The best teams have the best owners, and the Utah Hockey Club is taking advantage of it so far.
One wonders what the next step could be.