Game 1 - CHI @ UTA
Alexander Kerfoot at the Inaugural Utah Hockey Club Game
This day was so much fun! Since it was the very first game, there were tons of events. The party started at 12:30 in the afternoon for an 8 PM game—crazy, right? The entire ESPN crew was there, broadcasting live hours before the game even started. They talked about hockey coming to Utah and everything surrounding it. There was even a dance party out on the street before the game! Food trucks lined the area, and there were tons of games, including street hockey.
My dad and sister wanted to enjoy the party outside, but I headed into the arena as soon as the doors opened. I was eager to check out the atmosphere and get a first look inside the building. It was incredible! I made sure to secure a spot close to the bench. My dad and Rachel eventually joined me, making sure we had our spot before warm-ups began. Since hockey was new to Utah, most fans didn’t know the best strategies for getting down close to the tunnel where the players come out. Sometimes, if you’re lucky, they’ll toss out souvenirs. Sure enough, Kerfoot tossed Rachel a puck—something our family loves to collect at games. Over the course of this blog, you’ll see that we’re pretty good at getting them! The energy in the arena was electric. You could feel the excitement as fans started getting into the game and learning more about hockey.
Rachel with her puck from Kerfoot
As the game was about to start, we moved up to our seats in the upper bowl. We have first-row seats, which, in my opinion, are the best because you can see the entire ice and watch plays develop. But this game felt different—it was more electric than I was used to. My uncles, whose company sponsors the team, have seats lower down, about six rows up. After the first period, my uncle invited us to swap seats with them and go down to their section. Of course, we accepted, and the vibes were immaculate. The arena was completely packed!
Since a lot of people in Utah are new to hockey, many around us didn’t fully understand the game. Rachel and I, being experienced pros, started explaining the rules and plays to the people around us. It actually made the game even more fun because we were helping others enjoy it too!
Utah ended up winning, and to top it off, my dad got upgraded to even better seats because of his job—he ended up in the second row! It was truly a night for the history books and, without a doubt, the start of our Utah hockey obsession. We can’t wait for the crazy season ahead!
Postgame with Qualtrics CEO Zig Serafin
