Hockey fans might want to thank their neighbors to the east before coming to the Delta Center for tonight's home debut of the Utah Grizzlies.
Last season, the Denver Grizzlies had the best regular season record (57-18-6, 120 points) in the International Hockey League and won the 1994-95 Turner Cup championship. Ironically, they were so successful in drawing large crowds (average of 12,000 plus) that they got booted out of the city.Meantime, Utah hockey fans mulled about losing the Salt Lake Golden Eagles, who had been a winter staple here for 25 years but then opted to relocate to Michigan.
Tonight fans in both Denver and Salt Lake City will be smiling.
The Utah spectators will cheer on the Grizz as IHL hockey returns to the Beehive State after a 17-month absence. At about the same time, Denver will welcome its new National Hockey League franchise, the Colorado Avalanche, in its inaugural game against the Detroit Red Wings at McNichols Arena.
"I promised the people in Denver and I made the same promise to the people in Salt Lake that they will see an exciting hockey team," said Grizz coach Butch Goring, who earned the IHL coach of the year award last season after guiding Denver to a league-best record for a new franchise.
"I don't guarantee we're going to win every hockey game, but they will see an exciting . . . and very competitive hockey team."
Goring's IHL track record as a head coach shows that these are anything but empty promises.
Two seasons ago, he coached the first-year Las Vegas Thunder to a league-best record of 52-18-11. Last season, with the Grizz, he not only won the title, but the club finished with the fourth-best record in IHL history.
"If we can be as competitive as last year, I'll be thrilled," he said, while pointing out that last season's club led the IHL in scoring and in defense.
Though obviously not willing to ensure a win every night, he does guarantee that his team will play a balanced game of defense and offense again this season, and, that they will play hard, or they won't play at all. Period.
"My players, they have to play both ends of the rink or they don't play for me. It's as simple as that," he said. " . . . Our criteria is that we always want our players to play hard regardless of the outcome."
With emotions running high for tonight's opener against the Peoria Rivermen (1-1), Goring is hoping that his club, 1-0 after last Friday's 6-5 shootout win over Phoenix, will get out to a quick start to calm their nerves.
He's confident that the hometown fans will like what they see, too.
"I don't think anyone is going to leave the rink disappointed."
Except for the Rivermen, he hopes.
GAME NOTES: Tonight's matchup, which begins at 7 p.m., pits the two clubs with the top regular season records during the 1994-95 campaign . . . The Grizz finished atop the Western Conference to earn the Ken Ullyot Trophy and notched the Frank J. Huber with the league's best mark. Peoria (51-19-11, 113 points) merited the Frank Gallagher Trophy as the Eastern Conference champs . . . Peoria coach Paul MacLean (102-43-17) trails only Goring (109-36-17) in IHL victories over the past two seasons . . . The Grizzlies got a boost when the parent-club New York Islanders sent down center Chris Marinucci this week. He gained 69 points with Denver last year before joining the Islanders . . . The game will be broadcast live on KAPN Radio (860 AM) with a 10-minute pregame show beginning at 6:50 p.m. Kyle Schultz is the play-by-play announcer and he'll be joined by Grizz defenseman Joby Messier, who isn't scheduled to play in the opener.
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Grizz in October
Date Opponent time
Oct. 6 Peoria 7 p.m.
Oct. 7 San Fran. 7 p.m.
Oct. 13 San Fran. 7 p.m.
Oct. 14 Orlando 7 p.m.
Oct. 16 L.A. 7 p.m.
Oct. 21 at L.A. 8 p.m.
Oct. 25 Phoenix 7 p.m.
Oct. 27 San Fran. 7 p.m.
Oct. 28 Cleveland 7 p.m.
Oct. 29 at L.A. 4 p.m.