Some pro hockey players have names that are difficult to pronounce.
Take Utah Hockey Club defenseman Vladislav Kolyachonok, for one. Or goalie Karel Vejmelka for another. Even Michael Carcone might trip you up.
But then Utah has some cities with spellings that look nothing like you’d think they would be pronounced. Some seem to make sense, while others leave you shaking your head.
Utah HC asked members of the recently transplanted Arizona Coyotes to take a crack at reading aloud the names of several places in their new home. They made a valiant effort trying to pronounce Oquirrh, Duchesne, Tooele, Scipio, Weber and Uintah in a recent social media post.
Looking at Oquirrh, defenseman Mikhail Sergachev said, “I’m not gonna say. It’s something that Cardi B says, you know?”
While three players had trouble with Scipio, defenseman Sean Durzi came up with right pronunciation. “Some would say I’m acclimating,” he said with a grin. “Some would say ... ”
The players had various ways to say Uintah, but center Logan Cooley got it correct, with defenseman Robert Bortuzzo adding, “Uintah. Like you into skiing?”
Once they’ve mastered those names, they could give Mantua, Hooper and Hurricane a shot. (Hint: Sounding them out won’t help.)
And, hopefully, once the Utah Hockey Club picks a permanent team name, it will roll easily off the tongue.