Meet leaders, key players in Utah’s new NHL team
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — On Wednesday, Smith Entertainment Group will welcome several players, members of the front office, and team personnel of the new NHL team coming to Utah.
Last week, the NHL Board of Governors officially approved the sale of the Coyotes to Utah Jazz owners Ryan and Ashley Smith.
The Smiths confirmed that leadership of the team — including General Manager Bill Armstrong and Head Coach André Tourigny — will remain on staff next year.
Here’s what you need to know about the leadership, as well as some of the top players.
Bill Armstrong, General Manager
The former Arizona Coyotes hired St. Louis assistant General Manager Bill Armstrong in 2020 as their new general manager. In September 2023, they extended his contract, “ensuring he would be able to see the fruits of his overhaul,” the Associated Press reported.
Armstrong was tasked with rebuilding the franchise that hadn’t been to the playoffs since the 2020 season.
“That’s a big thing in negotiating this contract was: you come in here, you make all these moves, you start to get it going in a direction and you keep pushing,” Armstrong told AP News. “Now you’re acquiring picks, you’re drafting players and we’ve been able to recruit some really strong free agents into our team. Now you see it start to come together and you want to finish what you started.”
When Armstrong joined the team in 2020 he replaced John Chayka, who resigned the night before Arizona’s first postseason appearance in eight years.
Alex Meruelo, who sold the team to the Smiths, described Armstrong as “smart, honest and hard-working,” and said “he knows how to build a winning team.”
Armstrong played four seasons in the Ontario Hockey League and nine seasons in the American and International hockey leagues after being drafted in the third round by the Philadelphia Flyers.
André Tourigny, Head Coach
André Tourigny was hired in 2021 to help the Coyotes turn around as Arizona was one of the league’s worst teams.
The Coyotes opted to rebuild from the ground up, trading away or releasing many of their veterans to acquire younger players and draft picks. Tourigny grew to be well-liked by the players, leading the team to 25 wins and 57 points his first season.
“That’s a lot of fun, but it’s also a tremendous responsibility,” Tourigny told AP News. “It’s like raising a child, your own child. You don’t want to miss.”
Clayton Keller, player
Right wing player Clayton Keller is 5’10”, weighs 178 lbs, and was drafted to Arizona in 2016 in the first round as the seventh pick. He was born on July 29, 1998 in Chesterfield, Missouri.
According to his National Hockey League biography, Keller “hasn’t let a lack of size keep him from making a big impact on the NHL,” saying he has the skill to beat bigger opponents without taking a pounding.
After breaking Phil Kessel’s record for points by a player in the USA Hockey National Team Development Program from 2014-2016, the NHL said Keller was selected by the Arizona Coyotes in the first round (seventh pick) of the 2016 NHL Draft.
He played one season at Boston University, finishing with 45 points (21 goals, 24 assists), and helped the United States finish first at the 2017 IIHF World Junior Championship before signing with the Coyotes on March 26, 2017.
Lawson Crouse, player
Left wing player Lawson Crouse is 6’4″, weighs 215 lbs, and was drafted to Florida in 2015 in the first round as the 11th pick. He was born on Aug. 23, 1997 in Mt. Brydges, Ontario, Canada.
According to his National Hockey League biography, Crouse had a “breakthrough” NHL season in 2021 that earned him a five-year contract with the Arizona Coyotes on Aug. 8, 2022.
Chosen by the Florida Panthers with the eleventh pick in the 2015 NHL Draft, the NHL said Crouse was acquired by Arizona in a trade on Aug. 25, 2016. He was nicknamed “The Sheriff” by the Coyotes and their fans for his physical play.
He played two games for the Panthers’ American Hockey League affiliate in Portland in 2015-16 season before being traded to the Coyotes, the NHL said. Crouse made his NHL debut with Arizona on Oct. 15, 2016, and had 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in 72 games in 2016-17.
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