Where Utah’s NHL team will build its practice facility

Utah’s new NHL team may not have a name yet, but it now has a place to call home — eventually.

Smith Entertainment Group announced its agreement to construct a practice facility for the team at The Shops at South Town in Sandy in a Monday press release.

The state-of-the-art complex will house the franchise’s headquarters and offices in addition to the multiple NHL-standard regulation ice surfaces necessary for training.

The facility is scheduled to be completed prior to the 2025-26 season, with SEG “enthusiastically working” to find a temporary training site for the team’s inaugural campaign in Utah, according to Monday’s press release.

“The city of Sandy could not be more excited to become the home to the new NHL team’s long-term practice facility,” Sandy Mayor Monica Zoltanski said in a statement. “We have worked collaboratively with Smith Entertainment Group for many years and are excited about their expanding presence in our community with one of the world’s premier hockey training facilities in our city.”

Sandy already boasts the 20,000-plus seat America First Field, home to soccer clubs Real Salt Lake and Utah Royals FC.

The Shops at South Town is located between I-15 and State Street in south Sandy. Originally opening in 1986, the 1.3 million-square-foot mall currently holds 150 stores and restaurants, including anchor locations Round 1 Entertainment, HomeGoods and JCPenney.

Building a complex within an existing shopping district is not a new practice. Other NHL clubs with similar setups include the Washington Capitals and Seattle Kraken.

“The facility will also be available for community purposes outside of the NHL franchise’s designated use, including to accommodate community hockey programming and offering ice time for youth and amateur hockey and recreation,” the release said. “Community-accessible spaces will include a public entrance, NHL team store, locker rooms, elevated seating around both rinks, and other multipurpose spaces for community programming. SEG will release more details about construction plans and the facility’s layout and configuration at a later date.

“... SEG is committed to ensuring The Shops at South Town continue to be a vibrant and integral part of the community, and the NHL practice facility is an important first step towards this goal.”