Utah Hockey Club selects Tij Iginla No. 6 in NHL Draft – Deseret News

For the first time ever, Utah is chosen.

The Utah Hockey Club has made its first-ever pick in the NHL Draft; Commissioner Gary Bettman called the selection of center Tij Iginla from the Kelowna Rockets (Western Hockey League) at number 6 “historic.”

“It’s definitely a great honor. … It would have been a surreal feeling to hear my name called by any team, but to be a franchise’s first pick is really cool, too,” Iginla said.

In his second season with the Kelowna Rockets in the Western Hockey League – Canada’s top junior league – Iginla scored the team’s highest goal total with 47 goals, ranking sixth in the WHL. The 1.80 m tall, 84 kg 17-year-old also recorded 37 assists in 64 games for the Rockets during his outstanding season.

“Yes, they helped me a lot. I think they gave me a lot of opportunities and gave me room to maneuver, and yes, I am very grateful to the coaches, my teammates and also the management,” Tiginla said.

He is the son of 20-year NHL veteran and Hall of Fame winger Jarome Iginla, who also won a gold medal with Canada at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.

Tij still has a long way to go before he reaches his father’s 625 NHL goals, but he has the same goal-scoring ability as his father.

The versatile forward can play both center and wing, and ESPN’s draft broadcast highlighted his elusive skating ability and decision-making. Iginla’s speed and puckhandling, combined with his scoring and finishing ability, pushed him up the draft list.

Iginla’s recent performance in Canada’s gold medal win at the 2024 IIHF U18 World Championship provided insight

Back in Salt Lake City, fans reacted positively at a watch party at the Delta Center and cheered Iginla’s selection.

General manager Bill Armstrong and owners Ryan and Ashley Smith were onstage at the Sphere in Las Vegas to announce the pick – and Armstrong shouted to fans at the watch party, even as the trio was booed by some fans in attendance in Las Vegas.

And when could Utah fans see Iginla in the black jersey on the ice at the Delta Center?

It depends on how he does in the minor leagues, but Iginla has set his sights on playing in the big leagues in 2025.

“I would love to play a full year as a 19-year-old. It’s hard to say right now. I haven’t shared the ice with real NHL players yet, so it’s hard to say where I am right now. But I mean, yeah, that’s basically a basic goal that I have for myself,” Iginla said.

This story will be updated.