First off let's address the drawbacks. Obviously the NHL just added a team named the Golden Knights, so it could be strange to have two new franchises with "Golden" in their names. However, the name Golden Eagles for a hockey club in Utah has been around since 1969, so nobody in hockey can claim Utah is copying Vegas. And if you drop the "Golden" from the name, you are just copying the Philadelphia football franchise so it needs to stay. Another drawback would be that Utah isn't really associated with the Golden Eagle as a species. Okay, that may be true but there are a significant number of Golden Eagles in Utah and it is actually Utah's state bird of prey. So while not necessarily well known, the bird is significant to the state.

Now that we've addressed the drawbacks, let's talk about the reasons to adopt the name. In sports, history matters because it deepens the significance of a brand and ties generations of fans together. The Golden Eagles were established in SLC in 1969 and played in three different leagues during their time in the state between 1969-1994. In those 25 years the team won 5 league titles and played in 7 finals. The height of the Golden Eagles was winning back-to-back Turner Cups in the IHL in '87 & '88. Not many new franchises have the opportunity to create historical ties with branding like Utah potentially has with the Golden Eagles. For as long as the Grizzlies have had a presence in Utah, there is still significant nostalgia among the older crowd for the championship days of the Golden Eagles franchise and a packed Salt Palace.

But not only is there history tied to the Golden Eagles name, the branding already exists and it is excellent. The green & gold is really sharp and would be a color scheme only used by one other team in the current NHL landscape. The vintage jerseys are a great look. And the franchise could update the jerseys and logo as necessary to bring the brand into the 21st century.

Lastly, because of the ties to the past, adopting the Golden Eagles name & identity would make much of the current branding headache disappear. Will everyone be thrilled? No. But that isn't going to happen regardless of the name & color scheme that is chosen. But at the very least everyone would think it is a decent choice, as opposed to many people who absolutely hate some of the other options on the table. So while SEG may get a few groans, they won't have a full blown mutiny on their hands like they had with the Jazz rebrand.

Just take a look at these beauties:



And a couple of short videos recently released about Utah's hockey history with significant discussion about the Golden Eagles:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oibsKAqBaPI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sPRvsMDN5o