“I didn’t know he could skate like that”: Markkanen takes to the ice ahead of Utah HC’s debut

SALT LAKE CITY — Lauri Markkanen is used to being introduced to a sold-out Delta Center crowd, but not on skates.

That was the situation the Jazz forward found himself in on Tuesday night. Markkanen emerged from the blue-lit tunnel and forced his way onto the ice to deliver the puck for the Utah Hockey Club's first puck drop.

“I felt like a little kid,” the Utah Jazz forward said.

A kid who happened to grow up on the ice of Finland and dreamed of skating in an NHL arena. Check and check.

The youthful enthusiasm was still evident the next morning. As Markkanen finished his shooting drills at the end of Wednesday's Jazz practice, he paused briefly to recount the details of the evening.

“I didn’t know he could skate like that,” guard Jordan Clarkson said. “Like I said, he’s up for anything. He can do anything.”

Markkanen held the puck up for the raucous crowd and circled the ice while throwing a few punches. He even jumped on the boards at one point to make sure he got the full hockey experience.

“I told him before he went out not to fall,” Utah Hockey Club captain Clayton Keller said. “Apparently he fell this morning.”

However, Markkanen, who remained upright during the puck drop ceremony, had some objections to Keller's version of events.

No, he never fell during a training session for the ceremony. But he said he fell during a longer free skate – skates that have become more commonplace now that there is a permanent sheet of ice at the Delta Center.

And as Markkanen was quick to point out, he wasn't the only one who had fallen recently. The other person? Team owner Ryan Smith.

“I was running around and shooting pucks. I actually fell once,” he said. “But so does Ryan, so we’re even.”

Smith was the one who came up with the idea of ​​featuring Markkanen — the Jazz's all-star caliber — on skates. The original plan was for Markkanen to skate at the Utah Hockey Club's team introduction last spring, but there wasn't enough free ice to pull it off properly.

The start, however, was a different story.

The two began discussing the possibility again after meeting during the Will Hardy Foundation golf tournament last month. What may have started as a joke quickly turned into a real plan.

“We kind of laughed about it and then we were like, 'Yeah, let's do it,'” Markkanen said.

He would finally go out there like an NHL player. But were you nervous for the big moment?

“More than a basketball game,” he admitted. “It wasn’t really my own area of ​​expertise.”

But a field – er, ice? – that he is happy to have found his way to Utah. Judging by the energetic crowd on Tuesday, he's far from the only one.

“The city and the state are ready for hockey,” he said. “It will take some time to get to know all the players and get to know them, but I think it was a really fun atmosphere.”

Clarkson agreed – although he was spooked a few times by pucks hitting the glass next to him.

“Great atmosphere. Great to have something new and different in the city,” he said. “It's a new experience. I think that’s super cool.”

He also wouldn't mind incorporating some of that experience into Jazz games.

“The hockey crowd is a little louder. Maybe we can have a beer during our games or something,” Clarkson said with a smile.