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Utah Hockey Club on Thin Ice With Trademark Office While Searching for a New Identity

  • Writer: Villanova Sports Law Blog
    Villanova Sports Law Blog
  • Apr 29
  • 6 min read

At the end of the 2023-24 National Hockey League (“NHL”) season, the league declared that the Arizona Coyotes (“Coyotes”) would be relocated to Salt Lake City, Utah.[2] The Coyotes had not played in Phoenix since 2003, when then-owner Steve Ellman moved them to an arena in Glendale, a suburb outside of Phoenix. During this time, the Coyotes had a poor financial history due to mismanagement and poor attendance.[3] In 2021, Glendale terminated the Coyote’s lease with the Gila River Arena at the end of the 2021-22 season, prompting a move to Mullet Arena at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona.[4] In what was meant to be a temporary move to the collegiate arena, which can only accommodate 5,000 fans, slowly began to look permanent.[5] When another land bid for a new stadium site fell through, it became clear the Coyotes front office could not sustain the franchise.[6]

 

The league helped facilitate the Coyotes being sold to the Smith Entertainment Group (“SEG”), who also own the National Basketball Association (“NBA”) team Utah Jazz as well as co-own the Major League Soccer (“MLS”) club Real Salt Lake City and National Women’s Soccer League (“NWSL”) club Utah Royals.[7] SEG did not want to rush choosing the perfect name for the new franchise, electing to instead utilize the neutral title of Utah Hockey Club (“Utah HC”) for the 2024-25 season.[8] Utah fans were encouraged to propose potential team names on X (formerly Twitter) in response to a post by Ryan Smith, the owner of SEG.[9]

 

Twenty of the most commented names were then selected and sent out in a survey to hockey fans for the first round.[10] A second round of voting narrowed this number down to six names during the second round.[11] Fans voted over the summer for the top six names.: “Blizzard,” “Mammoth,” “Outlaws,” “Venom,” “Yeti,” or simply maintaining the “Utah Hockey Club” name. [12]

 

Cool Down: Yeti Fights for Their Trademark

 

On January 29, 2025, it was announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) rejected SEG’s application to register the name “Yeti.”[13] Yeti Coolers LLC (”Yeti Coolers”) already holds several trademarks with the name, which they aggressively protect.[14] The USPTO refused the trademark for the “Utah Yetis” due to a “likelihood of confusion” with the trademarks registered by Yeti Coolers, LLC.[15]

 

A trademark is "any word, name, symbol, or device" that is used to identify and distinguish the products sold by one person from all other products.[16] A trademark application can be denied if it “consists of or comprises a mark which so resembles a mark or trade name which so resembles a mark registered in the Patent and Trademark office . . . as to be likely, when used on or in connection with the goods of the applicant, to cause confusion, or to cause mistake, or to deceive”[17] Yeti Coolers holds several trademarks involving the word “Yeti” in both their standard and specialized fonts on products ranging from drinkware to hats.[18]

 

While Yeti Coolers is best known for their coolers and drinkware, the USPTO determined there could be some overlap in products the two groups would sell.[19] While the Utah Yetis would not be selling coolers, there would likely be drinkware and other merchandise that Yeti Coolers has already claimed the right to sell.[20] In the USPTO’s rejection, the office determined the word Utah preceding Yeti is not enough to differentiate between the two marks,.[21] Further, Yeti is spelled the same in singular tense and plural tense, which could cause additional confusion among consumers.[22]

 

Something New, Something Old: Why Not Keep the Coyote Name? 

 

Utah HC could not continue the legacy of the Coyotes because technically, the team is currently only disenfranchised.[23]  During the move from Arizona to Utah, the NHL allowed the Coyotes owner, Alex Mereulo, to maintain the right to be reinstated in the future.[24] While SEG bought the team, Mereulo retained all the intellectual property, including the team’s name and logos.[25] This was one of the conditions of the sale as it would allow for easier reinstatement if Mereulo could finally build a new arena.[26]

 

The conditions of the Coyotes sale provided Mereulo the ability to bring an expansion team to back to Arizona if certain required timelines were met.[27] In June 2024, the land auction for the new arena was cancelled, without making strides to building a new stadium Meruelo was required to relinquish his ownership of the Coyotes name.[28] However, this isn’t the end of hockey in the desert. Prior to Utah HC’s first game, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman shared the league’s intentions to bring hockey back to Arizona.[29] In December 2024, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman even met with individuals interested in bringing an expansion team to Arizona again.[30] Thus, the Coyotes will not be leaving the desert.  

 

Nominal Coexistence: There Can Be More Than One Yeti

 

SEG believes a unique team identity is important to the growth of hockey in Utah.[31] However, it will not be Utah Yetis.[32] Yeti Coolers is being unreasonable in their possessiveness over the name, because the two brands are distinctly different enough to avoid confusion among consumers.[33] "Nominal coexistence" allows two trademarks to exist and be used without causing confusing among consumers, and is common amongst sports teams.[34] Within the hockey world, there have been multiple examples of teams that have signed coexistence agreements, such as the New York Rangers hockey team and the Texas Rangers baseball team and the Florida Panthers hockey team and Carolina Panthers football team.[35] The substantially different name and logos support the distinct identities of the different teams allowing them to share a name, but hold their own trademarks.[36]

 

Sports teams can also coexist with companies in different areas of commerce.[37] A more recent example is the newest NHL expansion team, the Seattle Kraken, co-existing with Kraken Black Spiced Rum.[38] The rum brand went as far as to be one of the sponsors of the Seattle Kraken team. [39] Similarly, the Las Vegas Golden Knights faced a similar notice of opposition from the U.S. Army’s parachute team, nicknamed the Golden Knights.[40] Ultimately, the hockey team and the U.S. Army signed a coexistence agreement based on the low risk of confusion due to the very different natures of their activities.[41]

 

Despite this precedent, the USPTO has denied the trademark application for “Utah Yetis.”[42] As a result, SEG has officially abandoned any efforts for the Yeti name.[43] Fans were presented the following names with accompanying logos to vote for their favorite: “Utah Hockey Club,” "Utah Wasatch," or “Utah Mammoth.”[44] SEG plans to unveil the fan-favorite inspired team name at the 2025 Draft, where they are projected to have the 7th overall pick.

 


MOLLY MOORE (guest writer) is a 1L at Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law. Molly is a Villanova alumna and a proud Philadelphia sports fan, always excited to cheer on the Eagles, Phillies, and Villanova Wildcats. She is interested in pursuing a career in intellectual property law and currently serves as a 1L representative for both the IP Law Society and the Health Law Society.



[2] Emily Kaplan and Greg Wyshynski, Inside the Coyotes' stunning move from Arizona to Utah (Apr. 20, 2024) ESPN. https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/40024660/inside-coyotes-stunning-move-arizona-utah

[3] Id.

[4] Id.

[5] Id.

[6] Id.

[7] Id.

[8] Belle Fraser, Utah’s NHL team will not be the Yetis. Now fans get to decide what’s next (Jan. 29, 2025) The Salt Lake Tribune. https://www.sltrib.com/sports/utah-hockey-club/2025/01/29/yetis-is-officially-not-an-option/ 

[9] See Emily Kaplan and Greg Wyshynski, supra note 2.

[10] See Belle Fraser, supra note 8.

[11] See Belle Fraser, supra note 8.

[12] See Belle Fraser, supra note 8.

[13] Ian Casselberry, Utah Hockey Club's effort to make 'Yeti' permanent team name denied by U.S. trademark office (Jan. 24 2025) Yahoo Sportshttps://sports.yahoo.com/utah-hockey-clubs-effort-to-make-yeti-permanent-team-name-denied-by-us-trademark-office-021340945.html

[14] Id.

[15] Id.

[16] 15 USC § 1127.

[17] 15 U.S.C. § 1052(d).

[18] Ryan Miller, Utah Hockey Club facing trademark hurdles in finding permanent name (Jan. 21, 2025) KSLhttps://www.ksl.com/article/51234156/utah-hockey-club-facing-trademark-hurdles-in-finding-permanent-name

[19] Id.

[20] Id.

[21] Id.

[22] Id.

[23] See Emily Kaplan and Greg Wyshynski, supra note 2.

[26]  Id.

[27] Id.

[28] Id.

[29] Craig Morgan, Commissioner Gary Bettman addresses the future of NHL hockey in Arizona (Oct. 10, 2024) Phnx. https://gophnx.com/arizona-diamondbacks-christian-walker-snubbed-for-mlb-all-star-game-mets-pete-alonso-sneaks-spot/

[31] See Emily Kaplan and Greg Wyshynski, supra note 2.

[32] See Belle Fraser, supra note 8.

[33] See Belle Fraser, supra note 8.

[35] Id.

[36] Id.

[37] Id.

[38] Brendan Menapace, USPTO Rejects Utah NHL Franchise’s ‘Yetis’ Trademark Over Clash With Cooler Brand (Jan. 31, 2025) ASI. https://members.asicentral.com/news/industry-news/january-2025/uspto-rejects-utah-nhl-franchise-s-yetis-trademark-over-clash-with-cooler-brand/ 

[39] NHL (last accessed Apr. 15, 2025) Kraken Rum. https://www.krakenrum.com/nhl/

[40] Supra note 34.

[41] Supra note 34.

[42] See Belle Fraser, supra note 8.

[43] Next phase in voting for Utah's NHL team name begins (Jan. 29, 2025) NHL. https://www.nhl.com/utah/news/next-phase-in-voting-for-utah-s-nhl-team-name-begins 

[44] Id.


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