The Utah Hockey Club has been skating on thin naming ice since "Yeti" got the cold shoulder from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Their quest for a permanent team nickname continues, as fans get a say in the final decision. The "Utah Yetis" moniker was rejected when the patent office gave it the thumbs down, much to the dismay of fans and the franchise alike, as reported by ESPN.
In an unexpected move, "Wasatch" and "Mammoth" were briefly considered as candidates for the hockey team's name, along with the placeholder "Utah Hockey Club". Fans, however, were less than thrilled with "Wasatch", leading to its prompt benching. The hockey club is now offering "Outlaws" as a new contender, hoping to rally fan support around a name that doesn't leave them scratching their heads in confusion, as detailed by FOX 13. The team announced that voting would continue through upcoming home games on Friday, Sunday, and Tuesday, giving supporters a chance to weigh in directly at the arena.
Trademarking a new team name is proving to be no easy task in today's saturated branding landscape. As the Utah Hockey Club learned from their "Yeti" mishap, the challenge lies in the sheer volume of pre-existing trademarks across various industries. "Us trademark lawyers have a nerdy little joke: ‘Have we run out of names to trademark?’" Zakari Kurtz, founder of Sneaker Law Firm PLLC said, as per Front Office Sports. "It's comical because you can trademark just about anything, and there aren’t many names left available."
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