facebook-pixel

The Delta Center’s new upper-bowl seats got their first real test. Here’s what Mammoth fans thought.

The Utah Mammoth unveiled the latest Delta Center renovations on Saturday.

By https://author-service-images-prod-us-east-1.publishing.aws.arc.pub/sltrib/YGNQZWECGZBDBKMGVEYYVTVAWA.jpg Shreyas Laddha
 | Sep. 27, 2026, 6:00 a.m.
| Updated: 10:44 a.m.

(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) The Utah Mammoth host the Colorado Avalanche, NHL hockey in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026.

Utah Mammoth fans experienced a new view from inside the Delta Center Saturday.

Before the Mammoth’s preseason game against the Colorado Avalanche, a number of fans made the climb to the upper bowl in the north end of the arena.

Not all of them necessarily had tickets in the section, either.

Some were just curious onlookers wanting a peek at the renovated upper bowl.

The most important question: Had the sightlines really improved?

This summer, the Delta Center added “terrace-style ledges” and gondolas to the north end of the upper bowl to address the obstructed sightlines. The other end of the upper bowl will be renovated next summer.

The verdict on the new seats?

“It’s absolutely incredible. These seats are amazing, I love it,” Mammoth season-ticket holder Bryan Larson told The Tribune. “Honestly, I wasn’t sure if they were going to pull this off for hockey.”

Larson wasn’t the only fan who felt that way.

“All the way up here at the top, at the very top level, these are maybe the most unique seats available,” said Mclayne Jackson, who holds season tickets in the section.

He was soon laying out something that felt awfully like a sales pitch for the new section.

“The fact that you can put your feet forward; there’s nobody around you. There are bathrooms in the corner — maybe I shouldn’t share that. It’s kind of a secret spot that not many people know about. There are escalators right up to your spot.”

But he didn’t want to go on because ... “I don’t want to hype them up too much because then I can’t afford them anymore.”

For someone who has spent the last two seasons watching from that same north end, the change is dramatic.

“I’m just really impressed. I’ve been sitting in these seats the last couple of years and getting to see the first and third periods, not really much of the second,” Jackson said.

He noted the angle from the seats is unique and something you can’t get while watching games on TV. Part of that is the steepness of the seats.

The Delta Center now has one of the steepest sightlines of any multi-sport arena in professional sports.

“It’s definitely unique. It feels almost straight up and down,” Mammoth season-ticket holder Brock Roberts said. “You’re right on top of the ice.”

Mammoth head coach André Tourigny felt the same way when looking up from the bench.

“I looked (up) from the ice. It looks fantastic,” Tourigny said. “It’s really steep. It’s massive, so that’s pretty cool.”

The hope is the renovations won’t affect the view for Utah Jazz games.

“The biggest challenge is, especially for us, we have such great sightlines for basketball, and it’s very important to protect those sightlines for basketball, and we did that,” Smith Entertainment Group’s president of real estate operations Jim Olson said.

The Jazz will first play in the renovated arena on Tuesday, Oct. 6, in a preseason game against the Denver Nuggets.

As for Saturday’s game, the Mammoth beat the Avalanche 2-0 in their final tuneup for the regular season, which begins Oct. 1 against the Chicago Blackhawks.

But the renovations were the main topic of conversation for fans at the Delta Center Saturday.

In fact, some season-ticket holders now face a tough decision: keep their regular seats or switch to the new terraces.

“We’re definitely considering it,” Larson said. “It’s something we are going to talk about.”

Support free news for Utah

sltrib.com is now free to access — no subscription required. We made this decision because we believe access to trustworthy, independent news shouldn’t depend on what you can afford — especially as misinformation and AI-generated content continue to rise.

Free to read doesn’t mean free to produce. Our reporters show up every day to ask hard questions and hold powerful institutions to account. That work takes resources. As a nonprofit newsroom, we rely on support from people who believe it matters. Make a donation today to fund local news that serves Utah communities.

You can help us bring more local news to more communities today.

$15$25$35

MOST VIEWED