Utah finished its inaugural season Tuesday. It had 89 points in the standings and sold out the 11,131 full-view seats for every game at Delta Center. It set arena records for beer and merchandise sales, and it secured so many corporate sponsorships that it’s on track to rank among the top 15 teams in the NHL in overall sponsorship revenue.

Nick Bjugstad was sitting in a park with his wife, soaking in the spring sunshine of Arizona, when the text came in. His wife was mid-conversation when he broke in —