On Thursday the NHL announced approval for the Arizona Coyotes’ sale and relocation to Utah.
Residents rejected a new arena proposal in Tempe in May 2023, halting plans for construction of a long-term home in the city. Following the end of the 2023–24 season, the Coyotes became an inactive team, suspending their hockey operations.
Unable to secure an NHL-standard arena in Arizona, focus shifted to sale negotiations for the Coyotes franchise.
Ryan and Ashley Smith of Smith Entertainment Group, owners of the NBA franchise the Utah Jazz, are the new owners. Arizona’s team and its assets were purchased by The Smiths for $1.2 billion from Alex Meruelo.
Meruelo, owner since 2019, retains Coyotes brand rights, with a five-year window to find a new arena for the team. If Meruelo doesn’t secure a suitable arena within five years, he must return the franchise to the NHL, ending operations.
In the mid-1990s, a similar agreement was reached when the NFL’s Cleveland Browns moved and became the Baltimore Ravens.
If successful, Arizona would join a few teams in recovering a franchise after losing them during the league’s expansion era.
The yet-unnamed team, owned by the Smiths, will play at Salt Lake City’s 20,000-seat Delta Center, also home to the Jazz.
For hockey, the Center will have a 12,000-seat capacity in the coming season. Like the Seattle Kraken’s Climate Pledge Arena, renovations are needed for the Utah team’s permanent home.
In early April, Ryan Smith polled his audience on potential names for a Utah hockey team.
On Tuesday, the US Patent and Trademark Office received five applications for the new Utah NHL franchise. A sixth application was received from the same person or group on Friday. Per the NHL, Smith said there was a possibility of using a temporary name and logo for the 2024-25 campaign.
The names filed were Utah Blizzard, Utah Venom, Utah Fury, Utah HC, Utah Hockey Club, and Utah Yetis.
Utah’s hockey team is anticipated to join the league for play in the 2024-25 season.
On Wednesday, Coyotes players bid farewell to fans at the final game held at 5,000-seat Mullett Arena on ASU campus. Securing a 5-2 victory, the Yotes defeated playoff-contending Edmonton Oilers in their final matchup.
The Coyotes brought the ‘whiteout’ tradition from Winnipeg to Arizona, which fans embraced during the team’s farewell celebration.
Longtime Yotes broadcaster Todd Walsh emotionally signed off, bidding farewell to the team and its devoted fans.
“A good story lasts forever, however the ending isn’t always what you want it to be,” Walsh said.
Coyotes legend Shane Doan was also in attendance for the final game. Doan, who spent his NHL career with the desert dogs, was reunited with his retired banner before the game.
Doan’s son Josh was drafted by the team and played the last few games of the season with the Coyotes.
Despite this unprecedented event, hopefully, Arizona will have a hockey team within five years, bringing the sport back to fans.
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Featured image courtesy of NHL on NHL.com
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