Earlier this week, the city of Glendale informed the Coyotes it will opt out of their joint-lease agreement for the Gila River Arena, meaning this will be the Coyotes’ final season in Glendale. The Coyotes will have to vacate the Gila River Arena by June 30, 2022, forcing them to either find or build a new arena for the 2022-23 season. With hockey in the desert drying up, the Coyotes could be forced to relocate to another city.
Ever since relocating from Winnipeg in 1996, the Coyotes have been extremely disappointing in terms of money, attendance, interest, achievements, and more. In the 25 years, the Coyotes have been in Arizona, they have a poor record of 855-848-165 and no Stanley Cups. The Coyotes have made the playoffs nine times and have only made it past the first round twice. In the six seasons the Coyotes have played at Gila River Arena, they have finished bottom five in attendance every year. On top of that, the Coyotes have had financial problems, filing for bankruptcy in 2009, and have been involved in a recent scandal, causing them to lose draft picks. It’s safe to say that hockey in the desert has not worked out so it’s not a surprise that they could be on the way out.
On the flip side, there is a strong possibility the Coyotes stay in Arizona based on the league’s and management’s interest in staying in Arizona. Coyotes’ CEO/President Xavier Gutierrez wrote, “Both the Coyotes and the NHL are one hundred percent committed to staying here, and even if our specific arena plans beyond the 2021-2022 season are not yet confirmed, I want to be very clear to you that our future is here in Arizona.” Currently, the Coyotes are looking towards building a new stadium in Tempe, Arizona with Arizona State University. Plans to confirm the building of the arena soon, but nothing is certain yet.
All of the talks of the Coyotes staying in Arizona is in the air with no certain decision made yet. If the Coyotes fail to construct a new arena, relocation would be the next option available. Some of the cities mentioned in relocation ideas include Houston and Quebec City. It is going to be interesting to see how the Coyotes handle their arena situation in the next few weeks and to see what will happen to the future of hockey in the desert.
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