CXLVIII - Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo had 'productive' meeting with Phoenix mayor

[GKJ]

Nice of him to show up I guess

 

[Tawnos]

Hopefully we get some more exact details on the process soon.

 

[bleedblue94]

The BoG can choose to add arena requirements into the NHL Constitution, or more likely into the NHL ByLaws. The league can pretty much add or change any rules they want without PA consent so long as the rule doesn't affect something already covered by the CBA/collective bargaining, and isn't otherwise illegal.

And I would then argue why do you think the players wont insist on this being a part of future cba? There are a number of reasons they could, but chief among them is to create some sort of standard so there isn't a repeat that will impact HRR/the cap/escrow/their own salaries. That is all 100% cba relative after this whole fiasco in mullet.

Even if there is language that guarantees the PA input in situations like this one in some manner. Essentially the PA acknowledged they were powerless in this situation so their only real course of action was to start complaining in the media. Word is that it contributed in ways to this outcome, but no one ever wants to see a situation get to this point to begin with.

This topic really is a mutually important thing that impacts the players, the league, and everyone's revenues in the future. Better to let someone have a seat at the table opposed to making the media their only way to get attention, at least in a league like this. You don't want this stuff or your PA in the media openly badmouthing league decisions if you can prevent it. The cba isn't reserved for just the things that the owners want in it...

 

[KevFu]

Just curious, can Meruelo continue to sell Coyotes merchandise in the interim? I got hit with an email from the AZ Collection Store 2 hours before the BoG meeting to buy Coyotes jerseys. Not going to be a big bread winner going forward but curious as to how long he can continue make money from the trademarks.

"Of course" Coyotes merchandise will be sold. The same avenues to buy merch will almost surely continue because it's dumb to not take the money of those willing to give it, and merch sales will also surely spike this week.

I don't think that's the answer to the question the way you worded it. But it's not like Meruelo is selling Coyotes gear out of the trunk of his car. If you're asking "Who gets the revenue" from Coyotes merch, it's probably the NHL.

 

[nilan30]

Shouldn’t this mean there will be a dispersal draft and an expansion draft in the Coyotes are ‘folding’ and the league is expanding to Utah?

 

[GKJ]

Shouldn’t this mean there will be a dispersal draft and an expansion draft in the Coyotes are ‘folding’ and the league is expanding to Utah?

They’re not folding, they’re deactivating and selling the assets.

 

[Big Z Man 1990]

If the NHL stops at 17/17, Quebec will not be the 17th team in the East; Atlanta will be. Quebec absolutely needs to hope that the NHL pushes forward to 36 as quickly as possible.

Atlanta failed twice. The Nords lasted longer in QC than either the Flames or Thrashers did in Atlanta, in fact longer than those two combined.

Plus there is already an arena in QC.

 

[Llama19]

Just curious, can Meruelo continue to sell Coyotes merchandise in the interim? I got hit with an email from the AZ Collection Store 2 hours before the BoG meeting to buy Coyotes jerseys. Not going to be a big bread winner going forward but curious as to how long he can continue make money from the trademarks.

Per the NHL press release:

"I have negotiated the right to reactivate the team within the next five years, and have retained ownership of the beloved Coyotes name, brand and logo."

 

[takimaki]

So the AHL Roadrunners team is not moving to Phoenix and staying under Meruelo? Or what?

 

[Llama19]

So the AHL Roadrunners team is not moving to Phoenix and staying under Meruelo? Or what?

TBD...

 

[Yukon Joe]

Just curious, can Meruelo continue to sell Coyotes merchandise in the interim? I got hit with an email from the AZ Collection Store 2 hours before the BoG meeting to buy Coyotes jerseys. Not going to be a big bread winner going forward but curious as to how long he can continue make money from the trademarks.

So he does - but remember merchandise is made by Fanatics, so they get that end. Lots of sales go through NHL's online shop, so NHL gets that.

Meruelo only gets a share of whatever he physically sells. Well I mean not him personally, but businesses associated with him.

Maybe there's a small licensing right that goes with buying a Yotes jersey through the NHL, but it's not going to be a lot.

I'm more curious if the Yotes logo and branding revert to the NHL after 5 years if no franchise is awarded.

 

[red devil]

 

[Yukon Joe]

Nice of him to show up I guess

Not that he has to follow through, but 1-2 weeks ago he sent out a release saying he (being Meruelo) couldn't talk now but he would soon.

 

[mouser]

And I would then argue why do you think the players wont insist on this being a part of future cba? There are a number of reasons they could, but chief among them is to create some sort of standard so there isn't a repeat that will impact HRR/the cap/escrow/their own salaries. That is all 100% cba relative after this whole fiasco in mullet.

Even if there is language that guarantees the PA input in situations like this one in some manner. Essentially the PA acknowledged they were powerless in this situation so their only real course of action was to start complaining in the media. Word is that it contributed in ways to this outcome, but no one ever wants to see a situation get to this point to begin with.

This topic really is a mutually important thing that impacts the players, the league, and everyone's revenues in the future. Better to let someone have a seat at the table opposed to making the media their only way to get attention, at least in a league like this. You don't want this stuff or your PA in the media openly badmouthing league decisions if you can prevent it. The cba isn't reserved for just the things that the owners want in it...

The PA “lost” the 2005 and 2013 CBA negotiations, making concessions they did not want to. The 2020 MOU was pretty much neutral, maintaining the 2013 status quo.

I don’t see any reason to expect the PA will “win” the next 2026 CBA negotiations. The NHL is going to be strongly against adding arena or other franchise/business influencing requirements into the CBA—they want to retain those rights for themselves.

The NHLPA is among the weaker as major sports unions go, I’d rank the four major NA unions as

1) MLB
…big gap
2) NBA
…moderate gap
3) NHL
…smaller, but discernible gap
4) NFL

 

[mouser]

So the AHL Roadrunners team is not moving to Phoenix and staying under Meruelo? Or what?

Hoping we know the answer in the next month or two. I’m skeptical ASU will want to commit Mullett Arena to 41 home dates for the Roadrunners. Some sort of split between Tucson and Tempe would probably make more sense, with Mullett hosting 10-15 games if ASU is willing to consider that option.

 

[KevFu]

I think the NHL union is better/stronger than the NBA's. You could argue that in a lot of ways, the NHLPA's gotten more from ownership to benefit the entirety of the players than any other union.

MLB's union is by far the strongest, but they don't have the assurances that the "lower middle class" of the league is taken care of at all. Their last CBA negotiation they were basically whining that the teams/GMs need to go back to being stupid...

And it's a completely different animal in each league, because the NBA's is way more of a lip-service of "give the players these individual tiny demands... but the structure of the league really screws the average player." (You could argue there really AREN'T average players in the NBA, it's set up to pay the stars and the non-stars are expendable/interchangeable, on their own).


But that's really OT. The fight over specific language into the CBA about arena regulations probably just isn't worth it. They all WANT the same thing, it's a matter of what they'll settle for in extreme circumstances. How do I put this: They don't have a rule against playing in a 4,600-seat arena for the same reason the CBA doesn't outlaw players sticking their genitals in the skate sharpeners: because who TF would WANT to do that?!?!?!?

 

[bleedblue94]

I think the slate will all get cleaned out on June 27th @ 11:00AM when the land auction starts and Meruelo is nowhere to be seen. ( JMO, but I don't think he even shows up ) . As well, the NHL should be talking to Meruelo right now and tell him to "read the room". No one in Arizona wants you as an owner.

At that point the NHL can start the process of trying to have a franchise in Arizona with proper ownership. Not going to make a prediction on this happening, but if Meruelo walks away, the NHL doesn't have to wait 5 years. They can start on this right away.

Watch another owner shows up to the auction to outbid Meruelo and end this thing with him

 

[GKJ]

 

[BacktoLurking]

I think some brands are bad and some can be tarnished. At the end of the day, nobody cared about almost 20 years of New Orleans Hornets basketball and their fans were happy enough to move on from it, for example

This is a funny example that you chose because the Charlotte Bobcats fans were thrilled to get the Hornets name back that they never wanted to lose in the first place.

I bet there is a large contingent of Pels fans out there who would have been as happy or happier getting the Jazz name back from Utah.

 

[GKJ]

 

[eojsmada]

That's actually pretty big, considering there was no PR leadup to a season ticket drive.

 

[TheGreenTBer]

Translation: we had to cave on this point in order to get him to sell and we are gambling that he can't achieve the objective.

 

[Roadrage]

Damn that was fast. How long did it take for Meruelo to meet the team regarding the inevitable sale/relocation of team or did he send XG/GMBA instead?

 

[ForumNamePending]

So I guess ya'll aren't done talking about the future of the Coyotes after all?!

Shouldn't this thread be prefixed with "CXLVIII"?

EDIT: Looks like the stickied thread already has CXLVIII... So CXLIX then?

 

[No Fun Shogun]

From Kachina to Ka-ching.