Per Friedman: Coyotes players told team moving to Utah starting next season (Mod warning post #50)

[Peter Griffin]

Makes sense. End the Mullet arena embarrassment and still keep Arizona open as a potential market.

 

[Transplanted Caper]

People can debate the merits of other markets, but SLC and Smith are the Truth North and Winnipeg of 2024. They've got the money and the building and the relationship with the league to take a handoff and be ready for the fall. No other market can claim that.

 

[Juniorhockeyguru]

Good such an embarassment.

 

[LuGBuG]

Quebec and Halifax should jump the gun here if you ask me if they're to bring NHL out in that region.

But I think it's dead set for Salt Lake City. Ironically I was starting to like this Coyotes team. Guess Josh Doan is going the same road his dad is. Relocating to a new market after his rookie season. But I'm excited to see how hockey will do in Utah.

But my pick for their team name is the Utah Stingers.

There isn’t going to be an NHL team in Halifax for a very very very long time if ever. Couldn’t support it. I’m from Halifax fyi.

 

[Funk21]

Explain to me why this guy is getting anything but market value for his team? A Billion dollars for the Yotes seems awfully high. Plus they are talking about a provision that allows this tool to get an expansion franchise? The entire ownership group should be stripped of the franchise and never spoken to again. This and every other owner of the Yotes have bungled their way into ruining the cap structure of the NHL by being a perennial money pit.

I get that the NHL wants to bring hockey to the US but we can’t continually ignore place like QC or perhaps Hamilton or even the east coast where hockey would be supported and celebrated.

 

[LPHabsFan]

Arizona may get another team via expansion, but it's not going to be with Muruelo. My guess is that within a short amount of time, you're going to see them pull out of the auction and scrap the plans.

As PHNX Sports people are coming to realize, the NHL determined that it was very questionable as to whether or not Muruelo would be able to get things across the line and get things completed. That's really the beginning and the end of this. Question marks about the owners ability to get it done, plus no local alternatives.

Explain to me why this guy is getting anything but market value for his team? A Billion dollars for the Yotes seems awfully high. Plus they are talking about a provision that allows this tool to get an expansion franchise? The entire ownership group should be stripped of the franchise and never spoken to again. This and every other owner of the Yotes have bungled their way into ruining the cap structure of the NHL by being a perennial money pit.

I get that the NHL wants to bring hockey to the US but we can’t continually ignore place like QC or perhaps Hamilton or even the east coast where hockey would be supported and celebrated.

We can't, because it doesn't make sense. Which means that its a magic show with the accounting.

 

[Spring in Fialta]

It seemed obvious that Meruelo wasn't that guy when he managed to get outspent with TED.

By all means, lose. But at least try.

 

[Summer Rose]

I once said that we are the Cleveland Browns of the NHL. I didn’t expect to have it be entirely accurate. I’m also still in denial and attempting to use humor to comfort myself.

 

[mcleex]

So if Matthews goes to Salt Lake, did he technically go to Arizona?

 

[archangel2]

Here is a question sort of on and off topic.

How much money has the NHL given to Arizona over the last few seasons? I know there is a fancy word some people use to explain the situation.

But the new NHLPA guy did openly question the viability of the current Arizona situation.

I wonder how much pressure is going on behind the scenes to get this things done one way or another?

 

[Menzinger]

Situation is wild. Sympathies are with Coyotes fans right now, what an awful mess to try and deal with

 

[Empoleon8771]

Explain to me why this guy is getting anything but market value for his team? A Billion dollars for the Yotes seems awfully high. Plus they are talking about a provision that allows this tool to get an expansion franchise? The entire ownership group should be stripped of the franchise and never spoken to again. This and every other owner of the Yotes have bungled their way into ruining the cap structure of the NHL by being a perennial money pit.

I get that the NHL wants to bring hockey to the US but we can’t continually ignore place like QC or perhaps Hamilton or even the east coast where hockey would be supported and celebrated.

Because he doesn't have to sell the team, so the NHL needs to make an offer that convinces him to sell the team.

The idea that the league can "strip the entire ownership group of the franchise" is laughable. Dan Snyder was a far worse owner in the NFL and he sold the Commanders for $6 billion.

 

[Juniorhockeyguru]

Situation is wild. Sympathies are with Coyotes fans right now, what an awful mess to try and deal with

NHL has given them every chance to succeed.

 

[LPHabsFan]

Here is a question sort of on and off topic.

How much money has the NHL given to Arizona over the last few seasons? I know there is a fancy word some people use to explain the situation.

But the new NHLPA guy did openly question the viability of the current Arizona situation.

I wonder how much pressure is going on behind the scenes to get this things done one way or another?

No one knows and it's unlikely we'll ever really know. But we know that the team has endured hundreds of millions of dollars of debt over the past 15 years and they didn't suddenly become profitable. They've most likely been using lines of credit that are through banks and guaranteed through the NHL, which is the real reason that the deal is going through the NHL, so that they could use whatever the sale money provides to pay off those lines of credit.

 

[Goptor]

Yotes --> Utes

Only name that should be considered. Utah Utes

 

[Rabid Ranger]

Explain to me why this guy is getting anything but market value for his team? A Billion dollars for the Yotes seems awfully high. Plus they are talking about a provision that allows this tool to get an expansion franchise? The entire ownership group should be stripped of the franchise and never spoken to again. This and every other owner of the Yotes have bungled their way into ruining the cap structure of the NHL by being a perennial money pit.

I get that the NHL wants to bring hockey to the US but we can’t continually ignore place like QC or perhaps Hamilton or even the east coast where hockey would be supported and celebrated.

They can ignore Hamilton, Quebec City, Saskatoon, etc and they will. Especially with U.S. markets like Houston, Atlanta, SLC, and potentially Phoenix (again) open. Maybe Phoenix gets a non-grifter ownership group next time, which always seem to be an issue in the NHL.

 

[red devil]

Yotes --> Utes

Only name that should be considered. Utah Utes

That's the name of the University of Utah teams

 

[Dead Coyote]

And yet @AtlantaWhaler still has no actual connection to the Coyotes, or realistically to the NHL itself, given they don't live in a city with an NHL team.

Yeah everyone knows you need to cheer for the team in your city and that there's no point in being a fan of a team that's even close to you, let alone far away. Hockey definitely comes second to home town spirit doesn't it? Favorite players, junior players that graduate, having friends or family like a team, none of that really matters, it only matters that you live in a city with an NHL team, and if you don't you have no reason at all to be concerned about or cheer for any team.

Do you hear yourself?

 

[Crede777]

Explain to me why this guy is getting anything but market value for his team? A Billion dollars for the Yotes seems awfully high. Plus they are talking about a provision that allows this tool to get an expansion franchise? The entire ownership group should be stripped of the franchise and never spoken to again. This and every other owner of the Yotes have bungled their way into ruining the cap structure of the NHL by being a perennial money pit.

I get that the NHL wants to bring hockey to the US but we can’t continually ignore place like QC or perhaps Hamilton or even the east coast where hockey would be supported and celebrated.

It's as simple as this: Put yourself in the shoes of a billionaire owner. Which would you rather be able to brag about owning, a team in a league with 32 teams including one in Phoenix or a team in a league with 32 teams including one in Halifax?

Now put yourselves in the shoes of ESPN. Which would you pay more for the rights to, a league of 32 teams including one in Phoenix or a league of 32 teams including one in Halifax?

 

[Dead Coyote]

not sure is this is the proper place for this video--but it is from legit sources

Seravelli is not a legit source and has no clue what goes on in Arizona behind closed doors. He has no connections to the team at all. He also has a large tendency to post what will get the most clicks and that's primarily what he cares about. Whether or not this is something that might happen, Seravelli ain't the one who's going to break it.

 

[Empoleon8771]

Seravelli is not a legit source and has no clue what goes on in Arizona behind closed doors. He has no connections to the team at all. He also has a large tendency to post what will get the most clicks and that's primarily what he cares about. Whether or not this is something that might happen, Seravelli ain't the one who's going to break it.

 

[Apex Predator]

Seravelli is not a legit source and has no clue what goes on in Arizona behind closed doors. He has no connections to the team at all. He also has a large tendency to post what will get the most clicks and that's primarily what he cares about. Whether or not this is something that might happen, Seravelli ain't the one who's going to break it.

Didn’t seravali break all the picks for the Kraken? When did he lose all his sources?

 

[JKG33]

Other people can correct me on this, But looking at the plans and time frame that the owners have given to get the new arena up and running? It does not add up. There is nothing there. Nadda zip..

They are saying 27/28 season. We have just started the 2nd quarter of 2024. the are saying they can get an arena up and running in 3 seasons? Rogers in Edmonton, which was built in the nearly the centre of downtown Edmonton took 2.5 years to build and they had everything there and they still had trouble

Looking at the plans? They are talking about more or less building a new city from scratch. Arizona fans can correct me on this. But on this very large piece of land, there are no roads, there is no electricity, there is no sewer systems in place or any from of infrastructure that would help with the build.

I am not saying it can not be done. But the time frame laid out? And they will not fully know what they are up against till they starting digging on the site. They have a good idea but until you start digging? You wont know what you are up against.

Building it wont be the biggest issue (assuming all the money is in place, skilled workers and all the plans are in place). It will be the dig and the could be a time consuming project. The only project that comes to mind in the western world that looks to be the same size as the plans they have here---would be the massive Canary Wharf build in London, England and that took 10+ years to complete.

If Arizona does relocate? That is a massive black eye for Bettman

You're bang on. I'm in construction project management and there's always delays. A 3.5 year turnaround on a project with this scope is extremely optimistic. However I'm in Winnipeg, where we have to deal with the cold and working 24 hrs is damn near unheard of. If anywhere can pull it off, it'd be somewhere in the southern US like Arizona.

I will say this too, while there's more to do in Arizona, it's a lot easier to accomplish in a relatively middle of nowhere area than it is downtown. Material deliveries and management is infinitely easier when you've got space.

Granted, this timeline still feels quite optimistic given they don't even have the land yet. Moving the team takes the pressure off, and they can do it right if it takes a year longer

 

[Dead Coyote]

"Nothing has been done"

Wow, what a shocker. A NJ native who works for ESPN and has no connections to anything in ARI and Seravelli who has constantly posted about how the Yotes are going to move and told everyone they can't afford to sign FA (right before they signed FA) is wrong and spouting incorrect information that's just speculation to get clicks didn't actually break the news that Arizona is moving 3 months before the auction date even is? Wow, who could have guessed.

 

[JKG33]

Explain to me why this guy is getting anything but market value for his team? A Billion dollars for the Yotes seems awfully high. Plus they are talking about a provision that allows this tool to get an expansion franchise? The entire ownership group should be stripped of the franchise and never spoken to again. This and every other owner of the Yotes have bungled their way into ruining the cap structure of the NHL by being a perennial money pit.

I get that the NHL wants to bring hockey to the US but we can’t continually ignore place like QC or perhaps Hamilton or even the east coast where hockey would be supported and celebrated.

He's essentially paying the expansion rate for a team, and they're doing this to get Merulo "made whole" when they get a team back.