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

[AlainVigneaultsGum]

 

[Summer Rose]

You're coming off as kind of obtuse in this thread. You refuse any explanation given and simply conflate any concerns people might have with "excitement". Like, what do you want from people? Do posters need to couch any and all comments with "empathy" for Yotes fans? Do people need to be careful about what and how they say things for fear of hurting Arizona fans feelings? I don't get what your gripe is at this point.

Honestly, there's been plenty of empathy in this thread. I say this as an Arizona fan. Some drive-by posts celebrating the possibility of a move, but most that are "happy" the team might be moving are being objective and fair.

 

[Llewzaher]

I feel bad for the fans caught in the middle ... I like having a team in Phoenix and it sounds like the NHL does too ... why can't they go back to Glendale on a temporary basis until they sort out a new arena ? Is that bridge burned ?

What happened in Glendale was the city wanted the Yotes to sign a 12 year lease, but the Yotes were losing money in that location and wanted to go year by year and made it clear they would be leaving as soon as an opportunity presented itself.

The City then gave them one more year and kicked them out

The city council was asked about the possibility of the team playing temporarily, the Cuty said that they are in the process of doing renovations and some of the ice machines were gone and the ones left were too old that they would be considered illegal

 

[Llewzaher]

Having a team play in a college arena that seats a maximum of something like 4,600 people while the rest of the league is around 18,000 is an embarrassment in it's own right.

The problem is your are moving the team from an arena that other than the amount of seats , everything else is brand new. (There were issues at the start of last year about the dressing rooms but that has been fixed)

To an arena that may have more seats , but will be the next embarrassment to the league. It will become the third oldest arena, ( after Calgary and The Rangers) it will in no way be suitable for the NHL, players and media will complain once again.

Ryan Smith is building a new arena which will take 9 years

In Arizona a new arena will be built in 5

Players want to be in AZ , they won’t want to be in SLC

You are taking a problem that is in the verge of being dealt with to a whole new problem.

 

[Llewzaher]

The problem is your are moving the team from an arena that other than the amount of seats , everything else is brand new. (There were issues at the start of last year about the dressing rooms but that has been fixed)

To an arena that may have more seats , but will be the next embarrassment to the league. It will become the third oldest arena, ( after Calgary and The Rangers) it will in no way be suitable for the NHL, players and media will complain once again.

Ryan Smith is building a new arena which will take 9 years

In Arizona a new arena will be built in 5

Players want to be in AZ , they won’t want to be in SLC

You are taking a problem that is in the verge of being dealt with to a whole new problem.

I should also mention Alex Meruelo also owns construction and engineering companies, he is building an arena in Las Vegas at the moment ( not sure if this was to bring the AHL team there, or for basketball)

 

[Warden of the North]

The cap has more than doubled over the last 20 years and is forecasted to go up another 10% over the next two years.

I'll trust the owners of the other 31 teams (or at least most of them) which wanted the team to stay in Phoenix what's best for business.

So, this doesn't explain why anyone should be excited that a team is leaving a market.

They don't have a home. AM has not been able to find a place for them to play.

They can want to stay in the market all they want, but if the market can't put a roof over their heads then they have to leave. Why is this so hard to understand?

 

[Warden of the North]

The problem is your are moving the team from an arena that other than the amount of seats , everything else is brand new. (There were issues at the start of last year about the dressing rooms but that has been fixed)

To an arena that may have more seats , but will be the next embarrassment to the league. It will become the third oldest arena, ( after Calgary and The Rangers) it will in no way be suitable for the NHL, players and media will complain once again.

Ryan Smith is building a new arena which will take 9 years

In Arizona a new arena will be built in 5

Players want to be in AZ , they won’t want to be in SLC

You are taking a problem that is in the verge of being dealt with to a whole new problem.

How can you say so confidently a new arena will take 5 years in Arizona?

They don't even own the property and have had arenas issues for over a decade. But right, Arizona will surely beat Utah to a new arena.

 

[AtlantaWhaler]

You're coming off as kind of obtuse in this thread. You refuse any explanation given and simply conflate any concerns people might have with "excitement". Like, what do you want from people? Do posters need to couch any and all comments with "empathy" for Yotes fans? Do people need to be careful about what and how they say things for fear of hurting Arizona fans feelings? I don't get what your gripe is at this point.

I'm not trying to curb any opinions and direct any narrative. Just trying to understand why posters are seemingly happy or relieved a team might be leaving a market. The league is as healthy as its ever been. I just don't understand.

 

[AtlantaWhaler]

Why is this so hard to understand?

Just looking for an answer to your quote:

Everyone who isn't a Coyotes fan should be happy they're moving to greener pastures.

I just don't see why fans should be happy a team is leaving a market when it hasn't affected your, or anyone's, favorite team. League has great attendance, has signed huge TV deals and has a cap that keeps going up. T

That's all.

 

[Llewzaher]

How can you say so confidently a new arena will take 5 years in Arizona?

They don't even own the property and have had arenas issues for over a decade. But right, Arizona will surely beat Utah to a new arena.

They will own the property by June 27.. if they don’t they will look to relocate..( which is why the NHL are making 2 schedules ) this was the comments made by the CEO 6 days ago..

Arena issues in the past? Not sure what you mean.. a previous owner decided to move the team out of downtown Phoenix out to Glendale .. in the middle of nowhere where and it has been a disaster ever since..

Building here will alleviate that issue.

 

[Dr Pepper]

The problem is your are moving the team from an arena that other than the amount of seats , everything else is brand new. (There were issues at the start of last year about the dressing rooms but that has been fixed)

To an arena that may have more seats , but will be the next embarrassment to the league. It will become the third oldest arena, ( after Calgary and The Rangers) it will in no way be suitable for the NHL, players and media will complain once again.

Ryan Smith is building a new arena which will take 9 years

In Arizona a new arena will be built in 5

Players want to be in AZ , they won’t want to be in SLC

You are taking a problem that is in the verge of being dealt with to a whole new problem.

"We've almost got this figured out you guys, we promise!"
-every Coyotes owner for the last fifteen years.

How much longer would you have this drag on? Stay at the pint-sized Mullet for another three years? Nobody wants that; probably not even ASU.

 

[Summer Rose]

"We've almost got this figured out you guys, we promise!"
-every Coyotes owner for the last fifteen years.

How much longer would you have this drag on? Stay at the pint-sized Mullet for another three years? Nobody wants that; probably not even ASU.

Just a minor correction here, it is my recollection that ASU is perfectly happy having the Coyotes as a tenant.

 

[TLEH]

Meruelo is getting a hell of a f***ing deal. NHL needs to do a better job of vetting their ownership groups. He conned a ton of people and it was right there in the open the entire time.

Feel terrible for the fans in Phoenix. I hope he never gets another team. I hope they go back to PHX with an arena in Scottsdale and he's not apart of it.

If hockey in Phoenix has to go through Meruelo? Ridiculous.

 

[Llewzaher]

"We've almost got this figured out you guys, we promise!"
-every Coyotes owner for the last fifteen years.

How much longer would you have this drag on? Stay at the pint-sized Mullet for another three years? Nobody wants that; probably not even ASU.

All of these complaints are just going to start brand new in Salt Lake City with the arena over there.. not to mention nobody wants to play there

 

[ItWasJustified]

Ryan Smith is building a new arena which will take 9 years

Why would it take 9 years for them to build a new arena?

 

[The Burdened]

cant even afford to pay their hotel bill and have been a cap floor team for most of their existence and got evicted for not paying their bills at the last arena, but all of the sudden the money and ambition is there for a multi billion dollar private complex?

lol
lmao
LMAO

 

[Dr Pepper]

All of these complaints are just going to start brand new in Salt Lake City with the arena over there.. not to mention nobody wants to play there

Players have said this?

 

[UncleBlackie]

There's not going to be a dispersal draft. Smyth and SLC aren't paying $1.3 billion for the rights to a franchise that can be relocated, then watch young guys like Clayton Keller, Mattias Maccelli, Logan Cooley, Sean Durzi, Dylan Kuenther, et. al. get shipped out to whoever wants to pluck them, then have to rebuild a roster from whatever scraps the rest of the league is leaving them. Even an attempt to do some hybrid Minnesota / San Jose thing from 1991 isn't happening, because the rest of the teams in the league aren't going to be told "pick from whatever scraps SLC doesn't want" and "now expose some guys that will make SLC better."

I'm not suggesting this will happen. I just think it's a better solution (i.e. a straight-up DD followed by a separate ED, not a '92-like hybrid) than moving the Coyotes organization. For Arizona fans, it spares them the pain of 90's Browns fans et. al. in seeing anything resembling "their team" play in another city, Besides, ultimately, if and when the Coyotes are resurrected, it'll be with an expansion draft. For Utah, it's at worst a wash given the recent success of Vegas and even to an extent Seattle, but in any case it seems like Smyth's preference is to start fresh. But most importantly, it makes sense for the rest of the League, since it would help to restore some compeititive balance. Clayton Keller, Mattias Maccelli, Logan Cooley, Sean Durzi, Dylan Kuenther etc. wouldn't all be going to one team. They'd each be joining a different team, presumably a non-playoff team, and they'd probably be better than the players those teams would lose to Utah. Whereas most of the playoff teams would likely come out net losers from a roster perspective. But they'd all still be pocketing $10M each, and we all know Bettman loves parity. As for the Coyotes players? They're being uprooted in any case, so I suppose one should ask to whether they'd want to stay together as a team, or whether they want to play and live in Salt Lake City. Speaking of which, how many NBA titles have the Jazz won? Anyway, considering the interests of the players as a whole, I think it'd be fairer to expect mostly younger guys who haven't yet "paid their dues" to head to Utah, and that's most likely what would happen in an expansion draft.

 

[Llewzaher]

Meruelo is getting a hell of a f***ing deal. NHL needs to do a better job of vetting their ownership groups. He conned a ton of people and it was right there in the open the entire time.

He is building the same thing in Nevada, the difference is it’s not tied to the NHL so nothing is mentioned.

If he wins the auction on June 27 , he will build the arena.. if he loses it , he will look to relocate the team.

Unfortunately if it goes to SLC .. the same complaints about the Mullet will happen there. You are just moving the problem. The only difference is players want to live in AZ

Bringing Las Vegas to Reno: Why Alex Meruelo is betting $1 billion on the BLC

Alex Meruelo owns a major property in Las Vegas and a major property in Reno. He knows big when he sees big. And the $1 billion entertainment district at the GS

nevadasportsnet.com

 

[Frank the Tank]

If Smith wanted to be a dick and also ensure he gets the team, why wouldn't he outbid Meruelo in the land auction? I imagine he could do it through a shell corporation if he's worried about the optics.

 

[Llewzaher]

Players have said this?

There are complaints from players, not just from the Yotes but around the league.

Some have no trade clauses that have AZ as a place to get traded to , but obviously won’t have SLC and are concerned .. per Gord Miller

 

[Transplanted Caper]

It's pretty clear the NHL has nowhere near enough faith in Meruelo's ability to get an arena deal done, and the NHLPA and a good chunk of the other 31 owners have had enough. If you wait until June 28, you're playing in Arizona, regardless in 2024-2025. And then what? You wait some more? It sucks for Arizona fans who've been through the ringer (and have been lied to by the team's ownership) but obviously something reached a tipping point in the last few months that made the current situation untenable.

 

[TLEH]

He is building the same thing in Nevada, the difference is it’s not tied to the NHL so nothing is mentioned.

If he wins the auction on June 27 , he will build the arena.. if he loses it , he will look to relocate the team.

Unfortunately if it goes to SLC .. the same complaints about the Mullet will happen there. You are just moving the problem. The only difference is players want to live in AZ

Bringing Las Vegas to Reno: Why Alex Meruelo is betting $1 billion on the BLC

Alex Meruelo owns a major property in Las Vegas and a major property in Reno. He knows big when he sees big. And the $1 billion entertainment district at the GS

nevadasportsnet.com

This guy is "building" a lot of stuff. For years. Doesn't have shit to show for it in AZ. Which is why he is losing his team.

On the players stuff:

 

[joestevens29]

There are complaints from players, not just from the Yotes but around the league.

Some have no trade clauses that have AZ as a place to get traded to , but obviously won’t have SLC and are concerned .. per Gord Miller

I still call BS on how many players are saying this.

First off who does Gord Miller talk too? Second the timing of it was odd, players really getting on their phones to let Gord Miller know they hate SLC when the season is still ongoing?

Guy probably heard one guy bring it up and is making a story out of nothing.

 

[TLEH]

There are complaints from players, not just from the Yotes but around the league.

Some have no trade clauses that have AZ as a place to get traded to , but obviously won’t have SLC and are concerned .. per Gord Miller

NTC are updated every single year. SLC isn't going to be a team this year. They'll be a team next year. So they can add that team to their NTC next year and remove the Coyotes.