Coyotes relocating to Salt Lake City

[LawMan]

The players finding out about all of this from social media is the most Coyotes thing of all time.

I read a piece recently that back in the day players on the Minnesota North Stars learned about relocation from a letter in the mail. Not ideal either.

[Darkwing Puck]

I feel really bad for the fans in Arizona as well as the employees of the Coyotes and the players, plus the youth hockey organizations in Arizona that the Coyotes did great work supporting (remember, without the Coyotes there'd be no Austin Matthews flirting with a 70 goal season). And if the reports that Meruelo will get an expansion franchise in the next few years are true, I hope the fans in Arizona boycott the team, because rewarding this douchebag for the way he's treated everyone involved just leaves an awful taste in the mouth.

On the other hand, as a Coyotes fan who has no particular attachment to Phoenix/Arizona (I was a fan of the Jets 1.0 and followed the team when they relocated)... I'm actually kind of excited about the move. Ryan Smith is super-rich and combine that with the Coyotes stockpile of picks and prospects and this is a team that could get real good, real fast.

[loppantorkel]

I feel really bad for the fans in Arizona as well as the employees of the Coyotes and the players, plus the youth hockey organizations in Arizona that the Coyotes did great work supporting (remember, without the Coyotes there'd be no Austin Matthews flirting with a 70 goal season). And if the reports that Meruelo will get an expansion franchise in the next few years are true, I hope the fans in Arizona boycott the team, because rewarding this douchebag for the way he's treated everyone involved just leaves an awful taste in the mouth.

On the other hand, as a Coyotes fan who has no particular attachment to Phoenix/Arizona (I was a fan of the Jets 1.0 and followed the team when they relocated)... I'm actually kind of excited about the move. Ryan Smith is super-rich and combine that with the Coyotes stockpile of picks and prospects and this is a team that could get real good, real fast.

I agree. I've got no personal attachment or fandom to the team or franchise at all, but I can sympathize. Feels pretty similar to the Nordiques. I hope they sort things out before trying in Arizona again, and with a new owner.

From a fantasy perspective, going into the next season, the players in Utah will look a lot more enticing than they looked in Arizona. They probably won't win the SC the first year like Colorado, or even make the playoffs, but there's more positive uncertainty to them now.

edit: I like the Utah Pioneers.

[butch]

I get a feeling AZ could be interested in the nhl coming back but with a different billionaire running the show .

it always seems shady to me when you need to tie in residential / commercial development to an arena plan to keep the team afloat

[Axeman33]

It's going to be interesting to see how this plays out for ownership and management in regards to the current contracts, on their books. I'm hearing rumors about potential buyouts and clearing of bought out contracts but it will be fun to watch.

[Pengwin7]

Article on ESPN today:
https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/...layers-coaches

Within the article, it mentions Salt Lake City has also been experiencing an economic boom: a 2024 report by the Milken Institute ranked Salt Lake City fourth among 403 U.S. cities in growth of jobs, wages and high-tech industry.

[SeaDawg]

Ian Mendes had an article on The Athletic this week in which he had some proposed team names:

Yeti
Stag
Mountaineers
Golden Eagles
Hive
Stingers
Saints
Pioneers
Olympians
Blizzard

I like the Utah Yeti or the Utah Blizzard. Either lean into the mythical creature thing that the Kraken got going or throw back to the weather phenomena thing that a number of teams jumped on in the 90's.

I like the Utah Hive...bees are a Utah State symbol and the team needs to work together like a hive to succeed.

[2014olympicgold]

Another thing the Coyotes weren't paying for on time....Hockey sticks. They were apparently avoiding payment until the stick companies called like 4 times asking for payment.

[PenguinHunter]

I like the Utah Hive...bees are a Utah State symbol and the team needs to work together like a hive to succeed.

Utah Buzz

[pmorrow]

Coyotes social media (which is apparently run by the owners son) has gone silent.

[dejeanneret]

Another thing the Coyotes weren't paying for on time....Hockey sticks. They were apparently avoiding payment until the stick companies called like 4 times asking for payment.

Interesting. May sound silly, but I always wondered whether equipment was a team expense for NHL clubs or if the various manufacturers were just happy having their stuff used and logos seen in the top pro league such that they just gave the stuff to teams/players comp'd as a marketing expense of sorts. Think I assumed the latter.

Makes me look at things a little differently when I see some guys blowing up 2-3 top end sticks per game. Obviously, a billionaire I am not. LOL.

[2014olympicgold]

Interesting. May sound silly, but I always wondered whether equipment was a team expense for NHL clubs or if the various manufacturers were just happy having their stuff used and logos seen in the top pro league such that they just gave the stuff to teams/players comp'd as a marketing expense of sorts. Think I assumed the latter.

Makes me look at things a little differently when I see some guys blowing up 2-3 top end sticks per game. Obviously, a billionaire I am not. LOL.

Teams gift players everything, including like camp invites getting a full new set of protective equipment and stuff like that. I'm sure the teams have an agreement with every hockey manufacturer where they aren't paying the same sticker price as we are though.

The next is because it's a business expense, I'm sure it's a tax write off (which is the biggest benefit for sports owners...tax benefits).

[forsbergfan]

Article on ESPN today:
https://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/...layers-coaches

Within the article, it mentions Salt Lake City has also been experiencing an economic boom: a 2024 report by the Milken Institute ranked Salt Lake City fourth among 403 U.S. cities in growth of jobs, wages and high-tech industry.

This ESPN article is a must-read to get more info on the situation.
The NHL is gonna go back to Arizona as soon as possible. Meruelo basically has a re-activation clause in the sale, where he can purchase an expansion team for roughly the same amount he is being paid by the NHL for the team. So essentially the money the NHL pays him by buying the team is just a backup in case he never gets an arena, but if he does, he can break even and get a new team ASAP.
And considering how much Ryan Smith loves Utah, I can't imagine the team name doesn't involve honey bees somehow. I can only imagine the arena is gonna be nicknamed The Beehive.

[2014olympicgold]

I've been curious can Meruelo sell his ability to get an expansion team?

In 5yrs, expansion cost will 100% be higher than $1b. So Meruelo has a sweetheart deal here for the expansion team. What's the clauses in his deal that prevents him from building the arena, waiting 1yr then sell the team for $1.5B and Meruelo turn a $300m purchase into $1.2B?

So you get Arizona 2.0 and Houston getting an expansion team in 2030. Houston needs to pay $2B, 32 teams get X number of Millions split amongst them. Arizona 2.0 pays $1B and 32 teams get way less than their Houston payments. Meruelo then sells the team for $1.5B and pockets the money, meaning the 32 teams lose out on the payment differences.

[LawMan]

I've been curious can Meruelo sell his ability to get an expansion team?

In 5yrs, expansion cost will 100% be higher than $1b. So Meruelo has a sweetheart deal here for the expansion team. What's the clauses in his deal that prevents him from building the arena, waiting 1yr then sell the team for $1.5B and Meruelo turn a $300m purchase into $1.2B?

So you get Arizona 2.0 and Houston getting an expansion team in 2030. Houston needs to pay $2B, 32 teams get X number of Millions split amongst them. Arizona 2.0 pays $1B and 32 teams get way less than their Houston payments. Meruelo then sells the team for $1.5B and pockets the money, meaning the 32 teams lose out on the payment differences.

I asked out loud the exact same question!
Imagine:
- buying a team for $300million and selling for $1billion
- then selling your right to expansion at $1billion for $1.5mbillion
That would be legendary business move.

As an aside, as amazing as Meruelo has made out so far I have to ask: Why the HELL would any potential owner want to go BACK to Arizona??? I get it's a big Metro Area, but it has been tried, for over 20 years, in every geographic corner (downtown Phoenix, Glendale, ASU Campus, Tempe rejected an arena etec.) of the Greater Phoenix Area, and it has not once had longterm success or turned a profit.
What will be different THIS time compared to every