NHL Thread Because There Isn't An NHL Thread

Report: NHL to buy Coyotes, sell to Utah ownership for $1.2B

Salt Lake City still appears to be on the verge of landing the Arizona Coyotes, but not before the NHL takes control of them.

"The league is going to buy the Coyotes for a billion dollars, and the current owner Alex Meruelo is going to have a five-year window to prove he can put together a new arena, go to the land auction, win it, get shovels in the ground ... everything that he has to do to prove he can build a new arena," Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported on "Saturday Headlines."

The next step in the process is where Salt Lake City comes in.

"And then kind of like expansion, the league is going to sell a new team to Utah and owner Ryan Smith for $1.2 billion," Friedman said. "The (Coyotes') hockey operations (staff) are expected to go with that."

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and his deputy Bill Daly reportedly met with the Coyotes' ownership group about a month ago and told them they could "pursue the new arena for Coyotes 2.0, but we're in a position here where we can't allow this particular iteration of the team to continue any longer," according to Friedman.

On Friday, he reported the Coyotes' players were informed they're moving to Utah before their game that night against the Edmonton Oilers, which they won in overtime.

Earlier Saturday, Meruelo said in a statement through the team that he hoped "to address these issues" as soon as he's able to do so.

It was reported Wednesday that the Coyotes could move to Utah as soon as next season.

Arizona has been forced to play at Mullett Arena, a 5,000-seat NCAA facility, since 2022-23 after their lease expired at Gila River Arena following the previous campaign.
 
So listening to Friedman on Sportsnet, the league is “buying” the Coyotes from its current owner and giving him 5 years to prove he can build an arena in Arizona. In the meantime they are “selling” the team to Utah. So IF Meruelo can build an arena in that 5 year window, then the league is expanding?…to an uneven number of teams…again…?
 
Hollywood said:
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and his deputy Bill Daly reportedly met with the Coyotes' ownership group about a month ago and told them they could "pursue the new arena for Coyotes 2.0, but we're in a position here where we can't allow this particular iteration of the team to continue any longer,"
Click to expand...
My posts update funny…i feel like Bettman owns this debacle top to bottom. Had he taken his head out of his ass, the team would’ve relocated years ago and probably been in a more stable situation.

Really hard to understand what the Board sees in him.
 
epyon415 said:
So listening to Friedman on Sportsnet, the league is “buying” the Coyotes from its current owner and giving him 5 years to prove he can build an arena in Arizona. In the meantime they are “selling” the team to Utah. So IF Meruelo can build an arena in that 5 year window, then the league is expanding?…to an uneven number of teams…again…?
Click to expand...

I’m Just Ken said:
If the old Coyotes can come back, I’d be shocked if another expansion team would be coming as well.
Click to expand...
The NHL plans to expand the league to 36 teams by the end of the decade. Houston and Atlanta are the frontrunners for the next wave of expansion which will likely occur in the next couple of years according to league sources. Then another expansion will take place by 2029 which would then give priority to Arizona if an arena deal is secured, plus another market (Kansas City, Portland or Québec).
 
epyon415 said:
Really hard to understand what the Board sees in him.
Click to expand...
Simple, he figured out how to open that puck and stretch the reach of a sport that doesn’t translate well to TV and has little tradition in many areas of the U.S. The longest-serving commissioner in the four major North American sports leagues, at 30 years on the job. Growth is Bettman's hallmark. League revenues, about $400 million when he began, were around $5.3 billion last season. Bottom line, he has made every team owners richer 🤑 What's not to like?
 
This story is getting more and more interesting 🤔 by the day...
news.sportslogos.net

Report: Coyotes to Utah “Not a Traditional Relocation”

The Arizona Coyotes and owner Alex Meruelo may get the coveted Cleveland Browns deal as part of the club’s anticipated move to Salt Lake City for next season. According to a Tweet from ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski, after the club shifts to Utah, Meruelo may be able to bring the Coyotes
news.sportslogos.net news.sportslogos.net
 
Hollywood said:
The NHL plans to expand the league to 36 teams by the end of the decade. Houston and Atlanta are the frontrunners for the next wave of expansion which will likely occur in the next couple of years according to league sources. Then another expansion will take place by 2029 which would then give priority to Arizona if an arena deal is secured, plus another market (Kansas City, Portland or Québec).
Click to expand...
Fuck that. Thirty-six teams is way too many.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top