After the land auction was cancelled, Alex Meruelo made a big decision and on Monday night, while all the major networks were focused on the Stanley Cup celebrations, he decided to step away from owning the Arizona Coyotes.
With that news, it left more questions than answers including what happens to the five-year window the NHL granted Meruelo to bring a team back to the state and another being what happens to the Coyotes' logo and branding/identity.
According to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period, the NHL confirmed that the exclusive five-year window they gave to Meruelo has been voided and any new prospective owners will have to go through the formal expansion process, whenever the league decides to do so.
As for the Coyotes' brand, logo and name, that has officially been returned to the National Hockey League, Sportico confirmed on Tuesday afternoon.
Whenever the NHL decides to open a formal expansion process in the coming years, Arizona will certainly be in tough with markets such as Atlanta, Houston, Milwaukee, Portland and Kansas City all expressing interest in having a franchise down the road.
