Arizona Coyotes future still might not be in Arizona
On Thursday afternoon, Gary Bettman and the ownership of the Arizona Coyotes both announced that the Coyotes had found their new home. The ASU Multipurpose Arena was going to be home to the Coyotes for the next 3+ years, but not so fast.
While appearing on the Jeff Marek Podcast, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman shared the following news:
Friedman on 32TP is not so sure the #Yotes will be playing at ASU next season. The vote for the new rink is in March or April, he asks what if they don't get it? Could you really see them playing at ASU if they don't get the new rink approved in Tempe?
Marek's theory is if the Coyotes don't get the new rink in Tempe he suspects it would be sold back to the league and the league would auction it off and they would move somewhere else. Friedman thinks Marek could be right.
The league and Coyotes have faced a lot of criticism about this proposed deal as it sounds like at completion the ASU Multipurpose Arena will only seat approximately 4,000 fans. That's 6,000 less fans than the Atlanta Thrashers proposed playing in front of, before they were forced to move. The ASU facility will also require significant renovations as they don't currently contain NHL quality locker rooms or workout spaces.
The Coyotes touted this as a temporary home, but according to Friedman playing here might never come to fruition. The Tempe City Council is set to vote on the Coyotes permanent facility in March or April, should the results not be in the Coyotes favor it is believed the team will be sold back to the NHL and immediately auctioned off.
If the Coyotes ultimately do get auctioned off the 4 most likely locations for relocation would remain Houston, Kansas City, Quebec City or Portland. With Houston likely being the NHL's location of choice, due to it's large population.
