NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly was on Sirius XM NHL Network Radio with Gord Stellick and Mike Johnson and was asked about the League’s position on Arizona and when an NHL team could return there.
NHLRumors.com Transcriptions
Gord Stellick: “Now Arizona, you put a lot of blood and sweat into it for the front office. Mike Johnson, right now, is the 17th all time leading scorer in Arizona Coyotes history, just so you know that. So he fondly remembers his time there. Is there an official position now about Arizona and possibly getting back into the League?”
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Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly: “Not really an official position other than an official position we really have, with respect to any market that doesn’t have an existing NHL franchise. What we look for in markets is obviously the demographics of the market, the population of the market, the fan appeal in the market.
But, one of the things that we never got in Arizona, which is an important, if not a critical, consideration, is an arena and state of the art arena and quality of arena, and capacity of arena. All those factors were a problem historically in Arizona, and they were never satisfactorily addressed.
That doesn’t mean they can’t be addressed at some point in time. And then the final factor, obviously, is ownership and having strong, stable ownership, which is important. Do I think that can happen in Arizona? Absolutely. Do I have a timetable or even an indication that it’s imminent? No, but I certainly wouldn’t rule out the possibility of the return to Arizona at the appropriate time, once all those boxes are checked.”
NHLRumors.com Note: Nobody knew last year how quickly the Arizona Coyotes were going to relocate from Arizona to Utah. However, the hockey management and business operations of the franchise technically didn’t. It was more about relocation and expansion, as the Coyotes could no longer play in a college hockey facility. Time was winding down with their former owner, and until there is a new owner, the Coyotes are not coming back to the NHL.
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Whether they want to admit it or not, Alex Meruelo, even though it’s part of his deal, has to be the owner when the Coyotes are reactivated. The NHL will wait out the time on the agreement and find a suitable owner to have in place, as they did with the Utah Hockey Club and Ryan Smith. It was quick and took convincing, but the NHL needed those players in a professional atmosphere.
Expansion is coming back to Arizona again. There will be a team there. Remember, there are 33 teams, with 32 active and one deactivated team in the Coyotes. Expectations are that when a new facility and steady ownership are in place and Meruelo is out of the way, the Coyotes will return to the desert again.
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