Tempe Voters Reject Coyotes Entertainment District and Arena; Relocation Next?

[Karan]

Yeah fair enough, from an overall financial point of view QC likely wouldn't be tops on their list. Plus I'm sure the League doesn't want to deal with another realignment and so Houston makes more sense in that respect. 

[Phil]

15 minutes ago, Karan said:

Yeah fair enough, from an overall financial point of view QC likely wouldn't be tops on their list. Plus I'm sure the League doesn't want to deal with another realignment and so Houston makes more sense in that respect. 

 

Houston makes a ton of sense for a slew of reasons. Quebec City makes, arguably, none, outside of the desire to see Nordiques jerseys again.

[siddious]

1 hour ago, Phil said:

 

Seriously. Trade them for like... Michigan?

Yepp who ever wins the ncaa championship gets to play instead of phoenix 

[LindG1000]

38 minutes ago, Karan said:

Yeah fair enough, from an overall financial point of view QC likely wouldn't be tops on their list. Plus I'm sure the League doesn't want to deal with another realignment and so Houston makes more sense in that respect. 

There's a longstanding theory that the league leaves Quebec City hanging as a leverage tactic with some of the more truculent owners (the Alberta teams, whoever owns the Yotes tomorrow, etc) and to jack up expansion fee demands.

 

Regardless, I wouldn't expect an 8th team in Canada unless the CAD catches up to the USD, especially with a ton of markets growing at a brisk pace down here. I'd bet on Houston sooner than any other city.

[Phil]

42 minutes ago, G1000 said:

I wouldn't expect an 8th team in Canada unless the CAD catches up to the USD,

 

Which isn't happening any time soon. It stands a greater chance of going the other way, in fact, given the impact of their Covid restrictions.

[Ozzy]

What about Salt Lake City?  That fan base is massive for the Jazz.  I would think they could support another pro team.

[Phil]

5 minutes ago, Ozzy said:

What about Salt Lake City?  That fan base is massive for the Jazz.  I would think they could support another pro team.

 

The list of cities in the NHL's likely preference goes Houston, Hamilton, then anywhere else, with cities like Milwaukee, Kansas City, and even Mexico City all up for contention.

[Ozzy]

1 minute ago, Phil said:

 

The list of cities in the NHL's likely preference goes Houston, Hamilton, then anywhere else, with cities like Milwaukee, Kansas City, and even Mexico City all up for contention.

 

I would hope that they would want less border crossing.  Mexico City sounds like a face plant experiment, but hey, you never know.

 

Kansas City had a try years back with the Scouts...yeah I remember them!!  LOL 

 

Milwaukee may be a good choice, since Wisconsin is such a hockey hotbed with college hockey.  I think Houston is actually a pretty good leader in the clubhouse though.

[Phil]

On if this is a negotiation tactic to get Glendale back to the discussion table:

 

"I know a lot of people are floating that idea. My sense, being on the ground here, talking to city officials — I really think that door is closed. I think the Glendale chapter of the Coyotes will end on June 30 when they vacate that building. I don't think they're taking them back, and I don't think the Coyotes admitted that to themselves for the longest time ... they've literally run out of [that] time, because they just weren't accepting the idea that Glendale was, in fact, evicting them."

 

— Craig Morgan, on the Jeff Marek Show today.

 

Damning stuff.

[Scott]

 

[Lord Al]

 

[Phil]

1 hour ago, jsrangers said:

 

 

I mean, this is obviously untenable, but at the same time, if you can tap into ASU students to guarantee a full building every night, it might actually be rowdy.

[Scott]

8 minutes ago, Phil said:

 

I mean, this is obviously untenable, but at the same time, if you can tap into ASU students to guarantee a full building every night, it might actually be rowdy.

Turn it into the new Danbury Trashers?? 

Edited January 28, 2022 by jsrangers

[Phil]

 

[SaveByRichter35]

8 minutes ago, Phil said:

 

[Albatrosss]

On 1/27/2022 at 9:40 PM, Phil said:

 

Tell is how it is, Brad

[ThirtyONE]

I still can't ever seeing this happen. This would be so embarrassing for the NHL, I just can't imagine they would let it happen... 

 

Right?

[Phil]

Friedman said on numerous shows — 32 Thoughts, Jeff Marek Show, etc — that this is "pretty much a done deal."

[siddious]

On 1/27/2022 at 9:40 PM, Phil said:

 

Marchand has been on fire recently

[ThirtyONE]

1 hour ago, Phil said:

Friedman said on numerous shows — 32 Thoughts, Jeff Marek Show, etc — that this is "pretty much a done deal."

 

I get that but how can a professional league operate this way? I mean for 20(?) years that franchise has bene a dumpster fire and the NHL has propped them up, and now they're becoming the 2nd tenant in a college arena? It's shocking.

[siddious]

14 minutes ago, ThirtyONE said:

 

I get that but how can a professional league operate this way? I mean for 20(?) years that franchise has bene a dumpster fire and the NHL has propped them up, and now they're becoming the 2nd tenant in a college arena? It's shocking.

It’s like when you start a team in Chel and you don’t have the arena upgrade yet. Only in this case they’ve lost so much they’re losing upgrades.

[-ERIK-]

On 1/27/2022 at 6:52 PM, Phil said:

 

I mean, this is obviously untenable, but at the same time, if you can tap into ASU students to guarantee a full building every night, it might actually be rowdy.

Great fans

[Phil]

1 hour ago, ThirtyONE said:

 

I get that but how can a professional league operate this way? I mean for 20(?) years that franchise has bene a dumpster fire and the NHL has propped them up, and now they're becoming the 2nd tenant in a college arena? It's shocking.

 

No idea. Marek seems convinced this is a way to bring Glendale back to the negotiation table, but Craig Morgan — who broke the story — shot that down hard. This is also apparently contingent on a new arena in Tempe, so I guess it's just a temporary growing pain?

[Sod16]

If the league was resistant to the Islanders playing short term in the 13,000 seat Coliseum, there's no way they would go for this team in a 5,000 seat arena.  I don't see why they couldn't go to the basketball arena they started in for a couple of years.  If the Islanders could come up with a deal to stay at Barclay's for a while after the lease was mutually abrogated, perhaps the yotes could find sufficient peace with Glendale for a few seasons.  It's not like Glendale is going to be able to rent the place to anyone else for 40 odd dates.

[Phil]

Quote

“Just a nightmare all around,” one executive said of the proposal, which comes at a time when financial matters have been in the spotlight for the league as it deals with the effects of shortened seasons and lost attendance caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Multiple executives called the plan “embarrassing.”

 

Chief among concerns is the impact the move could have on hockey-related revenue (HRR), which could affect everything from the amount of profits in owners pockets to the salary cap.

Quote

The largest historical driver of HRR have been in-person purchases — tickets, food and beverage, merchandise. A sellout at ASU’s arena would amount to a far smaller crowd than Arizona’s current 11,575 reported average attendance in Glendale, and would be the new low-water mark for the league. Currently, the Buffalo Sabres are averaging a league-low 8,626 fans.

 

During the 2019-20 season, before the NHL felt the effect of COVID-19 on attendance, the Coyotes averaged 14,605 fans. The league-low average for that campaign was 12,618 in Ottawa.

 

Assuming sellouts, attendance on Arizona State’s campus would be more similar to what’s seen in the AHL. The AHL is averaging 4,214 fans per game this season, ranging from the Hershey Bears (7,389) to the Stockton Heat (1,345).

Quote

Multiple executives who look at this report said a high percentage of the Coyotes’ tally is represented by unpaid or comp tickets. The Coyotes declined to comment on ticket distribution.

 

Still, a smaller building in which the Coyotes are the secondary tenant would have its drawbacks for HRR, executives said.

 

For example, as one executive noted, the ice surface would in theory be dedicated to Arizona State’s collegiate team. Selling valuable in-ice ads likely wouldn’t be possible.

 

The Coyotes would likely be able to sell board advertisements, the executive noted. But that constant changeover would be a hassle, and the valuation of those ads, according to multiple executives, would decrease in a smaller building. One executive surmised that some corporate sponsors would lose “all interest” in the Coyotes.

 

Fewer fans in the building also represent fewer residual purchases, including food and beverage, which have a large impact on a team’s bottom line.

Quote

“I wouldn’t be surprised if at some point the league had to bite the bullet and force the current ownership to make a move or sell,” one team executive said. “They’ve botched the situation with Glendale. What’s to say anyone believes they’ll actually get something done in three or four years?”

 

https://theathletic.com/3096608/2022/02/01/a-nightmare-all-around-nhl-team-executives-frustrated-over-arizona-coyotes-plan-to-play-at-university-arena/