04/19/24
May 17, 2023
Tempe Voters Reject New Arena for Arizona Coyotes: A proposal to build a new Arizona Coyotes hockey arena and entertainment district on a former landfill was rejected by voters in Tempe on Tuesday by a 12 percent margin. The $2.1 billion project would've used private funding for the arena but give team owner Alex Mureolo an estimated $500 million in tax breaks over 30 years. The campaign to vote No spent only $35,000 compared to $700,000 for Yes, which came mostly from Mureolo. A franchise move out of Arizona seems likely.
I feel sorry for the Coyotes fans too.
I would think ideally the NHL wants the team somewhere in the west.
Houston, Kansas City, a real dark horse, Saskatoon?
posted by tommybiden at 11:37 AM on May 17, 2023
I've seen people toss Austin around (apparently it's the most populous city in the US without a major league edit: Big Four team), but who knows.
I was in Phoenix for a conference last November and was kind of hoping to have the opportunity to see a professional hockey game in a tiny ~5k arena, but the Coyotes were on a road trip that weekend.
posted by Ufez Jones at 12:20 PM on May 17, 2023
Elliotte Friedman apparently is saying that the short list of a new spot for the Coyotes would all be out west, which makes the most sense. Houston, KC, Salt Lake City, and Sacramento. KC being the only city in that list without an NBA team, but apparently they already have an arena built and ready for a basketball or hockey team. Austin is very interesting.
posted by NoMich at 12:51 PM on May 17, 2023
The team needs to change its name again when it moves so we don't have another Utah Jazz or Memphis Grizzlies situation.
However, the way the Coyotes have played since coming from Winnipeg, they should have kept the name Jets. The largest aircraft boneyard in the world is in Tucson.
The team has already been moved across multiple biomes and time zones, so there's nothing wrong with hauling it off to Quebec City or the Maritimes if there's feasible support and prospects of an adequate facility there. Heck, they'd about double their current seating capacity if they just moved to the arena in Halifax.
posted by beaverboard at 04:04 PM on May 17, 2023
....there's nothing wrong with hauling it off to Quebec City or the Maritimes if there's feasible support and prospects of an adequate facility there. Heck, they'd about double their current seating capacity if they just moved to the arena in Halifax.
Centre Videotron is an almost new (opened 2015) facility in Quebec City, designed to be NHL ready. The Remparts have the best facility of any major junior hockey club.
posted by tommybiden at 04:20 PM on May 17, 2023
The team needs to change its name again when it moves so we don't have another Utah Jazz or Memphis Grizzlies situation.
Although there are plenty of coyotes around Salt Lake City and Sacramento. Just ask owners of outdoor cats.
posted by tahoemoj at 06:45 PM on May 17, 2023
A team named 'Coyotes' might attract an unattractive fan base if located in a city near the US southern border.
posted by Howard_T at 03:12 PM on May 18, 2023
I mean, there's not really any viable candidates that are much closer to the border than Phoenix is already?
San Diego is a decent sized market and has had a minor league hockey team for a long time now, but our arena is still the building that housed the Clippers when they played here. There's a redevelopment project on the boards for the area, including a new arena, but getting it built is still a long way out.
posted by LionIndex at 07:46 PM on May 18, 2023
The team needs to change its name again
We have plenty of coyotes in New England. Here's an idea: shove them in a mall in Connecticut!
posted by yerfatma at 02:34 PM on May 19, 2023
shove them in a mall in Connecticut!
I 100% approve of this message.
Now if you'll excuse me, I have to dust off my old Kevin Dineen jersey and dance around the room listening to Brass Bonanza on repeat.
posted by tahoemoj at 03:24 PM on May 19, 2023
shove them in a mall in Connecticut!
This sounds like the altered, late-nite cable version of a line from a hard-R action flick, a la Lebowski's "Do you see what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps?"
posted by Ufez Jones at 04:44 PM on May 19, 2023
I feel bad for the fans of the team, but it seems like the franchise has been poorly run since before they even moved to Arizona. Houston seems like the top candidate but don't overlook a third "Atlanta" run. I put the city name in quotes because the new location would be far away from the city like the newest Braves location where they are actually getting fans in the seats now; they seemed to have cracked the code for fan interest.