Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman is reporting that the Arizona Coyotes are officially moving to Utah and that the players were told tonight.
Friedman tweeted that Coyotes players will be invited to visit and tour the facilities in Salt Lake City at some point after their final game of the regular season on Wednesday against the Edmonton Oilers.
Friedman added that the league wanted to give players an opportunity to see their new future home before breaking for the summer.
PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan is reporting that the official announcement could occur the day of April 17 — the team’s final home game.
Per John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM Phoenix, Meruelo went along with the sale after the NHL put a provision in his contract that said the Coyotes franchise could come back and an Expansion Draft would be triggered if a new arena is built in Arizona. Meruelo would then have to pay back the $1 billion he’s receiving from the sale.
Reports about the Coyotes’ relocation to Salt Lake City first surfaced on Wednesday. The NHL sent a memo to its Board of Governors indicating progress in talks to move the Coyotes to Utah, per Friedman, and the league was in active negotiations with current Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo and the potential owner of any Utah team, Ryan Smith.
One scenario that could play out, according to ESPN, is that the league could purchase the team from Meruelo for $1 billion and sell to Smith for $1.3 billion, sharing the $300 million of profits with the other 31 NHL owners.
If the team moves, the Coyotes would reportedly play at the Utah Jazz’s basketball home — the Delta Center. As part of any deal, Smith would have to make “hockey-specific renovations” to the arena.
After years of patience with Arizona ownership, the league decided to move after Meruelo could not secure a new arena in Tempe. His most recent plans for the team were to win a land auction scheduled for late June and then start construction on an arena set for a 2027-28 debut.
The NHL grew concerned about what would occur if Meruelo could not win the land — and then even if he did, the prospect of having the team play at Arizona State’s Mullett Arena for another three seasons. Per Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli, the Coyotes were not given a “green light” to extend contract offers to players on expiring contracts in the months prior due to financial concerns regarding their arena search.
Update: ESPN confirmed the report, adding that general manager Bill Armstrong told players in a team meeting ahead of their game against Edmonton Friday night. The move will reportedly be announced at the end of the regular season.
