Now that Alex Meruelo has walked away from his ownership of the Arizona Coyotes, what’s next for Phoenix as an NHL market? Craig and Leah discuss the fallout of Meruelo’s departure, who else could be interested in ownership, potential arena site and whether or not an NHL expansion team in AZ should still be called the Coyotes. Plus, the crew previews the last centralized NHL Draft.
0:00 Intro
1:35 Alex Meruelo is out
3:15 Commissioner Gary Bettman on the latest news
6:50 Was this the NHL’s plan all along?
10:05 Meruelo’s promise to donate to youth hockey on the way out
14:05 What happens to the Rodarunners?
16:40 Potential new ownership groups
25:15 Should the team be rebranded if/when the NHL returns?
37:35 Petey joins the show from the draft in Vegas!
43:40 All City will be covering the Utah Hockey Club
53:40 Rule Changes coming to the NHL next season
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35 Comments
Record scratch
Looks like Alex got what he wanted a huge payday
Matt ishbia, please save us!!!! Tempe could happen with Matt at the helm.
COYOTES…FOREVER…SAME UNIFORM
NHL hockey will be back in Arizona, Phoenix is too big of a market to not have all four teams. same goes for Atlanta and Houston
I wouldn't pay a billion dollars to put a team in a place that may be completely abandoned in 20 years. I would put it somewhere with water.
So sad that hockey is dying, both in CA and US.. huge decline in kids playing and new immigrants from other places aren't into hockey. NHL will be losing a lot of teams over the next decades as sport collapses to maybe 10 teams.
Everything with Muruelo is IF he follows thru….Roadrunners will be in Reno in less than 3yrs
Coyotes 4ever!
Firebirds for the AHL Tucson team since Meruelo is probably thinking Reno Roadrunners.
If Ishbia was the owner and wanted a new start he could name them the Burn….get it? I'm here all week.
Regarding the Roadrunners: the Reno metro area is already getting an ECHL team this Fall, the Tahoe Knight Monsters. While this team will play about 45 minutes from Downtown Reno, still they're first in the market and people will get used to going to those games, buying their merch, etc. Additionally, they'll be affiliated with the Golden Knights, who are the most popular NHL team up there.
I've always felt once the Jets returned, we should've given the past history of Jets 1.0 to them and have the Phoenix Coyotes history start when they moved. If anything, as a gesture of goodwill between Phoenix & Winnipeg.
Blaming the auction cancelation on a bidder is ridiculous. #nuts #inthebag
“Based on the climate, I don’t see the arena issue being resolved any time soon”
Translation – Taxpayers aren’t willing to give freebies to billionaires any more.
Love your podcasts
I hate to say this, Coyotes fans, but there's no team for at least 10-15 years. The current political climate has to change on the arena deal, or there's no team. #sorry
Nothing, he was your only hope. The NHL tried for years and went above and beyond. Even the way they went out was a gift. No team in any sport was given so many chances. Nobody would be dumb enough to pay an expansion fee and build an arena in Arizona. Especially when the people don't want to help pay for it.
If they come back they should be the Phoenix coyotes
AZ is done as an NHL state.
The statistical history of the Jets/Coyotes should be in Utah, the franchise owns the history nit the cities. The NFL set a really bad precedent when they played that game with the Browns.
There is a difference between political climate and peoples dislike for Alex Meurlo.
Matt Ishbia is the answer. He can retrofit the arena downtown in a matter of 2 years. Rename the team Phoenix, (not Arizona) whatever the team name will be. An arena on the outskirts of Phoenix is a bad idea!
Tuscon Coyotes and Arizona Firebirds? And keep the kachina logo as an alternate. It doesn't have to make sense. We can have good things that don't make sense.
I think the history really can't be moved to the current Jets cleanly.. there is overlap that just fails. If Alex is truely done then the history should go to the Utah team.. that said, what I can see moving to the Jets is the Logo's and Trademarks owned by the Yotes from that old Jets team. Let them use those if they want.. they really are no use to any other team anyway. Let's face it.. the history of hockey in Winnepeg for both Jets teams is shared in many ways.. oh the team records are not.. but the rest is, the fact that the players played there and such… really, the records would serve to confuse anyway.
As far as the NHL in the Phoenix Metro area.. murky.. and don't hold your breath.. the more I look at this.. it's more than just Alex Meruelo… this team has had issues off and on since the day they moved here. Honestly, I'm not so sure that the NHL is glad to be rid of Alex as much as they are glad to get out of AZ.. the political climate for the NHL has never been rosy. The fact that Alex got $1B for his team rather tells me that the NHL was listening to Alex complain about how the various governments were playing the game and the NHL knew it was a failure from the get-go and really.. it's time to get out… Alex had one last play to go.. and if that failed.. he's walking and I think Gary Bettman knew it.. I'm not saying Alex is blameless.. but history of this team show.. Alex is just the latest ownership group to have issues.. At some point, you have to look at the common thread… the various government agencies are common.. how many owners have been here? 6 or 7.. and Ellman (the second owner) faught hard to either upgrade America West Arena (now Footprint center) and other places to build a new arena before finally look west to the Jobing.com/Gila River Arena… Quite Frankly, reading the history of this team.. Since Ellman sold the team this team has been teetering ever since. nearly 20 years of ownership instabillity.. No, Alex is no saint.. but after reading the teams history.. the cities of the Valley and the state have showed very little love to the team and only the fans have. Honestly, I'm surprised that the NHL just didn't move them while they owned/operated them from 09 until 2013.. Glendale was already trying to get rid of them around that time. I think Alex has actually shored the on-ice product up.. as far as the arena.. he's not made any friends.. but at the same time.. it takes to be be friends and when the other side don't really want you… impossible task. I think they had it better in Winnipeg… at least then they only had to fight the $$$$
I would like to see youth hockey out in the west valley… like past the 101.
The 2.0 team should be the Arizona Phoenix's.
There used to be a WPHL/CHL team called the New Mexico Scorpions that played in Albuquerque
The Phoenix Phoenix?
Arizona should be at the bottom of any expansion list period. Coyotes never made a dime in the desert ever. Nhl struggled to find ownership for the team and all that took on the team regretted it. There wont be a long list of potential owners for another team in the desert. Besides any ownership group will have to pony up the expansion fee 1 billion plus and a new arena cuz your not going to get public support for it. And on top of that the owner is going to have to be willing to lose millions as the market is weak for the nhl and would be a huge financial gamble.
Give the jets their history back period. Why should the coyotes have Winnipegs history?
Rattlesnakes?
I’m excited for the All City coverage of Utah HC. I enjoy watching your show. Anything related to you guys will be awesome.
after this never want to hear Meruelo name again, if there is cosmic karma dude will ruin every business he has and be dead broke in few years.
Arizona Coyotes 2.0
The old jr. sun devils were called firebirds. Fun call back