Opinion: Arizona Coyotes Reach Do-or-Die Time with NHL Thinking of Salt Lake City

After reports surfaced the NHL is preparing a backup schedule that has the Coyotes moving to Salt Lake City, it's time for Arizona's team to show and not tell at June's auction.

If you didn't think the Arizona Coyotes' latest pursuit of land for an arena is in do-or-die territory, you should now.

For some time now, the future of the Arizona Coyotes as an NHL team has been called into question. With the continuing search for a new NHL-caliber arena in Arizona, a report from Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli says the league is preparing two different schedules for next season – one that includes the Coyotes in Arizona and one that has the Coyotes franchise relocating to Salt Lake City. 

It's still a fluid situation, with the NHL simply preparing for every contingency. But another report by Seravalli says the NHL, Coyotes and a group led by Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith have made progress on the framework of an agreement to relocate the franchise to Salt Lake City.

The reports come two days after Utah Jazz owner and prospective NHL team owner Ryan Smith released a survey for team names "if an NHL team were to come to Utah."

It’s clear that the end of this drawn-out saga is coming, one way or another.

Indeed, now that Coyotes team ownership is touting their intent to build a new arena via an Arizona State land trust auction, we’re at the show-and-don’t-tell part of the story. There’s still reason to believe that the Coyotes will remain in Arizona, as Scottsdale mayor David Ortega has walked back comments deriding the Coyotes’ intent on building a rink near his city. 

The NHL clearly wants to keep a team in the Arizona market, but this latest opportunity represents ownership’s last chance to get a new arena deal done. The land auction – currently scheduled for June 27 – is indeed a do-or-die process for the Coyotes. If they don't win, the NHL and Coyotes ownership are more likely to wave the white flag and head to Salt Lake.

THN.com has covered what a Salt Lake City team would mean to the NHL. It’s a promising market for hockey’s top league. From this writer’s perspective, the only question about Salt Lake is whether they land the Coyotes via relocation or they’re awarded an expansion franchise. 

The prospect of adding two more teams to the NHL is hugely enticing to the 32 team owners – commissioner Gary Bettman has told The Hockey News publisher W. Graeme Roustan the cost of an expansion franchise could run between $1.7 billion and $2.5 billion. 

Salt Lake City has already formally requested the league begin an expansion process. They’d be just as happy and willing to take the Coyotes off Arizona’s hands, so a sword is currently hanging over the head of the ‘Yotes. Team majority owner Alex Meruelo has repeatedly tried to make a new arena deal happen, but the NHL has tired of the constant letdowns, and it seems they’re now at least preparing to start moving forward without Arizona as a market if it ends up happening.

But let’s say, for argument’s sake, the Coyotes arena deal happens, and the team stays in Arizona. Do people believe that will end Salt Lake City’s attempts to land a team? They shouldn’t. 

The Salt Lake group will not be swayed by a temporary setback. Instead, they’re going to privately pressure the NHL to expand to 34 teams – there’s little chance the league expands to 33 teams and leaves a competitive imbalance between the Eastern and Western Conferences. We believe they’re ultimately going to be successful in their pursuit of a franchise.

There is a future for the NHL in Arizona, but time is running short. The Coyotes have little choice but to push for this last-chance arena deal because otherwise, they’re going to be packing their bags for Utah, potentially as early as next season. 

In any case, the league looks ready and willing to start a new chapter for the Coyotes franchise, and the heat is on the organization to either produce a new rink or suffer the consequences of what will almost certainly be their final disappointment. No more excuses, no more backtracking. The Coyotes have shown their cards, and the developments in the next few months will determine if the NHL landscape changes significantly.