PHOENIX – The Arizona Coyotes and National League Hockey have fled Maricopa County for Utah. But the sport may not disappear forever. If any sports figure in town is equipped to bring him back, it’s Suns and Mercury owner Mat Ishbia.
He has the resources, the arena and, most importantly, the will. Isbia said Sport he was up to that challenge last week when the WNBA All-Star Game came to the Footprint Center and a $100 million women’s training facility funded by Ishbia open behind the arena.
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“I’ll definitely be part of the community, and if I can help bring hockey back, I’ll look into it,” he said. “It’s definitely something that interests me. It’s a four-sport city. I’m disappointed we don’t have a hockey team, but I understand what happened and we’ll try to make it right one day.”
One day may be sooner than you think. Ishbia did not say whether he is already in talks with the NHL, and the league did not respond when asked for comment. The NHL clearly wants the team in a new or stable arena, and a new building in downtown Phoenix is part of the long-term plan, Ishbia said.
“I think our arena is first class now. I love our arena,” he said. “But at some point we’re going to have to get a new arena.”
Whether the NHL will give Ishbia the deal that former Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo did before selling hockey operations and players to Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith and then disbanding what was left of the franchise is a good question. Commissioner Gary Bettman could make Ishbia wait in line with everyone else for an expansion franchise at this point.
Meruelo sold the hockey operations and players for $1.2 billion, pocketing $1 billion. The newly christened Utah Hockey Club will open its inaugural season in Salt Lake City on Oct. 9 at the Delta Center, a basketball arena similar to the Footprint with thousands of seats with obstructed hockey views.
Meruelo kept the Coyotes name, trademarks and logos with hopes of building a new arena in Phoenix proper. He had five years to accomplish this feat and pay the NHL $1 billion for what would amount to an expansion team.
When the Arizona Land Commission last month nixed a $68.5 million auction for 95 acres of land in North Phoenix where Meruelo planned to build a new arena, the owner threw in The towel. He returned the Coyotes name and logos to the NHL. He donated all remaining Coyotes-branded gear to local charities, some of it resurfacing in local Goodwill stores. The club facilities that were part of the US$30 million Meruelo invested to bring Mullett Arena up to NHL standards were taken over by Arizona State.
Frontline employees who remained in Phoenix were laid off with severance pay and medical insurance through the end of the year, several former employees confirmed.
Despite multimillion-dollar losses over 28 seasons, the NHL supported Phoenix hockey until the end. But the Coyotes have never had a moneyed owner like Ishbia.
As a billionaire transplant from Michigan, Ishbia sees all of this as an opportunity to expand his local sports empire and help the sports community. He bought a majority stake in the Suns and Mercury for $4 billion early last year and has continued to grow his own presence.
“I’m disappointed we don’t have a hockey team here. That’s what I’m going to say,” he said. “Phoenix is a four-sport city. Maybe five if you want to include football, but it’s a four-sport town. Baseball, football, basketball and hockey. And I hope one day we can get hockey back.”
The Coyotes’ wandering journey began in 1996, when the team moved from Winnipeg to what was then called the America West Arena in downtown Phoenix, playing there until 2003. The team was popular and competitive, but initial owner Richard Burke, a secondary tenant behind the time- Suns owner Jerry Colangelo, couldn’t make enough money. He sold the team, which eventually moved to Glendale Arena, beginning what became a long death spiral that ended with Meruelo.
Ishbia doesn’t have that problem. He’s worth $10.1 billion, and an NHL team would look good as a third wheel to the Suns and Mercury, at least temporarily, in the current facility, despite the hockey-skewed seats. Its lease at Footprint extends through 2036. Ishbia also owns a G-League basketball team that will open its first season this year at Mullett.
The Footprint is 32 years old and underwent a $230 million renovation in 2020, though it is cramped compared to more recently built locations.
Ishbia believes a new downtown arena is in the city’s future and there is plenty of space south of the current facility to build it, which is exactly what the NHL wants.
“We will continue to evolve,” said Ishbia. “My investment in basketball and this community will not stop.”
The NBA will come in line with the privately funded $2 billion Intuit Arena this year to house the Los Angeles Clippers. In Utah, the Salt Lake City government is still considering a 0.5% sales tax increase, which would give Smith $1 billion to renovate the Delta Center or build a new arena.
The Footprint Center will pale in comparison.
Not for long, Ishbia said. “We will continue to make this first class and when the time is right we will make the next adjustment.”
Considering the NHL’s history with the Coyotes, one wonders if the league will wait for this “adjustment” or if Bettman will allow someone back on the market.
In Ishbia, he has only the owner to do this.
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