Major announcement imminent from the NHL regarding Arizona

The 15-year mess that has gone on in the Arizona desert regarding the Coyotes and the NHL appears to be coming ahead as there is a major announcement scheduled by the NHL with regards to the future of the Coyotes in Arizona.

It's clear that the NHL and the NHLPA have run out of patience with this current ownership group and has been requesting daily updates on whether the owners have any intention on building a new arena in the Phoenix area or not.

From the NHLPA's perspective, playing in Mullet Arena at Arizona State University is a 4600-seat building which is well below the minimum standards for NHL amenities has become a hot contentious point. Most players are playing in luxurious arenas with state-of-the-art medical facilities and a rabid fan bases who will give them the support they need.


As for the NHL owners, many are getting tired of supporting this current arrangement and feel the team needs to make a final decision on whether they remain in the desert or look elsewhere. There's been an appetite for expansion for the NHL over the past several years with the Seattle Kraken and the Vegas Golden Knights being the best examples.


It's also important to note that there has been a strong indication of interest from Utah where the owners of the Utah Jazz are looking to bring an NHL team to Salt Lake City. The city has the facilities already in place and could easily take the Coyotes on as their new tenant.

Moving them to Salt Lake City would also make sense with regards to the position of NHL teams across North America. It would keep the Eastern Conference and Western Conference balanced and keep travel the same.


It will be a very interesting next few weeks as many hope this will come to an end to the uncertainty and the Coyotes will finally get a home that they could stay for the long term.