The Arizona Coyotes have a new plan for moving to Tempe.
According to Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports, the Coyotes are in talks with Arizona State University to use their new multi-purpose facility as their temporary home for the next few seasons.
Back in August, the City of Glendale announced that it would be opting out of the joint lease agreement with the Coyotes for the Gila River Stadium, where the team currently plays. That means that the Coyotes need to find a new home for the 2022-23 season and beyond.
The Coyotes have been trying to get support to build a $1.7 billion arena and entertainment district in downtown Tempe, a city just east of Phoenix. The Tempe City Council is currently leaning towards declining the plan due in part to the Coyotes’ financial issues that came to light earlier this season.
ASU’s new facility, which is located right beside Sun Devil Football Stadium, is set to open in the fall of 2022. The 5,000-seat arena is going to be home to ASU hockey, wrestling and women’s gymnastics, and it will also be a public venue for concerts, conferences and other events.
The challenge for the Coyotes is going to be convincing the NHL and the Players’ Association to let them play in a 5,000-seat arena that isn’t up to league standards. While the Coyotes rank towards the bottom of the league in attendance, their average of 11,575 fans per game is significantly higher than the capacity of ASU’s arena.
NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said in an email that the league would try to accommodate the Coyotes using an unconventional venue for a temporary period of time.
“While we have arena standards, we would approach the entire situation in a way intended to accommodate the club’s needs in effectuating a successful transition to a new venue,” Daly said. “While there may very well be some, I can’t think of any hard and fast rules that couldn’t be relaxed to accommodate what is necessary.”
If the Coyotes can’t find a feasible home in Arizona, the team could be relocated to a new city. While the NHL has squashed the idea of going to Quebec City, the possibility of the Coyotes moving to Houston is on the radar.
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