Coyotes could relocate to Salt Lake City as part of NHL plan

Even though the NHL remains convinced a franchise should be in Arizona, the league is skeptical about the Coyotes' newest plan to build an arena in Phoenix, which involved Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo's bid to win a land auction in June.

The Coyotes have played their home games at Mullett Arena, a 5,000-seat facility on the campus of Arizona State, since the 2022-23 season as they sought to build a new NHL-sized arena. According to Coyotes president Xavier Gutierrez, their deal with ASU is for three years plus two one-year options that could take them through the 2026-27 season.The NHL would purchase the Coyotes from Meruelo in a deal believed to be worth around $1 billion.

While NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has stressed that the league is not looking to expand or relocate teams, the NHL has received overtures from several markets seeking to join the league. Chief among them is Salt Lake City, and sources say Bettman and Smith have built a trusting relationship over the past several years.

However, sources told ESPN that NHL leadership has made it clear to Smith they would need hockey-specific renovations for the Delta Center to be a permanent NHL home, similar to the Kraken owners' renovations to Key Arena before the team arrived. Smith is prepared to help develop that.

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