Posted on 04/13/2024 7:04:30 AM PDT by LiberalismDestroys
SALT LAKE CITY — The NHL is likely coming to Utah next season. That's what Arizona Coyotes general manager Bill Armstrong told his team on Friday. Armstrong informed Coyote players the franchise would be moving following the season, according to multiple reports. Arizona Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo has agreed to sell the team to the NHL, which, in turn, will sell the team to Utah Jazz owners Ryan and Ashley Smith. However, sources told KSL.com that a deal with Smith Entertainment Group is not done and there remains a long way to go on the matter. There is confusion, sources said, about why the Coyotes players were informed that a move was imminent at this time.
(Excerpt) Read more at ksl.com ...
It’s not the market size so much as generating fan loyalty. The Jazz owner has money to build a real NHL team that probably won’t regularly be one of the first 4 teams eliminated from playoff contention. Hopefully. People want to watch the home team win.
The Glendale arena was nice. Pretty arena, nice neighborhood, within site of the Card’s stadium. But the Yotes couldn’t pay the rent, so they went to a 5000 seat arena. That was basically the end.
Tampa's on-ice success is fine for now, but the real challenge will be to see what happens when they are no longer a perennial Stanley Cup contender and they're forced into a rebuilding mode.
When they aren't a top contender like they've been in the last few years, the Florida Panthers were consistently ranked among the NHL teams most likely to relocate.
The problem the NHL faces is that there are only about 8 or 9 good hockey markets in North America. These would be the "Original Six" cities -- Toronto, Montreal, New York, Boston, Chicago and Detroit) -- plus Philadelphia and Edmonton. Buffalo is a borderline NHL stronghold, too. These are the cities where an NHL franchise is a top draw even when it is a mediocre team. Outside these metro areas, NHL teams generally don't do well when the team regresses to a second-tier status on the ice.
It's not a big deal for a football stadium, there are only eight games a year. But you have 41 home games in a season so it's important that the location is convenient for hockey fans.
And most of those games are played on weeknights, so in most cities it's important to have NBA/NHL arenas located in areas with large concentrations of residents and/or daytime workers.
Glendale is a well populated high income “suburb” (it’s really near the middle). And the arena is near the freeway. It’s really a 30 minute drive for of the Phoenix metro area. But even that’s a long drive just to watch the team lose. You gotta put a product out there. Just look at the Jacksonville Jaguars, north Florida loves football, but the Jags suck and they’ve had to cover a bunch of seats so they can “sell out” and not games blacked out. If you want fans win games.
My sister lives in Palm Springs, where the entire town — the entire Coachella Valley — has gone gaga for the local AHL farm team, the Firebirds. I believe their home games have all been sellouts.
Given Utah has given us Harry Reid and Mitt Romney, will they rename the team?
What it comes down to is an ownership that understands the market and caters to it, in Jacksonville they have a practice facility besides the main arena and the team has been successful
The Jazz didn’t rename when they came from New Orleans. Never understood that, don’t really associate Utah with jazz.
“It may be bad for the booze sales. Mormons are not known for drinking.”
You are correct. It is (was?) state law that any beer sold in Utah cannot have above 3% alcohol content. Also, based on my few visits there for my job, if you wanted to go to a sports bar or other drinking establishment they were designated “private clubs” and you had to buy a $5 per year “membership” to get in. After paying the $5 fee they would give you a $5 credit to use against your bill once inside. In other words, they will find ways around the law.
The 3% law for beer in Utah was repealed a few years ago. The hard stuff or wine still is only sold by the State Liquor Stores.
They are kinder, gentler Mormons now.
“Given Utah has given us Harry Reid and Mitt Romney, will they rename the team?”
Reid was Nevada trash.
I apologize.
The fact that neither reid nor romney were kicked out of their church tells you a lot.
Think of how many Catholics should have been kicked out. BTW, Hillary is a professed Methodist.
When they moved from New Orleans, they were in bad shape financially and there were jokes that they didn’t change the name because they couldn’t afford new jerseys.
“The Jazz didn’t rename when they came from New Orleans. Never understood that, don’t really associate Utah with jazz.”
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