Arizona Coyotes Moving To Houston?

NHL franchise in Houston would decrease the gap with Dallas as being the better sports city

Dallas is waaaaaay better currently

 

Reported.

 

Thanks for continuing to do this community a solid by reporting garbage like this!

 

There was an article in the Athletic last week about this situation. I didn't read it, because I don't have a subscription...but my understanding is that the article said that a lot of the owners in the league were upset with this concept of the Coyotes playing in such a small stadium because it will affect shared revenues including in-arena advertising dollars. Anyone read the article?

 

https://theathletic.com/3096608/202...ona-coyotes-plan-to-play-at-university-arena/

A proposal that would see the NHL’s Arizona Coyotes play at a university rink next season and beyond is raising concerns among opposing teams’ executives, who say the arena compromise threatens to make an already bad financial situation worse.

After the City of Glendale opted out of its lease agreement with the team, the Coyotes must vacate Gila River Arena, their home since 2003, by June 30. The Coyotes have proposed building a new arena and entertainment district in Tempe, but that deal has yet to be approved and is far from a certainty.

In the interim, as first reported last week by Go PHNX, the Coyotes are exploring the possibility of playing at Arizona State University’s multipurpose facility, which is set to be completed later this year. NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly, through an NHL spokesperson, confirmed Monday that the plan is being seriously considered by the Coyotes and the league.

“As we have said many times, we are completely committed to building our future in Arizona,” the Coyotes said in statement to The Athletic on Monday. “As part of that process, we are excited to be exploring some great temporary arena options here before we move in to a new permanent home in the Valley.”

The Coyotes also forwarded a statement from Arizona State CFO Morgan R. Olsen.

“If an agreement for use of our multipurpose arena is finalized, we would be glad to help the Coyotes by providing a temporary home while their new arena is built just a couple of miles away,” the statement said, adding that the project would benefit from “NHL-level enhancements paid for by the Coyotes.”

Little has been said by players or owners since reports of the ASU proposal became public. Brad Marchand mocked the plan on social media, but most players and owners have remained quiet.

Around the league, executives are worried the plan would hinder the Coyotes’ ability to maximize revenue.

At ASU, the Coyotes would be the secondary tenant to Arizona State’s Division I men’s team — and the arena would be puny by NHL standards, with an expected capacity of around 5,000. The Winnipeg Jets currently play in the NHL’s smallest arena, which has a capacity of 15,294.

Since the proposal was reported last week, The Athletic spoke to executives representing nine organizations that run the league’s financial gamut — from those that share revenue to those that receive.

The Athletic granted the executives’ anonymity as they were not permitted by the league nor their teams to speak publicly on the matter.

“Just a nightmare all around,” one executive said of the proposal, which comes at a time when financial matters have been in the spotlight for the league as it deals with the effects of shortened seasons and lost attendance caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Multiple executives called the plan “embarrassing.”

Chief among concerns is the impact the move could have on hockey-related revenue (HRR), which could affect everything from the amount of profits in owners pockets to the salary cap.

Within the current collective bargaining agreement, players and owners split HRR 50-50, but because player contracts are agreed to before a season, an escrow system is in place to make sure the owners are made whole on their 50 percent. This system rocked players during the pandemic as HRR plummeted. Heading into the 2021-22 season the players had a $1 billion debt to pay back to the owners.

Escrow this season was set to 17.2 percent. That means a $1 million salary is actually worth $828,000 after escrow withholdings. Until the debt is paid back (estimates on the timeline range from three to five years depending on whom you ask) the salary cap can only rise by $1 million per season, which is effectively a modified flat cap.

The largest historical driver of HRR have been in-person purchases — tickets, food and beverage, merchandise. A sellout at ASU’s arena would amount to a far smaller crowd than Arizona’s current 11,575 reported average attendance in Glendale, and would be the new low-water mark for the league. Currently, the Buffalo Sabres are averaging a league-low 8,626 fans.

During the 2019-20 season, before the NHL felt the effect of COVID-19 on attendance, the Coyotes averaged 14,605 fans. The league-low average for that campaign was 12,618 in Ottawa.

Assuming sellouts, attendance on Arizona State’s campus would be more similar to what’s seen in the AHL. The AHL is averaging 4,214 fans per game this season, ranging from the Hershey Bears (7,389) to the Stockton Heat (1,345).

Some executives, however, noted that a smaller venue likely wouldn’t put the Coyotes in a much worse spot than they are currently in when it comes to actual ticket sales.

Team executives have access to the league-wide ticket distribution, which offers a more realistic look at attendance than the publicly available numbers. This reporting reveals the number of paid tickets vs. the number of tickets distributed, which is how teams often report attendance for public consumption and as a data point to sell to sponsors.

Multiple executives who look at this report said a high percentage of the Coyotes’ tally is represented by unpaid or comp tickets. The Coyotes declined to comment on ticket distribution.

Still, a smaller building in which the Coyotes are the secondary tenant would have its drawbacks for HRR, executives said.

For example, as one executive noted, the ice surface would in theory be dedicated to Arizona State’s collegiate team. Selling valuable in-ice ads likely wouldn’t be possible.

The Coyotes would likely be able to sell board advertisements, the executive noted. But that constant changeover would be a hassle, and the valuation of those ads, according to multiple executives, would decrease in a smaller building. One executive surmised that some corporate sponsors would lose “all interest” in the Coyotes.

Fewer fans in the building also represent fewer residual purchases, including food and beverage, which have a large impact on a team’s bottom line.

The plan also threatens to make Arizona a less desirable destination for free agents, which could hurt the team’s competitiveness and exacerbate the revenue concerns.

With this reality and without a certain arena future, multiple team executives questioned the long-term health of the franchise in Arizona.

The Coyotes have consistently said the team is committed to Arizona. In addition, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman stated his commitment publicly once again at the NHL Board of Governors meeting in early December.

Still, the commitment to Arizona is a common point of frustration for executives who say hockey in Arizona hasn’t been a winning formula for business.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if at some point the league had to bite the bullet and force the current ownership to make a move or sell,” one team executive said. “They’ve botched the situation with Glendale. What’s to say anyone believes they’ll actually get something done in three or four years?”

What about the idea of temporarily moving the team to another city while an arena is built?

“You aren’t going to move a team and house it there for three years and then move it back to Arizona with a new arena,” one executive said. “That’s not how it would work.”

If the Arizona State plan does come to fruition — and at this point, it seems like the leader in the arena clubhouse — some executives felt the Coyotes should face financial repercussions.

The exact formula isn’t made public, but NHL revenue sharing is set up where teams within the top third of the league financially share revenues with the bottom two-thirds. The closer a team is to the bottom of the financial spectrum, the more they receive. The Coyotes’ plan to play at Arizona State would almost assuredly make them No. 32 in revenue. The franchise is already the least valuable in the NHL, according to rankings by both Forbes and Sportico.

“They should be excluded from revenue sharing. Why should they be rewarded?” said an executive whose team is also on the receiving end of the league’s revenue-sharing agreement. “My owner is pissed about it, other owners are pissed about it. I’m sure the players are also pissed about it.”

At this point, a vote by the Arizona State board of regents appears to be the final hurdle before the plan can move forward. At that point, there will be nuances the NHL and the NHLPA will have to dive into rather quickly.

“The Coyotes’ anticipated move in 2022-23 from Gila River Arena in Glendale to a temporary Arizona venue raises a number of matters that the league and the NHLPA will need to work through. Ideally, these matters will be sorted out well in advance of next season,” said NHLPA spokesperson Jonathan Weatherdon in a statement.

 

Thank you!!

 

Seems like it's one person making the decisions, and that person has some serious personal issues. This isn't how you run a business.

 

If they were to come to Houston the most logical place would be Toyota Center for them to play but I think it'd be real cool if they built a stadium where the east river project is going in and develop that area more.

 

it'd be dope ass for sure.

 

Sounds like the Texans, except somehow there may be up to three or four people involved in making the decisions. Possibly.

 

‘A nightmare all around’: NHL team executives frustrated over Arizona Coyotes’ plan to play at university arena
A proposal that would see the NHL’s Arizona Coyotes play at a university rink next season and beyond is raising concerns among opposing teams’ executives, who say the arena compromise threatens to make an already bad financial situation worse.

After the City of Glendale opted out of its lease agreement with the team, the Coyotes must vacate Gila River Arena, their home since 2003, by June 30. The Coyotes have proposed building a new arena and entertainment district in Tempe, but that deal has yet to be approved and is far from a certainty.

In the interim, as first reported last week by Go PHNX, the Coyotes are exploring the possibility of playing at Arizona State University’s multipurpose facility, which is set to be completed later this year. NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly, through an NHL spokesperson, confirmed Monday that the plan is being seriously considered by the Coyotes and the league.

“As we have said many times, we are completely committed to building our future in Arizona,” the Coyotes said in statement to The Athletic on Monday. “As part of that process, we are excited to be exploring some great temporary arena options here before we move in to a new permanent home in the Valley.”

The Coyotes also forwarded a statement from Arizona State CFO Morgan R. Olsen.

“If an agreement for use of our multipurpose arena is finalized, we would be glad to help the Coyotes by providing a temporary home while their new arena is built just a couple of miles away,” the statement said, adding that the project would benefit from “NHL-level enhancements paid for by the Coyotes.”

Little has been said by players or owners since reports of the ASU proposal became public. Brad Marchand mocked the plan on social media, but most players and owners have remained quiet.

Around the league, executives are worried the plan would hinder the Coyotes’ ability to maximize revenue.

At ASU, the Coyotes would be the secondary tenant to Arizona State’s Division I men’s team — and the arena would be puny by NHL standards, with an expected capacity of around 5,000. The Winnipeg Jets currently play in the NHL’s smallest arena, which has a capacity of 15,294.

Since the proposal was reported last week, The Athletic spoke to executives representing nine organizations that run the league’s financial gamut — from those that share revenue to those that receive.

The Athletic granted the executives’ anonymity as they were not permitted by the league nor their teams to speak publicly on the matter.

“Just a nightmare all around,” one executive said of the proposal, which comes at a time when financial matters have been in the spotlight for the league as it deals with the effects of shortened seasons and lost attendance caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Multiple executives called the plan “embarrassing.”

Chief among concerns is the impact the move could have on hockey-related revenue (HRR), which could affect everything from the amount of profits in owners pockets to the salary cap.

Within the current collective bargaining agreement, players and owners split HRR 50-50, but because player contracts are agreed to before a season, an escrow system is in place to make sure the owners are made whole on their 50 percent. This system rocked players during the pandemic as HRR plummeted. Heading into the 2021-22 season the players had a $1 billion debt to pay back to the owners.

Escrow this season was set to 17.2 percent. That means a $1 million salary is actually worth $828,000 after escrow withholdings. Until the debt is paid back (estimates on the timeline range from three to five years depending on whom you ask) the salary cap can only rise by $1 million per season, which is effectively a modified flat cap.

The largest historical driver of HRR have been in-person purchases — tickets, food and beverage, merchandise. A sellout at ASU’s arena would amount to a far smaller crowd than Arizona’s current 11,575 reported average attendance in Glendale, and would be the new low-water mark for the league. Currently, the Buffalo Sabres are averaging a league-low 8,626 fans.

During the 2019-20 season, before the NHL felt the effect of COVID-19 on attendance, the Coyotes averaged 14,605 fans. The league-low average for that campaign was 12,618 in Ottawa.

Assuming sellouts, attendance on Arizona State’s campus would be more similar to what’s seen in the AHL. The AHL is averaging 4,214 fans per game this season, ranging from the Hershey Bears (7,389) to the Stockton Heat (1,345).

Some executives, however, noted that a smaller venue likely wouldn’t put the Coyotes in a much worse spot than they are currently in when it comes to actual ticket sales.

Team executives have access to the league-wide ticket distribution, which offers a more realistic look at attendance than the publicly available numbers. This reporting reveals the number of paid tickets vs. the number of tickets distributed, which is how teams often report attendance for public consumption and as a data point to sell to sponsors.

Multiple executives who look at this report said a high percentage of the Coyotes’ tally is represented by unpaid or comp tickets. The Coyotes declined to comment on ticket distribution.

Still, a smaller building in which the Coyotes are the secondary tenant would have its drawbacks for HRR, executives said.

For example, as one executive noted, the ice surface would in theory be dedicated to Arizona State’s collegiate team. Selling valuable in-ice ads likely wouldn’t be possible.

The Coyotes would likely be able to sell board advertisements, the executive noted. But that constant changeover would be a hassle, and the valuation of those ads, according to multiple executives, would decrease in a smaller building. One executive surmised that some corporate sponsors would lose “all interest” in the Coyotes.

Fewer fans in the building also represent fewer residual purchases, including food and beverage, which have a large impact on a team’s bottom line.

The plan also threatens to make Arizona a less desirable destination for free agents, which could hurt the team’s competitiveness and exacerbate the revenue concerns.

With this reality and without a certain arena future, multiple team executives questioned the long-term health of the franchise in Arizona.

The Coyotes have consistently said the team is committed to Arizona. In addition, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman stated his commitment publicly once again at the NHL Board of Governors meeting in early December.

Still, the commitment to Arizona is a common point of frustration for executives who say hockey in Arizona hasn’t been a winning formula for business.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if at some point the league had to bite the bullet and force the current ownership to make a move or sell,” one team executive said. “They’ve botched the situation with Glendale. What’s to say anyone believes they’ll actually get something done in three or four years?”

What about the idea of temporarily moving the team to another city while an arena is built?

“You aren’t going to move a team and house it there for three years and then move it back to Arizona with a new arena,” one executive said. “That’s not how it would work.”

If the Arizona State plan does come to fruition — and at this point, it seems like the leader in the arena clubhouse — some executives felt the Coyotes should face financial repercussions.

The exact formula isn’t made public, but NHL revenue sharing is set up where teams within the top third of the league financially share revenues with the bottom two-thirds. The closer a team is to the bottom of the financial spectrum, the more they receive. The Coyotes’ plan to play at Arizona State would almost assuredly make them No. 32 in revenue. The franchise is already the least valuable in the NHL, according to rankings by both Forbes and Sportico.

“They should be excluded from revenue sharing. Why should they be rewarded?” said an executive whose team is also on the receiving end of the league’s revenue-sharing agreement. “My owner is pissed about it, other owners are pissed about it. I’m sure the players are also pissed about it.”

At this point, a vote by the Arizona State board of regents appears to be the final hurdle before the plan can move forward. At that point, there will be nuances the NHL and the NHLPA will have to dive into rather quickly.

“The Coyotes’ anticipated move in 2022-23 from Gila River Arena in Glendale to a temporary Arizona venue raises a number of matters that the league and the NHLPA will need to work through. Ideally, these matters will be sorted out well in advance of next season,” said NHLPA spokesperson Jonathan Weatherdon in a statement.

 

What a cluster****. I wouldn’t want that ownership here. I’d rather have a pro lacrosse team.

 

Sounds like they'd fit right in with the Rockets and Texans.

 

That's exactly what I'm saying. We already have Larry and Moe.

 

This whole thing is like seeing that beautiful woman with the utter loser and wondering, wtf is going on? I could treat her so much better, I'm sure.

Maybe Arizona just has a huge dong.