Howlin' Hockey
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Rumors of an Arizona Coyotes sale, so we’re back to this again…

By Catherine Silverman

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Oct 3, 2014; Glendale, AZ, USA; Arizona Coyotes right wing B.J. Crombeen (44) shoots the puck during the first period against the San Jose Sharks at Gila River Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

So I really, REALLY thought that we were close enough to the season to be beyond this, but apparently hockey fans have an insatiable thirst for scandal. So we find ourselves, basically, right back where we started three months ago…

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    • I’ve made it no secret that I’m not from Arizona, so I know that a particular pocket of fans are going to discredit just about everything I say about this. I think that there’s been too much selection of “fact” when heralding penny stories about the ‘relocation’ of the Coyotes, though, so let’s go through all of the facts together:

    FACT: The Arizona Coyotes are currently in negotiations to sell part of the team, most likely to Andrew Barroway. 

    Owning a hockey team must be the last item on this guy’s bucket list, because this is the third time Barroway has tried to purchase a hockey team. The New Jersey Devils were a no-go, the New York Islanders owner reportedly did him dirty, and now this.

    Assuming the New York Post reported accurately (let’s just make this assumption, because it’s all we know), Barroway plans to purchase a 51% share of the Coyotes for double what Anthony Leblanc and ICE Arizona paid for the team just a year ago. That inflow of cash looks pretty nice right about now, for a team that’s in the red.

    FACT: The Arizona Coyotes have not had a financially successful season in the ballpark of a decade.

    The team is a privately owned entity, so unless you’ve wired the team’s front offices, you have no idea how big those losses are. Based on the league’s revenue sharing program, though, and the fact that the team received $25 million from the organization to compensate for ineven losses over the course of the season, we can assume that those losses were somewhat significant.

    Anyone who was expecting the team to finally catapult into the black in their first year under new ownership was probably aiming a little high, but it’s true- the franchise, comparitively, is struggling. Adding a second owner would probably stabilize this, but only if Barroway truly plans to help the team succeed in the desert- if his main interest is forcing the team’s hand and accelerating relocation, things could get messy.

    FACT: The Arizona Coyotes could move, but it most likely won’t be to Las Vegas. 

    I want to give credit to Ken Campbell for knowing exactly how to stir the pot (which he most certainly did), but Las Vegas is almost certainly not the final home of the ‘Yotes. The likelihood of the league looking at the market in Arizona and saying “you know what? They’ll make TONS more money in a smaller demographic market, fueled by tourism and gambling!”… yeah, you see about how likely that is.

    The rumors of a team being moved to Las Vegas have, for the most part, been refuted by anyone with any knowledge of the financial and demographic makeup of Las Vegas. The city almost went bankrupt Detroit-style during the economic recession due to the nation’s significant cutbacks on leisure spending (easy to do when unemployment is skyrocketing), and no one in any position of power seems to favor the idea of putting a major sports franchise in the sports betting capital of the nation.

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    • Could it happen? Well, sure. ANYTHING could happen. Gary Bettman could write me a personal letter, saying he loves my writing and would love to appoint me General Manager of the first new expansion franchise. Is it more likely to happen than any of the other scenarios? Nope. Not at all.

    FACT: The Arizona Coyotes have a buyout option. 

    Five years. At least fifty million dollars incurred in losses TO GET RELOCATED FROM THEIR CURRENT ARENA. Nothing about moving cities, which ICE Arizona has already claimed they have no desire to do. (Can we believe them? I’d like to think so, but it’s business.)

    The team has also only served one year of that contract currently, and has incurred anywhere from $8.9 mill (Forbes) to $35 mill (HockeyRumors.com) in losses. Trust me when I say that I’ve taken enough accounting classes to know how a balance sheet works- and if the team starts to slowly increase their profits, it’s feasible to scrape under the fifty million mark and remain in the desert for at least another five seasons.

    I’m not going to continue, because this will quickly start to sound like a rant. Here’s what you need to know, though- and you know what? It’s all speculation, so your guess is as good as mine.

    Let us know what you think will happen, but let’s not dwell on it too much- cause the last time I checked, there’s a hockey season to watch.

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