Arizona Coyotes' Arena Deadline Passes Without Update

Arizona Coyotes fans are clamoring for information, any information, about a new arena that the organization insisted would come this summer.

Arizona Coyotes President and CEO Anthony LeBlanc stood in front of fans and the media several times this year to proclaim the team’s plans for a new arena location were imminent.

In January, LeBlanc said he expected an announcement before the end of the season.

In April, he speculated the announcement was only weeks away.

LeBlanc then said in June that the team had selected a new site for the arena, however he provided no specifics. He indicated they were going through the legal process.

I understand the delays. Selecting a site is no small thing, and it has to be secretive.

Land deals and real estate transactions are complex. Announcing to the public what you want to do before you do it invites all kinds of trouble.

Anthony LeBlanc noted in July that he wanted to be able to announce something by the end of the summer. On Friday that deadline passed. All of his deadlines have passed.

And not a word, from the team, fans, media, anyone.

The team could be looking to make a splash with their new arena plans as the season opens.

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The trouble is, there hasn’t even been a whisper. Nothing has leaked out. In today’s world, that’s not only rare, it’s unheard of.

Maybe the tight-lipped organization is actually being successful keeping “anonymous sources” from talking to the media. Maybe it’s compartmentalized within upper management, and only a select few know something.

Maybe.

But this new arena involves more than just upper management. We’re talking about lots of involved parties.

Current owners of the land would know something. Tribal officials, if the land involves the 101/202 location, would be in the loop. The team would be lobbying city and state officials.

The NHL would be consulted. Real estate lawyers, potential partners, and friends of everyone involved would be informed. Just some of the paperwork flowing through public offices would see the light of day.

A deal of this magnitude would touch numerous people. Everyone wants their day in the sun, to know something that everyone else doesn’t.

And they want to be able to show off with their knowledge. So information should be leaking to the press throughout this process.

To date, no leaks. No data dumps by WikiLeaks, and no hackers scorching the internet with Arizona Coyotes internal e-mails.

The utter lack of any news at all is astounding, and suggests one of three things is happening:

Perhaps the Arizona Coyotes are pulling something off that is unprecedented in the history of the universe, and every single person involved is actually not saying a word. Perhaps.

Maybe this entire thing is one giant smokescreen. The arena search is leverage for the team somehow improving their Gila River Arena situation for the long-term. This grassy knoll theory may light up the senses of conspiracy theorists everywhere, but seems far-fetched to say the least.

More likely, this entire time has been spent on a real estate transaction between the Arizona Coyotes management and land owners. Either the team is finally dotting I’s and crossing T’s, or they’ve hit a roadblock.

Whatever is happening, LeBlanc and IceArizona owe us an update.

No more dates and deadlines that they can’t seem to meet, but actual real information that definitively says what we all want to hear.

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We want to know where the Arizona Coyotes are building a new arena, and when it will be open for business.

Until we hear that, fans will again become increasingly skeptical as the months pass by.

Hey Anthony, I’m sitting in Section 110. Drop by and give me something that says everything is moving forward. I won’t tell a soul, I promise.

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