
Sure, many fans believed that there would be an initial
interest by the locals that might keep the team afloat for a few years but long
term? I don’t think that many fans realistically thought it would n even last
this long in the desert and it has only because the NHL refused to let the team
fold or be relocated when it should have.
Now there’s news that the city council of Glendale where the
Coyotes play are going to meet secretly to decide if the city should terminate
their lease with the Coyotes.
“Shortfalls
in revenue sharing” have cost the city millions of dollars. The community
has to be upset that they are on the hook for footing eight million dollars in
revenue shortfalls year over year.
All I can say is that I told you so. That’s not really all I
can say. I can say, how about having the league call the Coyotes the “Ha Ha”
Coyotes. They are a laughable organization and they play in a community that
should have cut them loose years ago.
The team continues to rank among the lowest in attendance,
even after new owners bought the team. The desert couldn’t care less about
hockey, even if the team’s name was changed from Phoenix to Arizona. It does
look like fan support for this team has dried up in the desert.
The Arizona Coyotes ranked third last in
attendance last year. That’s putrid and unacceptable. The arena was
filled to 77% capacity. That just isn’t good enough Arizona. That type of poor support
is pathetic. Arizona doesn’t deserve a hockey team. They have been bailed out
year after year after year. The NHL needs to realize that it’s a business and
not a charity.
How Do You Fix The Problem? The team should move to a market
that cares about hockey. My choice would be Quebec but as ESPN notes, the
ability to play in Quebec is a year away. That’s OK. Play one more year in Arizona
and then bolt for Canada and never look back.
We can’t only blame the NHL for what’s transpiring with the
club. We can’t only blame the fans for not going to watch games. The city
council of Glendale has to bare much of the blame for this fiasco. The council
should have cut their losses last year and not entered into a new agreement
with new ownership.
Many NHL fans knew this was a dumb decision but for some
reason the city council was compelled to give this experiment another shot. That
was stupid and now they want out. The team should allow the city council to
bale on them. Then they could move to a legitimate NHL market.
It will put a smile on my face and allow me to say “ha ha
Coyetes” if and when the team leaves the desert for icier pastures.
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