NHL Rumors: Coyotes Could Relocate to Salt Lake City as Soon as 2024-25 Season

The NHL is putting together a "contingency" plan that involves the Arizona Coyotes moving to Salt Lake City, Utah prior to the 2024-25 season, according to ESPN's Emily Kaplan and Greg Wyshynski.

Frank Seravalli of the Daily Faceoff first reported the news.

The potential relocation involves the NHL selling the Coyotes to the owners of the Utah Jazz, Kaplan and Wyshynski reported.

An announcement regarding the Coyotes' move "could come as soon as this month," per Kaplan and Wyshynski.

Seravalli, Kaplan and Wyshynski stressed that no final decisions have been made regarding the Coyotes' relocation.

The NHL Board of Governors has to approve any relocation. The board plans to meet in June, per Kaplan and Wyshynski.

Seravalli first reported that the Board of Governors had been sent "an update memo" regarding the contingency plan.

According to Seravalli and confirmed by Kaplan and Wyshynski, the NHL is drafting two schedules for the 2024-25 season, one where the Coyotes are based in Arizona and another where the team has moved to Salt Lake City.

The news comes after several indications that the Smith Entertainment Group, which owns the Utah Jazz, is interested in purchasing an NHL team.

Smith Entertainment CEO Ryan Smith in January formally asked the NHL to begin the process of expanding into Utah, according to Dan Rosen of NHL.com.

Smith said the Jazz's Delta Center could serve as an "interim solution" for an NHL team as soon as the 2024-25 season.

The NHL responded by calling Utah "a promising market" and said it would continue discussing the potential expansion.

Speculation increased Monday when Smith posted a survey on X soliciting name ideas for "if an NHL team were to come to Utah."

Two days later, The Athletic's Ian Mendes said after interviewing Smith that the Jazz owner is "hellbent on bringing the NHL to his city."

The Coyotes have been playing at Arizona State University's Mullett Arena, which seats 4,600, since the beginning of the 2022-23 season after the city of Glendale terminated the Coyotes' lease at the team's former home of Gila River Arena.

At the time, city manager Kevin Phelps said Glendale was planning to put "an increased focus on larger, more impactful events and uses of the city-owned arena," per Kaplan.

The club has since run into difficulties creating a more permanent arena after Tempe voters in 2023 shot down a proposal to move the team there.

The Coyotes recently announced their intent to purchase 95 acres of land for sale in north Phoenix with the hopes of building a new arena that would open before the 2027-28 season, per Wyshynski.

That scheme has since been opposed by the mayor of Scottsdale, the border of which is near the property. The land auction goes underway April 27, per Craig Morgan of PHNX Sports.

Although Coyotes chairman and governor Alex Meruelo said he was "committing to winning this land auction" last week, Meruelo could stand to make around $1 billion if he sells the team, Seravalli reported. He bought the Coyotes in 2019 for around $300 million, per Mike Ozanian of Forbes.