In his "strongest push yet to preserve the future of the Coyotes in Arizona," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman yesterday penned a sternly worded letter to state lawmakers "lobbying for a bill that would help secure a new arena for the franchise," according to Brandon Schlager of SPORTING NEWS. The letter, "sent to the Arizona Legislature, advocates for Senate Bill 1149, which would green light public funding" for a proposed $395M arena in Phoenix. Bettman wrote, "Let me be abundantly clear: The Coyotes' current location in Glendale at Gila River Arena is not economically capable of supporting a successful NHL franchise. ... The Arizona Coyotes must have a new arena location to succeed. The Coyotes cannot and will not remain in Glendale" (SPORTINGNEWS.com, 3/7). Coyotes Majority Owner & Chair Andrew Barroway in his own letter yesterday "agreed that the team 'cannot survive in Glendale' and that the team is 'simply seeking to split the tax revenues generated from the arena district equally with the state'" (KTAR.com, 3/7). The AP's Bob Christie notes Bettman is "trying to kick-start legislation stalled in the state Senate." State House Speaker J.D. Mesnard "reacted quickly to Bettman’s letter." He said in a statement, "The NHL first needs to make the case for a state-funded arena to the taxpayers. We’re not seeing a lot of enthusiasm that the public wants to foot the bill for a new arena, and until the NHL can win over taxpayers, they’re going to have a tough sell at the Legislature” (AP, 3/8). In Phoenix, Craig Harris in a front-page piece notes the Coyotes are "contractually obligated to play in Glendale for one more season" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 3/8).
SENDING A MESSAGE: FOXSPORTS.com's Pete Blackburn wrote, "The future of the NHL in Arizona appears to be in jeopardy. Again." Bettman's letter was "very strong and very clear" (FOXSPORTS.com, 3/7). But YAHOO SPORTS' Jen Neale wrote, "From an outsider, it seems a bit ballsy (for lack of a better term) to take [Bettman's] demands to the state after muscling the city of Glendale. Yes, he’s going to support the Coyotes in Arizona because it is his favorite pet project." But as of now, Bettman’s "attempt to sway the legislature appears to be for naught." The bill "doesn’t have enough votes to pass" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 3/8).
