Gary Bettman is reportedly behind the Arizona Coyotes relocation

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James Connelly
April 13, 2024 (1:59 PM)

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For the longest time, Gary Bettman was the leader in keeping the Arizona Coyotes in the desert but a recent report reveals he is behind the Arizona Coyotes' relocation.

It is no secret that Gary Bettman believes that hockey can work in the desert. Time and time again, he was picking the Coyotes over other teams, and that led to situations like the Thrashers being relocated before the Coyotes.

However, things have crashed and burned and now the Coyotes will be heading to Salt Lake City, Utah, after owner Alex Meruelo decided to sell the team. It was revealed that Gary Bettman helped convince Meruelo to sell with a contract that allowed Arizona to get an expansion team within five years.

"Gary Bettman convinced Alex Meruelo that selling the franchise was in the best interest of the players because of the indefinite timeline for an arena. Meruelo agreed it was unfair to the players and that led us to where we are today." Gambadoro said.

He added, "Meruelo agreed to sell the team after he secured a contractual right to reactivate the franchise within 5 years of the date of the agreement and trigger an expansion draft if an arena is built- this would require him to pay back the $1 billion that he is getting from the sale."

It is expected that the Coyotes will announce their relocation to Utah on April 17th and the Utah team will absorb all of the Coyotes' current assets.