It’s now official. The Arizona Coyotes have relocated to Salt Lake City. The Arizona Coyotes, the NHL, and the Utah NHL ownership made it official Thursday. This sucks. This is not what should happen to any team. Sports fans in Arizona are moaning the loss of their beloved Yotes. Hockey fans from around the world share in their grief. Most communities know what it is like to lose a team. It especially hurts to lose a major league team. While there is some hope for the future of hockey in the desert, right now the situation is not hopeful.
I know what it is like to lose a beloved sports team. We here in Reno lost the Reno Bighorns as they relocated to Stockton. We also lost Reno 1868 FC. Losing Reno 1868 FC hurt a lot. It was a horrible feeling that after years its all over. I do have a soft spot for the Coyotes. I did live in Arizona as a kid for a few years. I did watch what is now their final game. Going into the game I wanted the Coyotes to win one more time for the fans. They could not have done any better on the ice that night as they did get the 5-2 win.
The first storyline going into the game was about the watch party. The cheapest tickets for the game were over five hundred dollars. Despite that the game still sold out. Fans who were unable to get in planned on gathering outside of the arena to watch the game. This is a common practice by fans in the NHL. Unfortunately the Arizona State University Police shut down a potential gathering outside. They moved the gathering to a dirt parking lot where a projector was set up so fans could watch the game. It looked like there was a couple of hundred people at the watch party. It was hard to tell how many people were there from the photos.
The second storyline that seemed interesting to me was that the Arizona Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo was not in attendance. That is one of those things where if you cared about the team or fans you would show up. Other people have said it was good thing. If he was there fans may have used him as a target for their anger. Ultimately I do not think he has done enough to show he cared about the team or fans. Interestingly now he is no longer bring called the Arizona Coyotes owner but is now being referred to as the Coyotes Governor. This is likely due to his chance to get another team in the desert.
There was a marriage proposal on the ice during one of the intermissions.
One of the biggest storylines from the game was that former Coyotes captain, Sean Doan was reunited with his retirement banner. The Arizona Coyotes left the banner at their old arena after being kicked out. Somewhere in there both sides blamed the other for not getting it. The other arena threw it away. A Coyotes fan got a hold of it and was able to get it to Sean Doan. I did hear that it might end up hung up at the local ice rink. Honestly this kind of crap should not happen in any sport at any level. It is super unprofessional by everyone involved. When a team relocates to a new arena they need to take the banners unless they replace them which I do not think the Coyotes did.
The crowd did erupt in a “we’re still here” chant at one point. Later on in the game the fans chanted “Salt Lake sucks”. I get where this is coming from. I have been to Salt Lake City and Utah multiple times. It is not the place for me. They have odd rules. Nothing is open on Sundays. The alcohol is watered down. I cursed at a soccer game one time. They sent security over to our supporters section. I think they wanted me to do it again but I didn’t. They definitely wanted to kick me out. I went to soccer games in Reno, Fresno, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, and Sacramento. Salt Lake City was the only place where they asked fans not to curse before the game. After the game I had a weird experience at a fast food place where it seemed like strangers were listening and reacting to my private conversation. I wasn’t doing anything odd either. I was just talking how I normally do. The same day I went to a Utah Grizzlies game and the person sitting in front of me was from Idaho. That person did the same thing I did at the soccer game and the usher came and talked to them. I do not think it is going to be a fun experience in Utah for opposing fans. My experience with Salt Lake City is if you don’t know anyone there, then there is not much to do, especially on Sundays.
One kid was lucky enough to go to his first NHL game before the Coyotes moved. To get to see the team one last time for the first time in person. That is going to be an incredible story. I am sure that kid will have memories of this game for the rest of his life.
After the game the Coyotes tweeted and then quickly deleted the tweet about June 27th. June 27th is when they will bid on land to build a new arena that could be the future home of a second iteration of the Coyotes. A lot of people were mad about the tweet.
The Arizona Diamondbacks also released a statement about the Arizona Coyotes move to Utah. They did not have to. It was a classy act on their part. The Arizona Diamondbacks were the first MLB game I went to. It is always nice to see support from other teams especially ones outside of the sport. The Arizona Cardinals of the NFL have released a tweet in solidarity with the Arizona Coyotes and their fans. The Phoenix Suns of the NBA have not released a statement on the Arizona Coyotes relocation.
After the game no one wanted to go. The fans, the players, the staff, not one person wanted it to end. The broadcast went on for like an extra hour. So many people had so much to say.
There are so many memories with the Arizona Coyotes that will last countless lifetimes. This is game is one I will remember for ever.
Zac Electrifly 
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