Matthew Knies, Auston Matthews share thoughts on Coyotes relocation
With the Arizona Coyotes reportedly on the verge of relocating to Salt Lake City, Utah, it almost seems like the inevitable has become a reality. While many will be rejoicing in the news, there are a few people, like Maple Leafs forwards Matthew Knies and Auston Matthews, who are relatively upset about the situation.
The Coyotes organization has been a struggling franchise on and off the ice for a very long time. Since initially relocating from Winnipeg ahead of the 1996-97 season, the Phoenix Coyotes - as they were referred to back then - made the post-season but were ousted in the first round in 5 of their first 6 seasons. They only made the post-season 3 more times in the next 11 seasons before being purchased by the League and becoming the Arizona Coyotes due bankruptcy, consistent loss of revenue, and new ownership.
Things didn't get any better once the team changed names. In fact, they never won more than 35 games in a season - which they did only once back in 2015-16. The Coyotes consistently finished at or near the bottom of the NHL standings and have only qualified for the post-season once since 2012-13 and it was during the 20-team playoff bubble in 2020. Horrible on-ice play, continued loss of revenue, the city of Glendale terminating their lease, and playing in the desert where hockey is not a big part of the culture there were consistent issues on a year-to-year basis, which brought a lot of discontent around the hockey world as to why the NHL refused to relocate them.
While on the outside looking in, it seemed like there wasn't much fan fare surrounding the Coyotes, but ironically enough, two very important members of the Maple Leafs organization grew up watching and supporting the Coyotes in Auston Matthews and Matthew Knies.
Knies, who took up hockey primarily because of the Coyotes' presence in his home-state of Arizona, spoke to the media ahead of the Leafs' tilt against the New Jersey Devils tonight about the possibility of his boyhood team moving and what that means to him:
"It's pretty unfortunate. The Coyotes did a lot for me growing up and loved going to the games. And it was a kind of big reason as to why I got into hockey," Knies said. "But yeah, that kind of situation's out of my control. And I'm hopeful that they can stay there 'cause it meant a lot to me. But yeah, I guess we'll have to see what happens."
As Knies points out, the situation is out of his control and quite honestly it has been for a long time. Things really hit the fan once the Coyotes got locked out of Gila River Arena by the City of Glendale for not paying the $1.3 million dollars in taxes they had owed. They then shifted to Arizona State University and have been playing in a 5,000-seat arena, which has definitely drawn the ire of the fanbase, the hockey world, and the owners.
Auston Matthews shared a similar sentiment with Knies. We all know how vocal Matthews has been over the Coyotes essentially giving him his start. He, like Knies, just believes that the whole situation is very unfortunate.
-Matthews on the Coyotes to Salt Lake City talk
Elliotte Friedman discussed, at length, that the pot finally boiled over, but does believe that Gary Bettman will always fight for the Arizona market and maybe there's a chance we see them get another team somewhere down the line. However as of right now, the situation is even out of the commissioner's hands:
The Coyotes intend to bid on a plot of land in an auction that will be held in June and while that might bring some optimism for it's fans, the NHL will most likely not want to wait until the summer. Moreover, the owner of the Utah Jazz has taken to Twitter for names for a possible NHL team and Salt Lake City has been a growing hot bed for relocation or expansion over the last few years.
That, in it of itself, worries Knies a little bit because he's afraid that relocation will stunt the popularity of the sport in Arizona - even if they've been promised future expansion:
Again. I hope they can stay there but it's out of my control. Not too really happy about the situation but it is what it is. "
For all intents and purposes, it looks like Arizona will no longer be in the NHL moving forward. The NHL has even reportedly drafted two 2024-25 regular season schedules on the off-chance Salt Lake City is granted control of the team. Knies and the rest of the Coyotes fan base have a right to be distraught but it was always an inevitability with how incredibly unstable their situation has been.
Source: The Hockey News'Not Too Really Happy About The Situation': Arizona Native and Maple Leafs Forward Matthew Knies Weighs in on Possible Relocation of Coyotes to Salt Lake City
| POLL | ||
12 AVRIL | 356 ANSWERS Matthew Knies, Auston Matthews share thoughts on Coyotes relocation Did the NHL slight Canada once again by overlooking them for relocation? | ||
| Yes, Quebec City is a better market | 272 | 76.4 % |
| No, there aren't many hot spots to choose from | 84 | 23.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
