Arizona is looking to bring the NHL back to the desert.
Tom Galvin, the newly elected chair of the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors, is forming a committee political and business leaders with the goal of bringing NHL back to Arizona, according to Craig Morgan.
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman told Morgan that he spoke with Galvin on Zoom before Christmas about the possibility.
The NHL Board of Governors approved the relocation of the Arizona Coyotes to Utah back in April. The team was purchased by Ryan and Ashley Smith in a $1.2-billion deal brokered by the league.
Former owner Alex Meruelo reportedly relinquished his rights to the franchise back in July.
In late June, Bettman confirmed that Meruelo informed the team that he would no longer be pursuing a reactivation of the Coyotes after the hockey operations move to Utah.
Meruelo made the decision to stop looking for another arena option after another bid for a new location fell apart.
After Meruelo sold the team to Smith Entertainment Group in April, he retained the rights to the Coyotes' name, logo and trademark. He was also granted a five-year window to build an arena and reactivate the Arizona franchise.
The reactivation of the franchise would have required Meruelo to pay back the $1 billion that he received when he sold the team.
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