Gary Bettman and Bill Daly addressed the press Tuesday at Jobing.com Arena. The commissioner acknowledges there is nothing he can do to thaw the bond market, that there is no plan B, no alternate strategy. If Goldwater Institute simply holds its ground and stays the course -- maybe for days, maybe for weeks, at most for a couple of months -- it can kill the deal without even filing a lawsuit. ... Bettman looked like someone who was playing his last card, trying to save face, trying to set up a future speech in which he can claim he did everything he could to keep the Coyotes right where they were.
-Globe and Mail
Generally speaking I could care less about the business aspect of sports, which is why you haven't seen me write anything about the (impending) NFL Lockout or things of that nature. But this whole Phoenix Coyotes fiasco irks me more as a hockey fan than just as a sports fan in general.
Gary Bettman's plight as commissioner has been well documented over the years, with the majority stemming from the fallout of the hockey's own lockout in 2004-2005. But another aspect of Bettman that bugs the hell out of me has been his unwillingness to accept any Canadian city as a suitable destination for a moribund Sun Belt team.
Hello? Where did they invent hockey? CANADA fer chrissake! Phoenix has ranked 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 28th, 30th, and 29th respectively in each year post-lockout. While the product on the ice surely has by-and-large been sub-par, they did manage to record 107 points last year while placing dead last in attendance. Bettman, can't you see the freaking writing on the wall already? Nobody cares about hockey in Phoenix! It doesn't matter if a new ownership group is in place; Arizona simply isn't meant to play host to hockey. It's okay to admit you were wrong. The Coyotes never should have left Winnipeg in the first place, and it's about damn time reparations are made and they "Jet" on back there.
Back in the day, Bettman was real quick to look for U.S. investors to ship the Jets and the Quebec Nordiques off to brighter pastures. He's held the Coyotes in limbo for a solid three or four years now, trying best to save face for a mistake he made 15 years ago, and in the process has severely restricted their ability to acquire star players. The Yotes currently sit 6th in the tight Western Conference, very much in contention to make a postseason run, but one severe disadvantage they have compared to their competition? Fans, or a lack thereof. There's been no effort whatsoever on the part of Coyotes fans to mobilize and launch rallies to prove their support of the team. This isn't like the situation in Seattle three years ago with the SuperSonics, and we saw how that turned out.
If Bettman winds up keeping the Coyotes in Phoenix as lameducks once again next season, he should honestly lose his job. It's unfair to the players, who for the past two seasons at least have gone out and played some half-decent hockey. Give these guys a permanent home north of the border. Break out the "Homecoming", Kanye West. The Jets are going home again.
(By the way, we'll probably be having this same discussion next year about the Atlanta Thrashers heading up to Quebec City).
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