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- The Phoenix Coyotes have encountered an embarrassing issue ahead of their move to Arizona State’s arena
- The news is the latest road bump the struggling team has run into
- Read more NHL news here
The only real bright spot the Arizona Coyotes encountered during the most recent NHL season was the fact that it eventually came to an end (which could arguably be said about the vast majority of the team’s campaigns over the past decade).
The franchise finished the year with the second-worst record in the league during a season where only Buffalo and Ottawa sported a lower average attendance, and at one point, it seemed like there was a legitimate chance they could be locked out of their own arena over unpaid taxes and related fees.
Those issues played a role in the team’s decision to relocate to a new barn, as the Coyotes will spend the next few years playing at a multipurpose arena that recently opened on the campus of Arizona State University. However, the move to Tempe has already spawned some fresh new issues; the fact that it has a maximum capacity of 5,000 has also forced them to charge some fairly ridiculous prices for tickets.
Now, we’ve been treated to the newest twist in the saga courtesy of a report from The Athletic outlining the terms of Phoenix’s agreement with ASU to play in Tempe. Notable aspects include a “good behavior” clause that would allow the school to end the relationship if its reputation is somehow damaged, another that states the Coyotes won’t receive any revenue when the naming rights are secured, and language that allows the university to veto ads from certain sponsors (like alcohol brands).
However, the real highlight (or lowlight) of the article comes from one of the more embarrassing aspects of the deal: Arizona State will not allow Phoenix to “modify the look of the ice surface,” which means the Coyotes will not be able to display their logo at center ice (their home games will feature the Sun Devils logo instead).
Strap in, folks. This is going to be one hell of a ride.
UPDATE
On Wednesday afternoon, 12News sports reporter Cameron Cox shared the Coyotes will have some sort of representation at center ice.
UPDATE: Yotes will have logo on ice at ASU.
From ASU "We will have both the Coyotes and ASU logos on center ice. The Coyotes are prohibited from including any of their other normal in-ice branding. They are also prevented from digitally covering up our logo on their broadcasts." pic.twitter.com/53L5ESxo78
— Cameron Cox (@CamCox12) May 18, 2022
However, it’s currently unclear what that will look like.