I still believe that the Coyotes CAN work in Phoenix. It will require an ownership group with some deep pockets that are willing to lose 'x' amount of millions for 'x' amount of years. They have to get a management group to really build that franchise up. Coyotes might be a winning club, but they are fairly boring to watch. Tippet is an effective coach, but the end product is boring hockey.
Atlanta was a pretty successful franchise as well, but then spent too many years being mismanaged. Perhaps the Coyotes lost their window, perhaps the decision to move to Glendale destroyed any chance of building their fanbase.
The NHL wants to stay in the Phoenix area for 3 reasons:
1) They look bad as a league pulling out of a market - especially when a market has invested a significant amount of money. Future markets may not be so keen (possibly).
2) The metro area is really big. On top of this, it helps to attract bigger contracts for broadcasting rights, even if the region has low ratings. The POTENTIAL is there, at any rate.
3) As someone mentioned above, it is a great location in the west for travel and proximity.
However, the CoG seems to have had enough. I do think that if Jamison does not have the funds, we have probably seen the last of the Coyotes. When the City has to cut back on essentials like Fire and Police services due to the hefty leasing agreement, things just look very bad.
I think in many cases, expansion or relocation franchises became too mismanaged and they never got a chance to attract a strong enough fan base (Atlanta), or perhaps were not competitive for long enough (Florida). With the cheap tickets in Tampa, it makes me wonder how strong their fanbase is there. How is Carolina now? I haven't kept up with how either team is doing. Both semi-recent cup winners with stars on the team. How do their attendance compare to that of Phoenix?
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