Coyotes to bid on arena site at June land auction
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Greg Wyshynski, ESPN
The Arizona Coyotes‘ future could be decided on June 27, when they will bid on a parcel of land in the hopes of finally securing a site for their new arena.
In March, the Arizona State Land Department Board of Appeals unanimously approved a $68.5 million appraisal of a 95-acre parcel of land in north Phoenix. On Thursday, the department officially posted an auction for that parcel, with the auction set for June 27.
The Coyotes released images of what they intend to build on that land should they win the bid, including an arena, a practice facility, a theater and housing units.
Coyotes president Xavier Gutierrez said the team plans to start construction in the second quarter of 2025, adding, “We hope to drop the puck in the fall of 2027.” He said that was the same timeline the team had for its arena project in Tempe, which was defeated in a public vote in May 2023.
Gutierrez said the project will be developed without taxpayer funding.
The proposed arena would have 17,000 fixed seats for NHL games and capacity for roughly 1,500 additional temporary seats for non-hockey events. The Coyotes’ new home would also include a 150,000-square-foot practice facility and headquarters, a live music theater for 3,000 concertgoers, 400,000 square feet of retail and a multipurpose watch party plaza equipped with a supersized screen for viewing events.
The main entertainment district will also have a 170,000-square-foot roof canopy extending from the arena to the theater.
The Coyotes’ development plans also include approximately 1,900 luxury residential units, 400,000 square feet of Class A office space, branded retail, dining and other amenities.
The Coyotes have played their home games at Mullett Arena, a 5,000-seat facility on the campus of Arizona State University, since the 2022-23 season. Gutierrez said their deal with ASU was for three years plus two one-year options that would take them through the 2026-27 season.
“This has been a very good financial arrangement for Arizona State University,” Gutierrez said. “Should we have to extend it, we don’t believe that will be a problem,” Gutierrez said.
The Coyotes’ time at Mullett, and the overall length of their arena construction plans, have come under fire from critics such as NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh, who believes the team should relocate if there isn’t a suitable arena plan in place by the end of this season.
“I think the league feels that Arizona is a good market and I can understand that,” Walsh said at NHL All-Star Weekend in February. “The issue I have, and the players have, is how long do you wait to get a home? They’re playing in a college arena and they’re the second tenant in that arena. This is not the way to run a business.”
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has supported the Coyotes’ bids to remain in the market for well over a decade. He said last month that Arizona owner Alex Meruelo had informed the league that “he was certain he was going to get this done” and “I’m both hopeful and reasonably confident that he’s going to do what he says.”
At last month’s general managers meetings in Florida, deputy commissioner Bill Daly was asked whether the NHL would be able to pivot and have the Coyotes play elsewhere next season if this auction bid were not successful. Daly indicated that the timing of the auction means the Coyotes are likely in Arizona next season.
“I’m focused on the current,” he said. “Currently, they are going to play hockey games in Arizona next year.”
While Bettman has stressed that the NHL is not looking to expand or relocate teams, the NHL has received overtures from several markets seeking to join the league. Chief among them is Salt Lake City, where Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith has formally petitioned the NHL for a franchise.
“The Utah expression of interest has been the most aggressive and has carried a lot of energy with it,” Bettman said.
While he said he can’t speak for how the NHL feels about this land auction plan, Gutierrez said “this is the way to finally resolve the facility challenge” that’s plagued them.
Is there a chance that the Coyotes could go through this process and the NHL still decides to relocate the franchise?
“I have no idea,” Gutierrez said. “I can’t comment on that because I have no idea. I can tell you that they are very happy with the plan that we’ve put [in] front of them. They believe that it’s a solution. I don’t know if it resolves the concerns that they may have or other folks may have, like the players’ association or what have you. The sense I’ve gotten is they’re happy that we have this plan that it’ll be public and that we can move forward.”
When asked if the NHL might force Meruelo out from his ownership spot if Arizona fails at to win the land auction, Daly said it was “not a hypothetical I would entertain” and confirmed the league is in constant communication with Meruelo that has been “businesslike and fine.”
The Coyotes have been searching for a permanent home since their former owner took the franchise into bankruptcy in 2009. The team appeared to have stable footing at then-Gila River Arena, but the city of Glendale backed out of a multimillion-dollar lease agreement in 2015. The Coyotes had leased Gila River Arena on a yearly basis before the city terminated its lease following the 2021-22 season.
The team moved to Mullett Arena while seeking an arena solution in Tempe. The Coyotes believed they had one with a 16,000-seat arena in a proposed $2.1 billion entertainment district, but voters rejected that plan in May 2023.
A month after the vote in Tempe failed, the Coyotes said they met with the Arizona State Land Department and submitted an application for 212 acres of state-owned land on the corner of Scottsdale Road and Arizona State Route 101. Gutierrez said this was happening parallel to other potential arena projects the franchise was exploring.
The Coyotes knew the city of Phoenix would require the project to bear the cost of infrastructure. Their initial analysis was that it would cost the team about $150 million. But by December 2023, the Coyotes realized that actual cost for that land would be over $230 million.
Gutierrez said that “changed the equation” for the team. The Coyotes opted to resubmit their application for 110 acres of land instead. He said it’s zoned for 2 million square feet of commercial use. In an interesting twist, the land the team is trying to acquire is zoned for an indoor hockey arena, a relic of a previous attempt to build a youth hockey facility in the area.
The new parcel of land carries an estimated infrastructure cost of $120 million for the team.
“We’re not taking any taxpayer dollars. We’re not asking for taxpayer money,” Gutierrez said. “We’re going to buy the land, we’re going to build every building, we are going to maintain it and we’re also going to pay for the public infrastructure. So that is coming out of our pockets.”
At the GM meetings, Bettman reiterated that the NHL wants to have a team in the greater Phoenix area. Gutierrez believes that team is still the Coyotes, and that this arena deal will finally help them find stability.
“This is a hockey town,” he said. “There is wealth here to spend on entertainment. It’s all about the facility.”
ESPN’s Kristen Shilton contributed to this report.
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Jeremiyah Love tied the Notre Dame record with a 98-yard touchdown run, Riley Leonard added two more scores and the Fighting Irish shut down the highest-scoring team in the College Football Playoff, overwhelming Indiana 27-17 on Friday night.
The seventh-seeded Fighting Irish (12-1) won their 11th straight — and their first playoff victory. They’ll face second-seeded Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1. Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman got the biggest win of his three-year career by extending his Irish record to 12 victories over ranked teams in three seasons.
“There’s no place like Notre Dame,” Leonard said. “This is why you come here, this is why I came here — to play for a championship.”
Tenth-seeded Indiana (11-2) completed a magical season by finishing with its second fewest points this season on a cold, brisk night in the first CFP game ever played on a campus site. Both of the Hoosiers’ losses came to top-five opponents. Indiana set a single-season school record for wins but still hasn’t won at Notre Dame since 1898.
Notre Dame took control on its third offensive play when Love scooted around the right side of Indiana’s defense, eluded one tackle and sprinted down the sideline to make it 7-0. He matched Josh Adams’ longest run in school history, set in 2015 against Wake Forest. It was also the longest run in CFP history.
“It’s all about finding a way to get another week,” Freeman said. “It wasn’t easy. But we’re going to enjoy this one and we’ll get another one.”
Love finished with eight carries for 108 yards despite appearing to reinjure his left knee later in the first half.
Indiana never recovered after Notre Dame made it 14-0 early in the second quarter.
Leonard’s 1-yard TD run late in the fourth gave him 15 this season to break Notre Dame’s season record by a quarterback.
Indiana scored both of its touchdowns in the final 1:27.
Notre Dame made it 14-0 on Leonard’s 5-yard TD pass to Jayden Thomas early in the second quarter. The Irish settled for three more field goals, and the defense took care of the rest — allowing just one field goal.
Leonard was 23 of 32 with 201 yards and one interception. Notre Dame receiver Jordan Faison caught seven passes for 89 yards.
Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke turned in another poor game against a top defense, finishing 20 of 33 with 215 yards, with two TDs and one interception, and the Hoosiers rushed for just 63 yards.
“They took it to us,” Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said. “They won, they deserve to win. We didn’t play our best game, but they had a lot to do with that tonight.”
Notre Dame: The Irish have relied on the running game and defense all season — and it was that combination that gave Notre Dame the first playoff win in school history. It may need more out of its passing game to win its first national championship since 1988.
Notre Dame: Plays Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day.
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Alden Gonzalez, ESPN Staff Writer
The Houston Astros and free-agent first baseman Christian Walker have agreed to a three-year, $60 million contract, sources confirmed to ESPN amid multiple reports Friday.
The deal is pending a physical exam, a source told ESPN.
The addition of Walker in all likelihood marks the end of Alex Bregman‘s tenure in Houston, not to mention the Astros’ ill-fated attempts to pry Nolan Arenado from the St. Louis Cardinals. Walker manning first base for the next three years means Isaac Paredes, the 25-year-old corner infielder who was recently acquired from the Chicago Cubs in the Kyle Tucker trade, will probably be Bregman’s replacement at third base.
Walker, 33, is widely regarded as one of the sport’s best defensive first basemen and will also provide some power to the middle of the Astros’ lineup. He slashed .250/.332/.481 with 95 home runs and 281 RBIs with the Arizona Diamondbacks over the last three seasons while accumulating 10.8 FanGraphs wins above replacement, sixth-most among first basemen.
First base had been a conundrum in Houston over these last three seasons, one the high-priced Jose Abreu could not solve. Astros first basemen combined for a .651 OPS last season, fifth-lowest in the majors. Walker, a three-time Gold Glove Award winner, will provide a major boost at that position — particularly as a right-handed hitter in Daikin Park, which features a short left-field fence.
The Astros still need help in their outfield after parting with Tucker one year before he’s scheduled to become a free agent. And Bregman, the heart and soul of an Astros franchise that won two championships and made seven straight appearances in the American League Championship Series dating back to his first full season in the big leagues, must choose a new destination.
The New York Yankees, who expressed interest in Walker this offseason, could be a landing spot for Bregman. So might the Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays or Detroit Tigers, the latter of which is led by Bregman’s former manager, A.J. Hinch.
Astros general manager Dana Brown expressed optimism in bringing Bregman back throughout the offseason, but owner Jim Crane would not meet the $200 million-plus asking price of Bregman’s agent, Scott Boras, prompting an initial pivot to Arenado — before he utilized his no-trade clause to stay in St. Louis — and an agreement with Walker.
Walker declined the D-backs’ qualifying offer earlier this month. By signing him, the Astros, a team that exceeded the luxury-tax threshold last season, will give up their second- and fifth-round picks in the upcoming draft, as well as $1 million from their international-spending pool. The Astros will get back a fourth-round pick once Bregman signs with another team, a development that now feels inevitable.
In the aftermath of their loss to the Tigers in the wild-card round earlier this fall, longtime Astros second baseman Jose Altuve spoke passionately about the importance of bringing Bregman back, saying: “We’re not going to be the same organization without him.”
In many ways, the Walker signing signals a new chapter.
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