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Coyotes Deal With Andrew Barroway Under The Microscope Once More

By Catherine Silverman

Dec 6, 2014; Glendale, AZ, USA; Boston Bruins left wing Daniel Paille (left) and Arizona Coyotes defenseman Zbynek Michalek (4) fall down to the ice in the third period at Gila River Arena. The Bruins defeated the Coyotes 5-2. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 6, 2014; Glendale, AZ, USA; Boston Bruins left wing Daniel Paille (left) and Arizona Coyotes defenseman Zbynek Michalek (4) fall down to the ice in the third period at Gila River Arena. The Bruins defeated the Coyotes 5-2. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Andrew Barroway deal for the Arizona Coyotes is under scrutiny, despite team assurances everything is fine

The

Phoenix

Arizona Coyotes cannot catch a break.

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The Coyotes finished two points outside of playoff contention last season, with a late-spring injury to starting netminder Mike Smith allowing the Dallas Stars to snatch away the second Wild Card spot.

They also have an average attendance that almost doubles that of the Florida Panthers.

Despite all this, the team has been treading on thin ice almost since they moved to the desert. With one stadium swap (caused by an inadequate rink space at the US Airways Center in downtown Phoenix), an almost constant stream of ownership alterations, and one extremely hard-to-forget bankruptcy, the Arizona Coyotes are everyone’s go-to team for speculations about financial woes and relocation rumors.

The Coyotes hoped this would all go away with the transfer of team ownership back out of the NHL‘s collective hands (the league itself had been supporting the team since 2009, when former owner Jerry Moyes attempted to file for bankputcy in a waterfall of shady motives and relocation plans) to those of ICE Arizona ownership group in summer of 2013.

Yet, Arizona’s troubles still weren’t over — the team’s arena lease with the city of Glendale actually pays the team to lease the arena, with certain profits returned to the city at the end of every season, and includes an out clause if the Coyotes lose more than $50 million in the first five years of the lease. Multiple loans were used to purchase the team by ICE Arizona; as a result, the roster was assembled at more than $10 million under the cap ceiling, and the team is suffering the consequences.

Many assumed that Andrew Barroway’s proposed purchase of a 51-percent stake in the team was the break this franchise had never been able to catch. It would allow the team to pay back the privately-funded loan used to purchase a large chunk of the franchise practically in full; with that out of the way, the likelihood of a $50 million loss would dwindle to almost nothing, and the team would finally have some security. Player contracts could go up, which might attract some flashier players and scoring power — and with better players would come a winning team, which would draw in crowds.

It seems that the NHL’s board of governors has delayed a vote on the pending sale once again, though — and despite team GM Don Maloney’s insistence that rumors of the deal going under are false, many can’t help but wonder if the Coyotes have once again been hung out to dry.

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