Well, this could be it for the Arizona Coyotes franchise. Their mediocre run has almost certainly been ended by the people of Tempe, Arizona, in a decisive vote. How will this be addressed by the NHL, who has long been the Coyotes' biggest propagator.
Following a rather decisive vote by the citizens of Tempe, Arizona, which struck down the proposed Tempe Entertainment District, and left the Coyotes without a long term home, Gary Bettman made an announcement regarding the Coyotes' future.
While it may have been worded intentionally vague, as the NHL likely doesn't know where to go from here, a relocation seems all but guaranteed at this point. This puts the NHL in an interesting position, as they've just added their second expansion team in recent years, and could now be looking to add another city to their portfolio.
Potential suitors are the always hopeful citizens of Quebec City, who miss their Nordiques dearly, and another southern market, Houston. The NHL will certainly have plenty of options going forward, but to move an entire franchise will take lots of planning, and likely won't happen for some time.
