Maricopa County Chairman Thomas Galvin speaks about his committee’s determination to bring the NHL back to Arizona at a press conference Thursday at Ice Den Scottsdale. (Photo by Curt Arnold/Cronkite News)
SCOTTSDALE – A newly formed advisory panel designed to bring the NHL back to Arizona has defined its priorities to return hockey to the desert landscape: find an ownership group, secure a viable arena site in the Valley and keep the state’s hockey community thriving while the larger pieces come together.
At Ice Den Scottsdale on Thursday, Maricopa County Chairman Thomas Galvin said the effort is designed as a years-long build, rather than a nostalgia play.
“I believe that we need leadership, and we need to be advocates – not just for sports, but for economic development,” said Galvin, who was surrounded by youth players and their parents. “There’s passion for hockey, passion for the NHL, passion to return the NHL back to Arizona. But we’re going to have to prove it.”
He said he first called NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman last year to gauge the league’s interest and came away with good news.
“Absolutely,” was the response, Galvin said but stressed that the burden now falls to the panel and hockey supporters in Arizona to demonstrate the market is the best alternative for a new NHL franchise.
This push comes a year and a half after the Coyotes left Arizona for Utah, ending nearly three decades of NHL hockey in the Valley. The franchise’s tenure was defined as much by ownership turmoil and arena battles as it was by on-the-ice play and community support.
“We’re not going to worry about any other city,” he said. “This is going to be a years-long process. We’re not announcing an owner or a location next month.”
Three days after she was named chair of the new Advisory Panel on Pro Hockey in Arizona, longtime Valley resident and hockey advocate Andrea Doan spoke at the event. While her husband, Shane, cannot take part because of his position with the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Doan family’s ties to the sport here in the Valley run deep — their son Josh went from starring at Arizona State to debuting with the Coyotes, moving with the franchise to Utah before being traded to the Buffalo Sabres.
But it is Andrea who is now at the forefront of Arizona hockey, bringing her own voice and leadership to the effort.
“I’m honored to be a part of this effort to bring the NHL back to Arizona,” Doan said. “I’ll be working closely with Chairman Galvin and others on strategies to bring the team back – finding an ownership group that’s committed to Arizona hockey and identifying viable options for an NHL arena.”
Doan also brought up the importance of matching a major-league marketplace with the necessary stability.
“Arizona is a hockey state, and hockey belongs in the desert,” Doan said. “Our goal is to establish an organization that is rooted in our community and build a team that is successful.”
If ownership and arena are two legs of the stool, the third is the one Arizona can stand on today – community momentum. Lyndsey Fry, an Arizona native, Olympian and co-founder of the Matt Shott Arizona Hockey Legacy Foundation, will lead that pillar while the committee works behind the scenes.
“We’re super excited you’re here because this exemplifies how important this is to our community,” Fry told the crowd. She noted the foundation has “put 500-plus kids through Learn to Play in the last year,” keeping the on-ice pipeline going even after the Coyotes’ departure.
The mission now, she said, is visibility and momentum.
“If Gary Bettman were to Google ‘Arizona hockey,’ I want him to see 30 fresh, exciting stories from the Valley,” Fry said. “This community is rocking. We haven’t slowed down for one second.”
Galvin said the advisory group will study sites across the Valley.
“We’re open and willing to listen to any part of the Valley,” he said, while acknowledging that “certain areas are going to be more viable than others” based on what hasn’t worked before.
He also emphasized the effort is his initiative, not official county business.
“This is me using my bully pulpit as an elected official, but also as a community advocate,” Galvin said.
On more thorny questions such as tax incentives or special districts, he waved off premature debates.
“All of those questions are hypotheticals and down the line,” Galvin said. “We want to show we’re an attractive place to bring a professional hockey team back to Arizona. We’re never going to over-promise and under-deliver. Quite the opposite. We’re going to under-promise and hopefully over-deliver.”
Doan said the work ahead is as much about trust as transactions.
Andrea Doan, chair of the Advisory Panel on Pro Hockey in Arizona, said, “Our goal is to establish an organization that is rooted in our community and build a team that is successful.” (Photo by Drew Smith/Cronkite News)
“From all over the state, fans have expressed their support for this effort, and we thank you,” she said. “Stay involved as the hard work begins.”
Asked about who will hold the franchise brand identity if the NHL returns, she offered a glimpse into how the league will handle the Coyotes’ records and trademarks. She said the team’s history and intellectual property were essentially “put to sleep” by the league.
“And it can be brought back up, like Sleeping Beauty,” she said.
The decision to revive the Coyotes’ history and branding or to create an entirely new identity ultimately rests with a future owner and the NHL. Fry added that the logos and branding are currently with the league, noting that the Arizona Girls Ice Hockey Association works directly with the NHL on their Kachina logo usage and approvals.
In the meantime, Fry urged Arizona hockey supporters to look into the “NHL to Arizona” campaign.
“Follow across social media, ‘NHL to Arizona,’” she said. “We’re going to put out as much content as we can so people understand what’s going on in the Valley. We’ll host events. We’ll need volunteers. And when we run ‘Learn to Play’ in your rink, we’d love to have you on the ice.”
The goal, she said, is to make it impossible to miss what’s happening in Arizona hockey, from Scottsdale to Peoria to Chandler, so the league and potential owners see the scale and staying power of a hockey market in the desert.
As for the profile of the “right” owner for a new Arizona franchise, Galvin said the committee will prioritize fit over flash. He said the search is for “someone who cares about Arizona, understands the Valley and respects the passions Andrea and Lyndsey have.”
“Those people are going to have to do the hard work as well,” he said. “Our job is to show this is a place conducive for an NHL team.”
He closed by underscoring the coalition forming beyond the backdrop of youth jerseys.
“This is an integrated effort,” Galvin said.
He noted that he met with Graham Rossini, Arizona State’s athletics director, and Sun Devils hockey coach Greg Powers about the issue.
“This is the first step of what, ultimately I think, will be a good story and a good outcome,” Galvin said. “ We’re going to work hard, and we’re going to do it the right way.”
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