Arizona Coyotes Sale to Ryan and Ashley Smith Approved by NHL ...

Utah is officially getting an NHL team.

NHL owners voted Thursday afternoon to approve the $1.2 billion sale of the Arizona Coyotes to the owners of the NBA’s Utah Jazz, according to multiple people familiar with the matter.

The vote concludes one of the most unique team sales in modern U.S. sports. Led by billionaire Ryan Smith and his wife Ashley, Smith Entertainment Group (SEG) is buying the Coyotes’ player and hockey operations departments, according to sources who were granted anonymity because the details are private. Those assets will be rolled into what is being considered a new NHL franchise, which does not yet have a name and will begin play in the SEG-owned Delta Center next season.

Representatives for the Coyotes, the NHL and SEG didn’t immediately return requests for comment.

Alex Meruelo, who has owned the Coyotes since 2019, will retain the team’s name, logos and other IP, plus ownership of the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners. He will have an opportunity to resurrect the dormant NHL franchise for $1 billion if he can get a new arena project off the ground in the next five years, Sportico previously reported.

That arena has proven elusive for Meruelo. The team played the last few seasons at Arizona State’s Mullet Arena, featuring 4,600 seats, by far the smallest in the league. That set-up drew the ire of the NHLPA and contributed to losses in the mid- to high eight figures per year. 

Meruelo bought the Coyotes for $425 million. Sportico recently valued the team at $675 million, by far the lowest in the NHL. The most recent expansion fees paid to join the league were $500 million (Las Vegas) and $650 million (Seattle).

Smith bought the Jazz in 2020 for $1.6 billion; the team is now worth $3.24 billion. In addition to the Jazz and Delta Center, SEG owns the NWSL’s Utah Royals and MLS’s Real Salt Lake.