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PHOENIX – Efforts to bring an NHL team back to Arizona are gaining momentum with the creation of a new advisory committee led by a familiar name to hockey fans.
What we know:
Maricopa County Supervisor Thomas Galvin announced on Sept. 22 that Andrea Doan, the wife of former Coyotes captain Shane Doan, will head a committee to get a new team and arena in the Valley.
The Arizona Coyotes relocated to Utah in 2024 and were renamed the Mammoth, leaving the state without an NHL team.
Andrea Doan, an Arizona State University alumna whose son, Josh, was drafted by the Coyotes and also played for ASU, said she knows about the countless attempts to make a team work in Arizona. She believes this new effort will succeed by avoiding past mistakes.
"It hasn't been done the right way. It hasn't been put in place that made it sustainable and made it work, and there are a lot of factors that go into that, and we understand that, and we realize that," Doan said. "This wouldn't be happening if the people involved didn't think it was a possibility."
TEMPE, ARIZONA – APRIL 17: Fans hold up signs before the NHL game between the Edmonton Oilers and the Arizona Coyotes at Mullett Arena on April 17, 2024 in Tempe, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
Dig deeper:
The committee's mission is to find an ownership group and a location for a new stadium while also gaining community support. The Coyotes’ last bid for a new arena in Tempe was rejected by voters, highlighting the importance of community involvement.
The Matt Shott Arizona Hockey Legacy Foundation, which took over youth hockey programs after the Coyotes left, is one of the community groups involved.
"Interacting with your fans in the rinks and building the partnerships in the community … will help generate and build the excitement, the enthusiasm that we believe will be huge selling points to the NHL about why Arizona is a great market and why hockey belongs here," said Garrett Niederkorn of the foundation.
Galvin said he has had conversations with the NHL commissioner to understand what it would take to bring a team back.
There is no timeline for the committee's work.
FOX 10’s Steve Nielsen reported on this story after interviews with Andrea Doan and Garrett Niederkorn and previous reporting on
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