The long, arduous, and sometimes hilarious process of finding a home for the Arizona Coyotes past this season will likely reach a higher level of clarity soon. A public summary of an upcoming Arizona Board of Regents meeting states that Arizona State University will officially review the Coyotes’ plan to play home games at the school’s currently-under-construction multipurpose arena this upcoming Thursday.
There are multiple things of note in this plan. The most pertinent one is the question of financial responsibility. As rumored earlier, modifications to the original construction project will need to be put in place to accommodate an NHL franchise. Per the plan, the Coyotes will be financially responsible for building a 15,000-square-foot facility annexed to the northeast end of the arena, including NHL-caliber locker rooms, training areas, team storage, and coaching offices. The team will also foot the bill for increasing broadcast capabilities, improving ice surfacing equipment, replay capabilities, and other technological aspects to meet NHL standards.