The clock is ticking for the Phoenix Coyotes.
The City of Glendale has until Dec. 31 to finalize a deal to clear up the mess that is the franchise debt and sell the team to a buyer who will keep the team in the Valley.
Two previous deals have already fallen through, and a third deal with Chicago investment trader Matthew Hulsizer is currently being handled by the NHL, but Hulsizer will have to take on a team that has lost $30 million each season since it moved here in 1996, according to an Arizona Republic story.
I’ve been a Coyotes fan since they moved, and I love the idea of hockey in the desert. But I also know that sports is a business, and the Coyotes are an investment nightmare.
The NHL knows this too and already has a plan in place to send the club back to Winnipeg, where the consensus is that the team will see immediate profits.
So my question is this: when the Coyotes leave, which team do I follow? Do I move my allegiance to the next closest California club? Or do I follow the team I’ve loved for 14 years to Canada?
Either way, hockey in the desert is gone for good.
