As the Coyotes continue to look for a new arena, one option that appears to now be off the table is a joint venture with the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, reports Scott Bordow of the Arizona Republic. Suns owner Robert Sarver said that he is focused on upgrading their current arena instead of pursuing a new facility.
This marks the second time in recent months that a potential partnership is off the table for the Coyotes, who saw their proposed plans with Arizona State University fall through back in February. The team is locked in at their current facility for just the 2017-18 season although the expectation is that they will agree to another short-term lease as they continue to pursue sites for a new arena within the area.
Elsewhere out West:
- Still with the Coyotes, Jeff Helperl, agent for RFA winger Jordan Martinook, told Arizona Sports’ Craig Morgan (Twitter link) that the two sides are close on a new deal but that he thinks the team may still prefer to go to arbitration. The hearing is scheduled for July 26th. Martinook is coming off a career year in Arizona, recording 11 goals and 14 assists in 77 games while averaging 15:41 per night in ice time.
- After inking Colton Parayko to a five-year, $27.5MM contract earlier today, the Blues have about $3MM in cap space per CapFriendly. Despite that, don’t expect St. Louis to be too active the rest of the offseason. GM Doug Armstrong told reporters, including Tom Timmermann of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, that they would like to keep as much wiggle room as possible under the salary cap. While that not only would give them more space to work with for in-season movement, it also will help them hedge against a flat salary cap moving forward, something Armstrong acknowledged that he expects to happen for the foreseeable future.