Suns Owner Mat Ishbia Eyes NHL Return to Arizona

While the NHL's future in Arizona may seem bleak, Mat Ishbia offers a glimmer of hope for a potential return of a franchise to the desert.

Ishbia, owner of the NBA's Phoenix Suns and WNBA's Phoenix Mercury, expressed interest in an interview with Sportico in bringing an NHL team back to Arizona. This comes after the Coyotes were sold to Smith Entertainment Group, relocated to Utah, and rebranded as the Utah Hockey Club.

"I'm definitely going to be part of the community, and if I can help bring hockey back, I'll look at that," Ishbia said. "It's definitely something I'm interested in. It's a four-sport town. I'm disappointed we don't have a hockey team, but I understand what happened, and we're going to try to fix that one day."

Previous Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo retained the rights to the team's name, logo, and trademark after the sale, along with a five-year window to build an arena and reactivate the Arizona franchise. However, he informed the league in June that he would relinquish these rights after his latest arena plans fell through.

Ishbia declined to disclose if he has already been in discussions with the NHL, and the league did not respond to requests for comment.

"I'm disappointed we don't have a hockey team here. That's what I'll say," Ishbia added. "Phoenix is a four-sport town. Maybe five if you want to include soccer, but it's a four-sport town. Baseball, football, basketball, and hockey. And I hope that one day we'll be able to get hockey back."

The Suns play in Footprint Arena, a 32-year-old building that recently underwent a $230-million renovation. Ishbia's lease there extends to 2036, but he has expressed that a new arena is part of his long-term plan in Phoenix.

"We'll continue to make this one first-class, and when the time's right we'll make the next adjustment," he said.