Phoenix Coyotes

Ex-Flame lights up the desert

February 9, 2010

Something had to give. The Oilers and Coyotes were both shut out in their last respective games, and neither club had done much in the way of offense recently. Definitely no stranger to the Oilers, former Flames centre Matthew Lombardi had gone without a point in his last five games and easily made up for that by racking up two goals and three assists in the 6-1 final. One could argue he could have even added to that total, as he was dangerous in the Oilers' zone all night long. One could also argue that Dave Tippett deserves credit for putting him on the wing and having ex-Hab Robert Lang take over as centreman (Lang finished with 3 points of his own, for those interested). See t...

Don't leave the desert without them

February 3, 2010

czechtacular

Comments

I feel like I need more than my homemade Zbynek Michalek t-shirt to qualify for writing about the Coyotes, but like said t-shirt, I can assure you that I am an original. It has to be said that Phoenix's story has evolved over the course of the last six months from one of depressing bankruptcy headlines to one of continually stringing victories (and fans) together, which makes my job here at The Checking Line a little easier. My self-diagnosed addiction to this particular team is almost a year old, but they've had my intrigue since a little after the lockout. After joining the hockey fandom almost 12 years ago with the Turner Stevensons and the Andy Moogs of the Montreal Canadiens th...

Ice Edge Close To Purchasing Coyotes

December 11, 2009

ONE95

6 Comments

After winning a long drawn out court battle against Jim Balsillie to purchase the bankrupt Phoenix Coyotes, it appears that the National Hockey League has found a buyer they like. According to TSN, Ice Edge investment group is on the brink of finalizing the deal for the Coyotes franchise. Ice Edge were one of the groups that bid for the bankrupt franchise this past summer but eventually dropped out. The NHL purchased the Phoenix Coyotes from Jerry Moyes for $140 million. The sale to Ice Edge is reported to be approximately $150 million and the investment group does plan on keeping the team in Phoenix. The league bought the team in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for about US$140 million afte...

Judge Says No To Balsillie And NHL

September 30, 2009

ONE95

2 Comments

Judge Redfield T. Baum has made a decision and it favours neither Jim Balsillie nor the National Hockey League, the two parties who submitted bids to purchase the suffering franchise. Judge Baum has decided that neither bid was sufficient and has thus rejected both bids. Jim Balsillie has announced that he will not appeal the decision. From TSN.. Judge Baum threw out the $242.5 million (US) bid by Balsillie, saying it could not work because he could not properly satisfy the NHL's rights regarding relocation. "In the final analysis, the court cannot find or conclude that the interests of the NHL can be adequately protected if the Coyotes are moved to Hamilton without first havin...

Breaking News: Wayne Gretzky steps down as Coyotes Coach

September 24, 2009

George Prax

5 Comments

Was going to post a blog about the Habs/Bruins preseason game, but this strikes me as more important... I might get something in about the Habs for tonight, if not, certainly a game review/thoughts/notes tomorrow. So, Wayne Gretzky has officially stepped down as head coach of the Phoenix Coyotes... I can't say I'm surprised, if I were him I wouldn't want my name associated with the mess that is the Phoenix Coyotes either. And since both the NHL and Balsillie told him to F-off, might as well step down and do something useful with his time. It's really sad that the Coyotes have been reduced to this though. Not only is their team in shambles, bad on the ice and their future compl...