aqib
Registered User
- Feb 13, 2012
- 5,302
- 1,355
Fertitta and Krause (Atlanta) were in NYC at NHL HQ two days before the Utah news broke. There was speculation/rumors of what was about to happen but nothing definitive.
Ryan Smith was way, way, way far ahead of anyone else, which is why he got the Coyotes. He was ready to spend the money, had an NHL ready arena, and is working on either a new arena or major renovations to the Delta Center. He checked all the boxes.
Atlanta obviously wouldn't have been a candidate since their arena hasn't broken ground. I just find it interesting they would pick a city with an arena that needs 2 years of renovations as opposed to one ready to go.