According to ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski, NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said that the Arizona Coyotes are going to play next season at Mullett Arena, the rink on Arizona State’s campus that the programs shared this past year.

However, after 2023-24, it’s up in the air. 

Could another NHL franchise be coming to the Midwest? Kansas City is seen as a potential option for the Coyotes to relocate to, which would give the NHL two teams in the region, joining the Blues who are out of St. Louis.

Another I-70 rivalry? Count us in!

The city already has two professional teams the Royals and Chiefs. Additionally, the ECHL already has a team in the city as well, as the Kansas City Mavericks joined the league in 2016. Millions of fans attend Kansas City area sporting events every year, and the recent success of the Chiefs solidified the city on the map of sports towns.

But here’s an interesting fact: Kansas City has actually had an NHL team in the past. It just hasn’t panned out much. The Kansas City Scouts were an expansion team in 1974, but lasted just two seasons before the franchise was relocated to Colorado, and then New Jersey, where they are the Devils today.

But where would they play?

There is the T-Mobile Center available to house a hockey club, which is the city’s primary indoor arena and can fit roughly 17,500 fans for hockey. However, it has never hosted a hockey team before and would need to be approved by the NHL.

The Kansas City Mavericks currently play out of Cable Dahmer Arena, which only houses 5,800, not nearly enough for an NHL team. Hy-Vee Arena, previously known as Kemper Arena when it was the old home of the Scouts, was downsized to a youth sports and gym facility in 2017, eliminating over 10,000 seats and removing it as an option for a potential NHL team host.

Only time will tell what will happen. And with cities such as Houston, San Diego, and more in the mix, the heat is on for Kansas City.