Gary Bettman never let go of Phoenix, according to Pierre LeBrun, even as the Utah Mammoth gear up for another season.
LeBrun made the claim on SC with Jay Onrait this week.
"The day that team moved to Utah, Gary Bettman, I think made a promise internally to himself," he said.
The promise, as LeBrun described it, was simple.
"I got to get a team back in Phoenix one day."
Why the attachment?
"They love that market," LeBrun said. "They just never got it right."
That last line is doing a lot of work. Coming from someone as plugged in as LeBrun, it's a pointed admission about how things were handled.
His checklist for a return has two items.
"They need a building in either Scottsdale or Phoenix. They need the right ownership group."
A building in Scottsdale or Phoenix is still the missing piece
Then came the aside that will get people talking: "Hello, finally the right ownership group."
His bottom line didn't waver.
"But they will be in Phoenix one day," LeBrun said.
Here's the problem. Bringing a team back before a building is locked down would be a mistake, and the league should know that better than anyone.
It's like booking the band before you've found a wedding venue. Everybody's excited until they realize there's nowhere to dance.
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The market does have hockey roots worth betting on. Phoenix-born Matthew Knies scored 29 goals for Toronto in 2024-25.
Meanwhile, the franchise that left is busy with its own camp. The Mammoth won 6-3 in Los Angeles on Tuesday to even their preseason at 1-1.
Clayton Keller had a goal and an assist in that win.
Andre Tourigny and Bill Armstrong, both hired in April 2024, have a roster built around names like Logan Cooley, who carries a $10,000,000 cap hit.
Utah visits Vegas on Thursday and opens the regular season October 1 at home against Chicago.
Bettman's promise, if LeBrun has it right, comes with no deadline attached. Until somebody breaks ground on an arena, "one day" is doing all the heavy lifting.
Should the NHL return to Phoenix before a new arena is built?
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