The Arizona Coyotes will honor the contract they are locked into to play at Mullett Arena in Tempe next season, a team representative confirmed with ABC15.
The news comes despite Tempe residents voting not to support the development plans of an entertainment district and new arena to house the team in the coming years.
The future of the team beyond next season remains very much unclear as the NHL and the team consider options, many of which could lead to the team finding a new home outside of Arizona.
The Coyotes are currently under contract to play at Mullett Arena through the 2024-2025 season. The hope, however, was that there would be a new arena in Tempe to house the team by the time that deal was up.
The National Hockey League is terribly disappointed by the results of the public referendum regarding the Coyotes' arena project in Tempe, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said. We are going to review with the Coyotes what the options might be going forward.
The vote took place after the city of Phoenix and Sky Harbor International Airport expressed concerns about residences that were part of the project in a high-noise area under the airports flight path.
The Coyotes had hoped a new arena in Tempe would finally allow the franchise to settle down after playing in three different venues since moving to Arizona.
Now it appears the franchise has to search for a new home again.
We are very disappointed Tempe voters did not approve Propositions 301, 302, and 303, the Coyotes said. As Tempe Mayor Corey Woods said, it was the best sports deal in Arizona history. The Coyotes wish to thank everyone who supported our efforts and voted yes.