Next season, the NHL’s Arizona Coyotes will depart the desert to play in the cooler environs of Utah. Ironically, their practice facility will be located in a Salt Lake City suburb called Sandy.
NHL players are known for their stylish wardrobes and the new Utah team will also find it easier to shop following their practices. The facility will be located at The Shops at South Town, a 1.3 million square foot regional mall with 110 shops, owned by Los Angeles-based Pacific Retail Capital Partners (PRCP).
Tech billionaire Ryan Smith and his Smith Entertainment Group (SEG), which also owns the Utah Jazz NBA franchise, completed the $1.2bn purchase of the Arizona franchise just last month and wasted little time securing a contract with PRCP for a practice site at The Shops at South Town. The facility will include a minimum of two NHL-standard regulation ice surfaces and will house the team’s official offices. It is expected to open prior to the beginning of the 2025-26 NHL season.
The Coyotes’ players, draft picks and hockey operations department will relocate to Utah, playing for the new, yet-to-be-named franchise. SEG chairman and CEO Ryan Smith told ESPN there’s a chance the team will play with a temporary name and logo for next season.
The practice facility at The Shops at South Town will also be available for community purposes outside of the NHL franchise’s designated use. It is expected to accommodate community hockey programming and offer ice time for youth and amateur hockey and recreation.
