Clayton Klapper is a Real-Time Editor at ABC15 Arizona.
TEMPE, AZ — The domino effect of the Arizona Coyotes' departure from the desert comes with some silver lining for hockey fans. There will still be hockey in the Valley as the Tucson Roadrunners are reportedly moving to Tempe to play at Mullett Arena. Alex Meruelo, who still owns the minor league hockey team, confirmed the move to Arizona Sports Thursday.
However, there's also still a chance that in five years, Meruelo and his group of partners could be granted an NHL expansion team that would bring the Coyotes name back to Arizona. While Meruelo sold the right to the NHL franchise, he keeps the intellectual rights to the Coyotes name. He also retains ownership of the Roadrunners, who have played in Tucson in recent years. Meruelo tells Arizona Sports that he intends to move the Roadrunners to Tempe and have them play at Mullett Arena, where the Coyotes had recently played.
The Roadrunners bring their own line of history to the Valley as many natives will remember the Phoenix Roadrunners. The team played on and off in Phoenix from 1967 to 2009 in different league levels before ceasing operations.
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