The end of an era

When the news broke, my heart sank like losing a loved one. I could not believe what I was reading. As a sports fan you get used to reading hate tweets and rumors, and learn to brush it off because those people don't know and love the team like you do. This spring, right as the season was wrapping up and playoffs were looming, the news wasn't just rumors or hate from hockey elitists and online weirdos; The Arizona Coyotes had been deactivated.

To many Coyotes fans this team was a part of their family - they were a part of my family. I love remembering the nights my parents and I would don our jerseys in warm Arizona autumn to watch the home opener together from our living room, and the times we were blessed to catch them on the ice in person. I cherished the moment then, but now I hold the memory with white knuckled fists. It is hard to imagine a world without my Arizona Coyotes. My parent's jerseys in the laundry, my uncle's ever growing collection of memorabilia, and icy cold nights in American West Arena; The Desert Dogs have always been in my life. Now the day has come, and the Arizona Coyotes are no longer. It seems silly attempting to explain the impact a sports team can have on a person, but Coyotes fans all over feel it deeply. We wear the same colors, fly the team’s flags, and chant our battle-cries. There is camaraderie and a comfortable pack mentality that a sports team brings, and for some it can be much deeper.

The news of the move gutted me as a fan and as an individual, and I wanted to do SOMETHING to help. I didn't have a billion dollars, I didn't have land to build a state of the art arena, and I definitely didn't have the experience to run a NHL Hockey team, but I did have passion, my cinema camera and the night of April 17th open. I decided to use my time and talents to share the voices of Arizona's most loyal fans and give the Yotes one last love letter from the Valley. I gathered my wife and some amazing friends for the last Coyotes game and we hit the streets around Mullett Arena to hear what the fans had to say.

The night the Coyotes played the Edmonton Oilers for the last time, we met a colorful cast of characters leaving kids hockey practices, tailgating in the parking garage, and watching the game on their phones just steps from the arena doors. We took this opportunity to interview day one ‘96 Coyotes fans who had been at the first game, new fans who discovered hockey because of the ASU arena deal, and long distance fans who came all the way out just to catch their team at home one last time. Every single fan I chatted with gave me so much joy, and truly showed me that I was not alone in this grief. There was no official announcement yet of the sale of the team, but we all knew. Almost everyone we spoke to crossed their fingers, hoping that this was all a big rumor, or a benevolent investor would swoop in to save our team again - but we all knew this felt different.

The stories shared brought me joy, hit me in the gut, and gave me peace. We met fans who were frustrated, fans who just wanted to soak it all in one more time, and fans who refused to admit it until the final horn rang out. Truly, I think I was all three types of fans. As we walked around the hot parking lot, I was going through my very own therapy session. Experiencing so many emotions while also trying to stay vigilant and professional to interview more fans.

The highlight of the night was hearing that the Coyotes Central watch party was moved down the road to a new spot near Mullett Arena. I have  followed Coyotes Central on Instagram for as long as I could remember, and I knew I had to meet the founder and fellow diehard fans. We rushed to the highlighted area of a map posted to the host’s Instagram story to find a dirt lot filled with almost 100 fans who were celebrating together. As we crossed Rural Road, a proud chant of  "Let's Go Coyotes! Let's Go Coyotes!" greeted us before we entered the parking lot. The Coyotes Central team had the hockey game streaming on an inflatable movie screen powered by another fan's car battery. Fans all around cheered and laughed together, and one Colorado Avalanches fan walked around inviting each fan to sign a poster he would give to the Coyotes players after the game. This was hockey in the desert - creative, unconventional and caring for the community around us.

My cohort and I captured the crowd’s reaction to 2 Coyote’s goals, and interviewed several more life long fans including founder of Coyotes Central, Hunter Franklin. Afterward, we headed back to Mullett Arena for one last round of interviewing fans as they exited the arena. 

I was unsure what emotions to expect from the crowd as they exited the arena. Would it be sadness? Anger? Disappointment? As we waited for the front doors to open, we were met with a crowd of ecstatic fans who just watched their team beat Connor McDavid's Oilers 5-2 in regulation. Fans were jumping with joy, families were dancing together, and the Coyotes Drumline sent attendees off with a bang. There were fans taking photos and hugging in the parking lot, kiddos who just couldn't hold back tears while they showed off sticks and pucks gifted by players. The love for hockey was in the air. Many of the Edmonton fans wore the commemorative White-Out t-shirts over their jerseys as a gesture to the Yotes. We all knew this was the last time we would see this version of the Coyotes and NHL hockey in Arizona, but there was no point wasting this precious moment with bitterness and sadness. So I chose to enjoy every chant, every howl, and enjoy this beautiful night. Remembering the Arizona Coyotes by howling one last time.

Thank you so much for reading and watching this moment in time. It was truly a life changing moment for Yotes fans and myself. It was really hard to work on this beautiful project because it meant that it was real. Every time I finished a draft, I was one step closer to closing this book. I am so thankful for this team and what they meant to me throughout so many years of my life. I am extremely thankful to all of my friends and family who supported me during this project. Especially Michael Warren Williams, Sierra Olson, Shannon Swain, and of course, my amazing wife, Skyleigh Rutt. Without y'all by my side that night, I couldn't have properly captured this moment in time.

I know one day our Yotes will be back. They may not consist of Clayton Keller, Liam "Spicy Tuna" O'Brien, or Lawson "Sheriff" Crouse, but we will love them no matter what. Arizona IS a hockey state, and we will continue to grow the game here. Every Little Howlers game, every LGBTQ+ Growlers game, and every collegiate game, we will continue to grow and never let what the Arizona Coyotes started fall away.

Arizona Coyotes Forever

THANK YOU!

PHOTOS BY SIERRA OLSON & SHANNON SWAIN