Compete Level

The NHL would purchase the Coyotes from Meruelo in a deal believed to be worth around $1 billion. This would mark the second time the NHL would have owned the Coyotes, buying the franchise from owner Jerry Moyes in 2009 after he filed for bankruptcy. The league owned and operated the Coyotes until 2013.

The league source said that after purchasing the team, the NHL would then sell the Coyotes to Smith at a price that could be as high as $1.3 billion -- much higher than the $650 million expansion fee that the Seattle Kraken's owners paid in 2021 to join the league. The source said the NHL's other 31 owners would split $300 million as part of the sale.

"The NHL has a deep-pocketed owner that desperately wants the team and that they want to have part of the family," a well-plugged-in NHL source told ESPN.

There is a possibility that, as part of the deal, Meruelo would be first in line to purchase an NHL expansion team should the league decide to return to Arizona, according to sources. The Phoenix area has been a desirable one for the league as a television market and due to its proximity to other U.S.-based Western Conference teams. The area has also reported growth in youth hockey. Several Arizona-born players are now thriving in the NHL, including Toronto Maple Leafs star Auston Matthews.