By George Fallar 
Matt McConnell dropped a blog post on the Coyotes site (click here) a few days ago. His subject was the wave of momentum that’s building and sweeping the Coyotes and their fans along. Right at the top, Matt writes:
“A leap of faith” has been a phrase long associated with the Coyotes organization. And it appears that faith, its hockey loyalty, is set to pay off in spades.
Maybe captain Shane Doan’s signing last summer was foreshadowing for better fortunes to follow for the franchise.
I agree completely.
Leap Of Faith
I am banishing the above phrase to the same place as we have all banished “in two weeks”, and for the same reason.
If we never hear the above term again as it relates to the Coyotes, we’ll be happy. While Mr. Jones is jiggling the calendar for our ultimate victory party a bit, Coyotes fans, other Glendale residents and many others are stepping up to battle back for the third AND LAST time. While we must remain diligent in our efforts, there’s good reason to believe Mr. Jones’ latest referendum effort will end up where the other two did.
We’ve been reading about GM Don Maloney getting calls from ALL of the free agents, gone are the days when he and Brad Treliving had to work the phones and beg people to listen, probably using the above phrase more than once.
Because of the above phrase, key components of the on-ice Coyotes family chemistry ALL made the decision to stick with the team. There’s no other explanation for the Coyotes front office staff hanging around, either. Their job security was non-existent and all the ones I’ve had the pleasure to meet over the years have plenty of talent, more than enough to check out for greener pastures.
Coyotes fans have also participated. Season ticket sales remained consistent in the face of “your team is moving at the end of the season” uncertainty for four years. This is different than aligning oneself with a “lovable loser” sort of club like the Cubs, this is another level of stress. Yet, most of us are still hanging around, many are fighting tooth and nail to be sure their team doesn’t leave.
Ninety Percent Restored
I’ve been a gear head as long as I can remember. I’ve bought and sold hundreds of cars and motorcycles in different states of repair. With that experience, it becomes a joke to read an ad for a (usually) classic vehicle that’s “90% restored”. The reality of that description is you’ll end up with a frustrating mash of Frankensteined parts that have been massaged into something that barely runs.
That isn’t the Coyotes, mostly by dint of leadership and work ethic, but the idea is the same. After years of pounding at the hands of the press and repeated disappointments, the team is now a restoration project. Happily, the restoration project on the ice began years ago, but the nagging doubt of relocation sapped the life out of the hockey business.
That’s the point where the Renaissance guys stepped in. They’re hockey guys and business guys, they’re not naïve. They wouldn’t have come this far without a plan that made sense, a plan that could be implemented. A plan that made some assumptions based on the above phrase.
That’s where we are now, and we can all feel it building. It’s the wave Matt talked about, it’s something even bigger than “hope”, it’s more than “momentum”.
It’s confidence.
Put Up Or Shut Up
Here we are, right where we’ve wanted to be since the day Jerry Moyes trotted into bankruptcy court. We’re where a lot of us thought we’d never be, in a place where naysayers from two countries swore we’d never be.
The place is the cusp of resounding success.
All of us; owners, fans, players, team front and hockey operations staff, arena people, city council members, even a few members of the local media, are in the position where we promised we’d make it pay.
“Put me in coach, I’m ready to play!”
We, the fans, have one job. Buy tickets. It’s butts in the seats that pay the bills, whether they’re upper bowl seats or suites. Since July 2, there’s even been a slightly palpable shift in local press coverage that should continue through the upcoming season.
There’s NO reason for this not to work.
Looks like the new marketing slogan is “Here To Stay”. Sounds good to me!
Keep the faith, Coyotes brothers and sisters, this is going to be a BLAST!
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