NHL Rumors: Insider believes league could flip Arizona Coyotes to Utah Jazz owner for $1.3 billion

NHL insider Greg Wyshynski believes the NHL will sell the Arizona Coyotes for $1.3 billion.

On Thursday, it was revealed that the NHL has a contingency plan in place that will relocate the Coyotes to Salt Lake City, Utah as soon as next season.

According to Wyshynski of ESPN, moving Arizona to Utah would be a two-part transaction. The first transaction would see the NHL purchase the Coyotes from Alex Meruelo in a deal believed to be worth around $1 billion. The NHL would then sell the Coyotes to Ryan Smith at a price that could be as high as $1.3 billion, with the NHL's other 31 owners splitting $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.

Smith is the current owner of the Utah Jazz and has been adamant that he wants to bring the NHL to Salt Lake City.

However, the NHL nor the Arizona Coyotes have yet to comment on the potential relocation of the franchise.

Ryan Smith just focused on bringing the NHL to Utah

Ryan Smith has been adamant about getting the NHL to Utah for quite some time.

Smith has said he didn't care if Utah got a team through an expansion or relocation, as all he cared about was bringing the NHL to Utah.

“I think our goal is NHL,” Smith said, via ABC4. “I’ll leave the rest on how all that happens to Gary. But, we’re ready, and we’re ready to go.”

Back in January, the NHL released a statement on Utah and said the league is interested in the market.

"The NHL appreciates the interest expressed by Smith Entertainment Group to bring NHL hockey to Utah. During conversations over the course of the past two years, we have been impressed by Ryan and Ashley Smith's commitment to their community and their passion and vision for Utah, not only as a hockey market, but as a preeminent sports and entertainment destination. Utah is a promising market, and we look forward to continuing our discussions."

Currently, it does seem likely that Utah will get an NHL team soon as the Coyotes could be relocating to Salt Lake City as early as the 2024 season.