The 2009–10 Phoenix Coyotes season was the franchise's 38th overall season, its 31st in the National Hockey League (NHL) and its 14th season as the Phoenix Coyotes. After numerous seasons of losing money, the team was placed into bankruptcy and taken over by the NHL. A plan to move the team to Hamilton, Ontario, was rejected by the bankruptcy court.
Bankruptcy
Coyotes owner Jerry Moyes put the team into Chapter 11 bankruptcy during the off-season, and proposed to the court that an offer by Canadian Jim Balsillie for over $200 million be accepted and the team moved to Hamilton, Ontario. The NHL challenged the plan in court and court hearings were held over the summer in Arizona Court. Two other prospective buyers were recruited by the NHL to submit bids to purchase the team but neither made any formal offers to the bankruptcy court. The NHL was the only other group that made a formal offer in court. At first, neither offer had been accepted by the court; Balsillie's bid was rejected outright by the court, stating that it recognized the right of the league to control ownership and relocation, and not allow bankruptcy to be used as a back door. The NHL's bid was rejected because it did not propose to pay Moyes or Wayne Gretzky any money owed. The NHL and Moyes later came to an agreement and the transfer to the NHL was accepted by the court.
After the sale of the team to the NHL, the team fell under the supervision of the NHL. The team arranged a budget under the NHL ownership while allowing general manager Don Maloney to run the club. At the trade deadline, Maloney was the most active trader, making seven trades to improve his club for the playoffs. This was reported to have caused complaints to NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman from other general managers.
Fan attendance was a disappointment for the club, however, and figures supplied to the bankruptcy court showed that the club lost $5 million for the month of October alone. The club finished with the league's worst attendance, and in a lawsuit filed by the NHL against Moyes, the NHL estimated that the team would lose $20 million for the season.
Off-season In the Entry Draft, the Coyotes picked Oliver Ekman-Larsson with their first-round pick, sixth overall. Otherwise, it was a quiet off-season.
The team signed numerous NHL veteran free agents in the off-season, including Vernon Fiddler, Jason LaBarbera, Adrian Aucoin, Taylor Pyatt, Ryan Hollweg and Robert Lang. This represented a change in direction from previous seasons, which emphasized the development of young prospects.
Preseason Head coach Gretzky resigned during the training camp period. Neither Balsillie nor the NHL proposed to retain Gretzky on his $8 million contract. On September 24, the Coyotes hired Dave Tippett as their new head coach after Gretzky had resigned earlier the same day.Coyotes hire Tippett as Head Coach
2009 Pre-season game log: 3–2–3 (Home: 2–1–1; Road: 1–1–2) # Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Record Recap 1 September 15 Los Angeles Kings 2–4 Phoenix Coyotes Bryzgalov 1–0–0 2 September 15 Phoenix Coyotes 3–4 Los Angeles Kings Montoya 1–1–0 3 September 16 Phoenix Coyotes 2–3 Anaheim Ducks SO LaBarbera 1–1–1 4 September 18 Anaheim Ducks 4–3 Phoenix Coyotes OT Tordjman 1–1–2 5 September 19 Phoenix Coyotes 4–5 San Jose Sharks OT LaBarbera 1–1–3 3 September 22(in Everett, WA) Tampa Bay Lightning 2–1 Phoenix Coyotes Bryzgalov 1–2–3 4 September 23(in Loveland, CO) Phoenix Coyotes 4–3 Tampa Bay Lightning SO LaBarbera 2–2–3 5 September 26 San Jose Sharks 0–2 Phoenix Coyotes Bryzgalov 3–2–3
Regular season Despite all the uncertainty surrounding the team, the Coyotes started well, compiling a 9–4–0 record in October.
The regular season was, statistically speaking, the best in the franchise's 38-year history. The team finished with 107 points, the most the team has ever earned in any season, NHL or WHA.
On March 13, the Coyotes won their 41st regular season game over the Carolina Hurricanes, breaking the Coyotes previous one-season record for wins (40 in 2001–02). On March 18, the Coyotes beat the Vancouver Canucks 4–3 in a shootout to record the 44th win of the season, setting a new franchise record for wins as an NHL team with 44. The franchise's previous NHL record was 43 wins, by the Winnipeg Jets. On March 27, the Coyotes defeated the Dallas Stars 3–2 in a shootout to notch their 97th point for the season, passing the 1984–85 Jets for the highest point total in the NHL portion of franchise history. On March 27, the Coyotes defeated the Colorado Avalanche 6–2 to surpass the 100-point mark for the first time ever as an NHL team, and for the first time since 1977–78 in the WHA.
Division standings
Conference standings
Game log