On Saturday, ESPN reported the Arizona Coyotes and Arizona State Sun Devils may be close to reaching an agreement to build a joint arena in Tempe.
Based on feedback from fans, the Coyotes are prime to see a spike in attendance if such an agreement takes place.
After the news broke, we asked Valley residents whether they would be more likely to attend Coyotes games if the team did indeed relocate to Tempe from its current home in Glendale.
Of the over 500 people who voted in our Twitter poll as of Sunday morning, nearly two-thirds (65 percent) said yes.
See also: Why a joint arena would be a win-win scenario for the Coyotes and ASU.
The most common reasons? Accessibility and drive time.
@abc15sports absolutely. Gila River Arena seems like halfway to Cali from my house.
— Justin (@FatElvis04) January 31, 2016
@abc15sports @abc15 @ArizonaCoyotes absolutely! I stopped going when they left Phx. It's an hours drive 2 glendale and you can't go midweek
— Phillip Acosta (@aspired2Be) January 31, 2016
@abc15sports @abc15 @ArizonaCoyotes go to about 2 a year now, would absolutely buy season tix.
— Mike D (@The_Mike_D) January 31, 2016
@abc15sports @ShaneDaleABC15 @ArizonaCoyotes 10000% I'm not driving to Egypt 41 times a year.
— Tommy Czerwinski (@tommyczerwinski) January 31, 2016
Of course, not everyone is in favor of the idea. After all, while the East Valley is growing by leaps and bounds, some west-side residents enjoy the fact that the team currently plays in Glendale.
@abc15sports @ArizonaCoyotes @abc15 Nope. Less.
— M. Salami Pettrino (@SalamiWS) January 31, 2016
@abc15sports @SalamiWS @ArizonaCoyotes @abc15 Lots of folks live on the west side, you know....
— Franklin Brown (@franklinnoble) January 31, 2016
Nonetheless, most of the reaction to Saturday's news was favorable -- and some passionate Valley fans will go see their Yotes play regardless of the destination.
@abc15sports @ArizonaCoyotes I would drive anywhere to watch my yotes!!!??
— emma blair (@emma_blairr) January 31, 2016
@abc15sports @ArizonaCoyotes I go to every game from TUCSON...but this would be awesome still.
— NAA (@AZCoyotes29) January 31, 2016
And let's not forget how much the ability to share an arena with an NHL team would benefit the Sun Devils, who just made the jump to the NCAA Division I level this season.
@abc15sports @ArizonaCoyotes The second the Coyotes move to Tempe, I'm moving out there and I'm buying season tickets for them and ASU!!!
— Duran Samuels (@Coyotes93) January 31, 2016
