GLENDALE, Ariz. — The Arizona Coyotes and the city of Glendale agreed to amend an existing lease agreement Thursday, though the deal may only be a temporary fix in the team’s ongoing saga to remain in the desert.

The amended deal, which will be voted on by the Glendale City Council on Friday, calls for the original 15-year, $225 million agreement to be cut to two years, expiring on June 30, 2017.

It also would trim the management fee the city pays annually to the Coyotes from $15 million to $6.5 million and shift all hockey-related revenue to the team instead of Glendale, which would generate approximately $6 million for the Coyotes. A five-year out clause if the team lost more than $50 million that was part of the original agreement also has been removed.

“This decision will bring much-needed certainty to our fans and sponsors about our near-term future and an end to the uncertainty brought about through this legal action,” Coyotes co-owner and CEO Anthony LeBlanc said in a statement.

“We know that hockey works in the Valley and we are committed to Arizona for the long term.”

If passed, the amended agreement will keep the Coyotes in Gila River Arena for the next two seasons, but will likely further relocation speculation that has swirled around the team for the past six years. It could also open the door for the Coyotes to negotiate for a new arena in downtown Phoenix.

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MAPLE LEAFS: Toronto hired Lou Lamoriello as general manager, bringing in an experienced NHL executive to try to turn around the franchise.

Team president Brendan Shanahan said he wanted NHL experience. He got almost three decades of it in Lamoriello, who resigned as the New Jersey Devils’ president to take the job with a team that is undergoing an overhaul after missing the playoffs for the second straight season. Toronto also has a new coach in Mike Babcock and just dealt star winger Phil Kessel to Pittsburgh.

New Jersey won three Stanley Cups during Lamoriello’s stay and reached the final in 2012. But the Devils have missed the playoffs the last three seasons and the 72-year-old Lamoriello stepped down as general manager this summer after 27 seasons when the team hired Ray Shero.

The Maple Leafs fired General Manager Dave Nonis after missing the playoffs again.


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