Not long after he and partner Wayne Gretzky took ownership of the team, Ellman began talking about how easily he could find a home elsewhere in the Valley for the ice hockey arena. The West Valley, recently spurned in the race for the Arizona Cardinals stadium, is eager to have a signature project that will put them on the map. Ellman has met with West Valley officials, as well as others throughout the Valley, about putting the arena in a community other than Scottsdale.

But Scottsdale's attitude toward Ellman has taken on an air of indifference. If Ellman fails to produce substantial teams for his redevelopment plans for the former Los Arcos Mall site by March 5, then he can go ahead and locate the team elsewhere, city officials have said. March 5 is when the Los Arcos Stadium District, which allows Ellman access to the millions in public funds, is set to expire.

Scottsdale officials feel that Ellman should have closed on the team long ago and that details of the $575-million redevelopment project should have been more than sketched out. As bleak as the relationship with the city seems, representatives for Ellman seem confident that an agreement suitable to both sides can be reached by the deadline; and if that date nears and progress is being made then the city will once again extend the completion date for the stadium district.