PHOENIX (AP) — The Mammoth have generated a buzz in Utah, igniting a new fan base with a trip to the playoffs in their second season.
The previous fan base back in the desert still feels a connection with the franchise once known as the Arizona Coyotes and the players who set the foundation for its current success.
But there's also a strange detachment from seeing the team they once rooted for playing in a city more than 600 miles away under a different name.
“I'm a hockey fan and I've been cheering for them; most of those guys, that team, that organization were here,” Maricopa County Supervisor Tom Galvin said on Friday. "But in many ways, I feel disconnected from them. They're playing in Utah, they have Utah fans, they play in a Utah arena.”
Galvin is trying to bring NHL hockey back to the Phoenix area.
Not long after the Coyotes left for Utah in 2024, he helped create an advisory committee that includes former Olympian Lyndsey Fry and Andrea Doan.
Fry, who grew up in the Phoenix area, has been a stalwart in Arizona youth hockey through various programs and spearheads community relations for the committee.
Doan has strong ties to hockey; her husband, Shane, was the longtime captain of the Coyotes and her son, Josh, is a current NHL player who started his career with the Coyotes. She works with Galvin on finding a potential owner for a potential NHL expansion team and possible sites for a new arena.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman had repeatedly said the league would like to have a franchise in Arizona again — it owns the Coyotes name — but the right ownership and arena location have to be in place.
“We have to find a good and appropriate location for an arena — that has been an issue bedeviling the Coyotes for the better part of 25 years — and we need a billionaire to put up money to buy the team,” said Galvin, who works on the advisory committee on his own time. “So my joke is, if you know a billionaire, please let me know because there's not that many around and that's what it takes in professional sports these days.”
The Coyotes struggled during their 28-year run in Arizona, going through multiple owners and three different arenas.
The franchise had an arena plan for Tempe, but voters shot it down. Another proposal for an arena in Scottsdale fell through when previous owner Alex Meruelo couldn't secure a land-rights deal, leading to the franchise's move to Utah.
Coyotes fans have tried to keep a connection to the new version of the team, but it's not quite the same from long distance.
“I've got to tell you, my enthusiasm for them really dropped off,” Galvin said. “But I do love watching hockey and enjoy watching great other teams.”
Galvin is doing his best to bring it back to Arizona in person.
AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Utah Mammoth left wing Brandon Tanev (13) attempts to shoot against the Vegas Golden Knights during the first period of Game 5 of a first-round NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Utah Mammoth left wing Michael Carcone (53) celebrates after scoring against the Vegas Golden Knights during the third period of Game 5 of a first-round NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Cristian Torres waited his whole life to ride in the Kentucky Derby. In line to get his first chance on Saturday, it looked like the rising-star jockey would have to wait at least another year when the horse he was supposed to be on was ruled out.
Then his phone rang on Friday morning with a number from California he did not have saved. It was trainer Doug O'Neill calling to ask if he wanted to take the mount on Robusta, who got into the field when Kenny McPeek's Right to Party was scratched by track veterinarians.
“I was shocked,” Torres told The Associated Press after riding in the fifth race at Churchill Downs later in the day. “I didn’t respond for a few seconds because I couldn’t believe it. It’s been a roller coaster of emotions but just very happy and very grateful.”
Torres, a native of Puerto Rico who began riding in 2019, was set to be aboard Silent Tactic in the 152nd running of the Derby. Trainer Mark Casse and owner John Oxley made the call Wednesday to scratch Silent Tactic because of a foot injury and plan for the Preakness on May 16.
Casse said it was an easy decision in the best interests of the horse but that he felt badly for Torres.
The second chance materialized with Robusta getting in off the also-eligible list. O’Neill tapped Torres for the mount because Emisael Jaramillo was already booked to ride at Santa Anita Park in California on Saturday.
“It’s been crazy,” Torres said. “But I’m very happy to be here, and I’m grateful for Doug. He called me and gave me the chance to ride Robusta. Man, just grateful. Grateful with every opportunity that comes and very happy and very excited.”
Torres is going into the biggest race of his career with limited knowledge of Robusta, who was second in the San Felipe Stakes on March 7 and seventh in the Santa Anita Derby on April 4.
“I’ve watched his replays, his races when he ran in California, but I’m not very close to the horse so I’m just going to watch the replays and see and talk with Doug and see what we can do,” Torres said.
Robusta was the second-to-last horse eligible for the opening leg of the Triple Crown. Dallas Stewart's Corona de Oro would draw in if there are any additional scratches to the current field of 20 horses.
In addition to Right to Party and Silent Tactic, Brad Cox scratched Fulleffort after an X-ray revealed a chip and fluid in the colt's left hind ankle.
Right to Party was a vet scratch, not a choice made by McPeek and owner Chester Broman Sr.
“The safety and well-being of the racehorses training and competing in Kentucky are the center of everything we do,” the Kentucky Horse Racing and Gaming Commission said in a statement.
“(The commission) closely monitors data pertaining to scratches, including those based on the advice of our regulatory veterinarians,” the organization said. "It is one of the most difficult parts of the job, as we share the goal of each horse’s connections for the horse to compete safely. ... We all want what is best for the horse.”
This story has been corrected to show that Corona de Oro is also eligible if there is another scratch.
AP horse racing: https://apnews.com/hub/horse-racing
Kentucky Derby entrant Right To Party works out at Churchill Downs Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Kentucky Derby alternate Robusta works out at Churchill Downs Wednesday, April 29, 2026, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Kentucky Derby alternate Robusta works out at Churchill Downs Thursday, April 30, 2026, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
