Kings, Coyotes to play preseason games in Australia

The NHL is headed Down Under.

Melbourne, Australia will play host to the first-ever NHL games in the southern hemisphere when the Arizona Coyotes and Los Angeles Kings meet in exhibition matchups on September 23 and 24, the league announced Tuesday.

The preseason tilts will be held at Rod Laver Arena - the multipurpose site of the Australian Open tennis tournament - and will be part of the league's annual Global Series.

"The Arizona Coyotes and Los Angeles Kings are two of our league's rising young teams and among our most innovative and adventurous franchises," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement. "We look forward to their two games at Rod Laver Arena and know this history-making visit will thrill our many avid fans in Australia and cause so many more throughout the sports-loving nation to be captivated by our great game."

The Kings are no strangers to lengthy flights, having played preseason games in China back in 2017. They've also flown to Austria and Germany for exhibition contests, and played in Germany for regular season games, along with visits to England, and Sweden.

Jordan Spence is an Australian-born Japanese-Canadian defenseman who's primarily suited up for Los Angeles' AHL affiliate, the Ontario Reign, this season. He's appeared in six games with the NHL club during this campaign after getting in 24 contests with the Kings in 2021-22. Spence was born in Manly, New South Wales before moving Osaka, Japan, as a child and then to Prince Edward Island as a teenager.

The Coyotes have played a preseason game in Latvia and two regular season tilts in Czechia.

The Nashville Predators and San Jose Sharks flew to Germany and Switzerland last October for preseason games, then opened the regular season by facing off twice in Czechia.

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