Four days after the pause, Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo partnered with Gila River Arena to support part-time and hourly employees of the team and the arena who were scheduled to work the remaining eight regular-season home games. That led to president and CEO Ahron Cohen and general manager John Chayka to each donate 20 percent of their respective salaries over the coming months to aid the Arizona Coronavirus Relief Fund and other non-profit organizations working to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the state.

The fund was established by Arizona Governor Doug Ducey on March 24 as part of the Arizona Together initiative, which is working with existing organizations to give what is needed to those affected by the outbreak. As of April 8, it raised $6,548,645.16.

"Look, it's a time of need," Chayka said. "It's going to be a tough few weeks here and it's going to be tough for the frontline workers that are going to have to deal with this thing on a daily basis and kind of go into the eye of the storm. If there's anything that we could do, whether it's helping with some of the technology required to try to fight this virus or all the way down to the students that are impacted by this, we wanted to find a way that we could make an impact. We felt like we were fortunate enough to be in a position to make this type of a commitment, and we were able to do so."

For Cohen, like millions worldwide, the pandemic has hit home. His mother is based in Phoenix, where a large retirement population especially vulnerable to COVID-19 lives in fear. Hospitals are flooded. Nonprofits were hurting with financial donations, the giving of canned goods declining because people don't want to be out in public and are hesitant to empty their cabinets. St. Mary's Food Bank in Phoenix, part of the Feeding America nationwide network, had a 70 percent drop in volunteers, a strain felt by food banks and those struggling with getting access to food even under normal conditions.

Tweet from @ArizonaCoyotes: Recently @StMarysFoodBank has seen a 70% drop in volunteers. @DougDucey, GM Chayka and @ahronCo21 wanted to fix that. Together, we will get through this. pic.twitter.com/pz6TjjkLp4

"This is a war, not a battle, and it's going to take a long time and there's going to be a lot of challenges that we're going to continue to face with all this," Cohen said.

DeAndre Hopkins is new to the Arizona sports scene, the four-time NFL Pro Bowl wide receiver for the Houston Texas traded to the Arizona Cardinals on March 20. He made a $150,000 donation to the Arizona Coronavirus Relief Fund on top of the Cardinals' initial $1 million contribution.

AthletesRelief.org has raised $157,318 through April 8, money generated by fans bidding on signed memorabilia from Coyotes goalie Darcy Kuemper, Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker, Arizona State football coach Herm Edwards and many others. Fiesta Bowl Charities gave $1 million to food services and nonprofits including Boys and Girls Clubs of the Valley, Casa Grande, Flagstaff, Prescott and Tucson, Child Crisis Arizona and YMCA Valley of the Sun. The Coyotes collaborated with the Cardinals, Arizona Diamondbacks, Suns and Phoenix Mercury on "All of us. All together," a video thanking area medical professionals and grocery store workers going above and beyond. Cohen recently met a man who runs a company that does tours of the Grand Canyon, and with the business at a standstill he and his employees are volunteering their time to make masks.

Tweet from @ArizonaCoyotes: All of us.All together.#AllAZ pic.twitter.com/umEE0XGuma

"Going through this crisis, I think it really shines light on people that are true heroes," Chayka said. "You really understand how important they are to your life and to society when things get tough. All our guys are really appreciative of it. That's the main part of this donation by Ahron and I. It's on behalf of our entire organization, staff and players included, that we're making a commitment to Arizona."

Chayka, Cohen, members of the National Guard and other Valley leaders assisted Governor Ducey packaging emergency food kits at St. Mary's on March 20. Governor Ducey and Cohen were on the front lines packing food. Chayka spent most of his day moving boxes and equated himself to a hockey player grinding it on the fourth line.

"I made it fun, it was a good workout," Chayka said. "There's a lot of need out there for people in need and if we can raise awareness and give back in any way we can, I'm happy to do so. I was more of a support role there and I was happy to do it. Those guys were scoring the goals and I was in the back, like [Coyotes defenseman] Niklas Hjalmarsson blocking the shot and taking the hits to make the plays. I did it with a smile on my face."

Giving back is second nature to Cohen, a board member for the Arizona Coyotes Foundation who's involved in the greater Phoenix business and philanthropic communities. Shortly after Cohen was promoted to president and CEO, he and Chayka met with Jerry Colangelo, a retired executive who formerly owned the Suns, Mercury and Diamondbacks, and was instrumental in the relocation of the original Winnipeg Jets to the Valley of the Sun in 1996. Known as the godfather of Arizona sports, Colangelo carries significant clout, so Cohen listened, especially when he said that the community owes us nothing and it's up to us to go out and earn its respect.

The words resonated and forever altered Cohen's whole philosophy of leading a sports team.

"The people of this community are the true owners," Cohen said. "They have ownership over the Arizona Coyotes. If we're not going out and we're not serving them, if we're not making this community a better place, then we're really not achieving what we're trying to do as an organization."

The void left by the absence of sports is being filled by camaraderie and teamwork.

"I know that there's going to be a lot of tough times ahead, but I think we're all going to look back and be very proud of how Arizona has responded to this and stepped up," Cohen said. "I know none of us have gone through anything like this before. I'm just so proud of how people are rallying together and supporting each other and understanding that collectively, with us helping each other, we're going to make it through this."