Glendale's chief negotiator said at least one deal from potential Phoenix Coyotes owners should go public by the end of this month.

That man, City Manager Ed Beasley, said faith has helped him weather the years-long ownership saga.

But he was confident on Tuesday. "We've always prevailed," he said. "We're going to get this done, and I feel it will be soon."

The team and many of its fans have shown a similar perseverance. The Coyotes recently snagged their first Pacific Division title and on Thursday will face the Chicago Blackhawks in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

But the upheaval has grown old and even the most devoted fans want a decision: Will their team stay at Glendale's Jobing.com Arena?

Even Glendale's long-supportive mayor's faith is cracking as she stares down as much as a $30 million deficit in the city's budget for next year.

Even if the framework of a deal is released this month, as Beasley says, finalizing a deal takes longer and in the past has proved elusive.

NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly on Tuesday wouldn't commit to a closing date on a sale. He said an NHL owners vote would be the final step.

Glendale's role is to negotiate a lease at the city-owned arena, while the NHL approves the actual sale.

The Coyotes' ownership has hung in limbo since 2009, when the National Hockey League bought the team at a bankruptcy auction. For three straight years, the team has battled in the playoffs and potential owners have come and gone.

Beasley's timeline offers a glimmer of hope, but the council in past years has approved preliminary agreements with at least three groups. Financing problems crippled two of the deals. Another bidder abandoned his deal.

The latest groups to talk with Glendale include former San Jose Sharks Chief Executive Officer Greg Jamison and a second mystery buyer, whom Beasley and the NHL will not identify.

Mayor Elaine Scruggs, who has for years preached the benefits of keeping the Coyotes in Glendale, said Jamison's deal is the best the city has seen in its three-year search.

But the group has struggled in the past to line up financing, she said.

If the issues remain, a lack of funds could again trip up a deal.

Tight finances are impacting Glendale, too. The city can't afford to buy more time with the Coyotes.

The city has twice pledged $25 million to the NHL to keep the Coyotes in Glendale, the second bill coming due as soon as next month.

The payouts have strained the city. Leaders now weigh staff furloughs, service cuts and a sales-tax hike amid a steep deficit in the upcoming year's budgets.

Budget-making is all the harder without a resolution. City Council members say they must get answers by the end of this month to allow staff members enough time to put together the budget for the fiscal year starting July 1.

Tensions peaked last week when Scruggs said the NHL misled the city nearly a year ago about how close they were to a deal. She asked other council members to sign a letter requesting that the league allow a payment plan for this season's bill. Others at the dais were silent.

Later, some said they remained optimistic.

"Just as we elected officials have had to exhibit a great deal of patience about the Coyotes situation, I would ask our residents to hang with us a while longer because I do believe the end is in sight," Councilwoman Joyce Clark said.

The NHL has also publicly kept the faith.

"Our ultimate goal is to see ownership of the Coyotes transferred to a private buyer in Glendale who is intent on bringing success and stability to the franchise on a long-term basis," Daly recently said.

He said all of the league's efforts are focused on keeping the team in Glendale.

That's despite reported interest from cities thousands of miles away. Quebec City recently announced it would build a new hockey arena by 2015. The city has also agreed to cover $6.8million in renovations to its current arena should a team arrive before then, a city spokesman said.

Seattle has also drawn attention with its plans to build an arena for professional basketball and perhaps a hockey team.

As Canadian fans dream of adding another team, Coyotes fans have rallied behind a winning one.

Despite struggles to fill the arena, Coyotes President Mike Nealy said the team has sold more tickets this year than any year since 1999, when the team played in downtown Phoenix. He said that's because the team no longer doles out as many freebies.

About 82 percent of season-ticket holders renewed for next season despite the uncertainty, he said.

Apache Junction resident Deryl Kloster drives about 100 miles round trip for each home game. He has encouraged others to come to games, and he has stood before the Glendale City Council to support the team.

Watching past deals crumble is disappointing. "But you hang in there," Kloster said. "You do what you can for the love of hockey."