- The NHL Board of Governors discussed Houston and Austin expansion on Tuesday and did not take a vote
- Gary Bettman expects the Friedkin group to pick one of the two markets by the end of the year
- Read below for what Bettman said about Atlanta, Phoenix and his own future in the job
NHL owners spent part of Tuesday talking about a 33rd team and left without deciding anything.
Commissioner Gary Bettman said after the Board of Governors meeting in New York that all 32 clubs were briefed on the Houston and Austin exploration, with no timetable attached to a possible vote. He was asked how the room is leaning on adding a team.
“I think everybody’s taking a wait-and-see attitude to see what’s being presented and what the pros and cons are. Expansion is a multibillion-dollar transaction, which has an impact on all the other clubs in the league. A lot of i’s have to be dotted and t’s have to be crossed. And if there’s going to be expansion, three-quarters of the governors are going to have to be comfortable that this makes sense to them. And that’s not something you do overnight.”
This was the first time the full board touched the file since the league opened a six-month exploration with Dan Friedkin’s family in June. Deputy commissioner Bill Daly sat down with Friedkin’s Pursuit Sports last week and brought a full report back to the room.
Pursuit has scouted arena sites in both cities and still has to choose one. Houston is among the largest media markets in the United States, while Austin has no team in any of the four major North American men’s leagues.
Either way the bill runs about $3.5 billion between the expansion fee and a new building.
“We would expect that we’ll know by the end of the year which market they would prefer,” Bettman said. “But we still and they still have a lot of work to do.”
Take a look at the TSN panel breaking down where the expansion file sits after Tuesday:
December’s board meeting is next on the calendar, and Daly said nobody should treat it as a deadline. He expects to know a lot more by then, but added there is “no magic date by which something has to get done or not get done.”
Atlanta and the Phoenix area keep calling as well. Both men said there are still expressions of interest from ownership groups in those markets, with a feasibility study as the likely next step, though neither is as far along as Texas. Anson Carter’s group is one of three chasing the Atlanta spot.
Bettman got a question about his own exit, too. He has run the league since 1993 and turns 75 next year.
“I’m going to be 75 years old. At some point, I’ve got to stop, OK? But I love what I do. I’m energized. I have nothing to complain about in life. I love coming to work every day. I love being part of this game.”
Greg Rajan of the Houston Chronicle was the only Texas reporter inside the building:
Tuesday changed the top of the board itself, with Ted Leonsis replacing Jeremy Jacobs as chairman after 19 years:
