NEW YORK — The NHL’s expansion board remains open, but there is no clock running on the process. Commissioner Gary Bettman told the Board of Governors on Tuesday that the League is continuing its review of interest from several markets, with Texas, Atlanta and Arizona all part of the conversation.
Texas review remains in progress
The Friedkin Group, headed by CEO Dan Friedkin, has discussed bringing a second NHL franchise to Texas. Houston and Austin are the two markets being examined as the League works with the group on whether either city can support a club.
Bettman first addressed the Friedkin Group’s interest in June. The feasibility work has not been completed, and the Board of Governors is not expected to receive another formal expansion briefing until December.
- Houston and Austin remain the Texas options under review.
- Atlanta and Arizona have also produced significant interest from potential ownership groups.
- The League has received approaches from additional markets as well.
- No expansion deadline or application window has been established.
Bettman said the League is responding to unsolicited interest rather than operating under a preset timetable. He stressed that any decision will move only when it makes sense for all sides involved.
Adding a club is a multibillion-dollar undertaking, Bettman said, with consequences for every existing franchise. Before expansion could move ahead, the League would need to settle a long list of business details and win the support of at least three-quarters of the governors.
Leonsis takes over as Board chairman
The governors also unanimously selected Washington Capitals Governor Ted Leonsis as the new chairman of the Board of Governors. He replaces Boston Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs, who stepped away from the post after 19 years.
Calgary Flames Governor Murray Edwards will serve as vice-chairman, giving the executive committee a leadership pairing that Leonsis described as complementary.
Leonsis said he will bring a strategic, long-range view that includes media and growth opportunities, while Edwards’ strengths are rooted in operations and finance. He pointed to the NHL’s dramatic rise during his 28 years in the League and said the chairman, vice-chairman, executive committee, Bettman and Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly must operate as one group.
“Gary and Bill work as a team, and Murray, the executive committee and I will do the same,” Leonsis said, adding that he sees room for the League to continue growing.
Growth, communities and the Canadian voice
Leonsis said NHL teams have become major institutions in many of their home markets, carrying responsibilities beyond the rink. More fans and corporate partners can fuel further growth, he said, and maintaining that upward momentum is a central task for League leadership.
Edwards said his vice-chairman role also ensures Canada has representation at the top of the executive structure. With Leonsis representing the League’s substantial U.S. side, Edwards said it mattered that the Canadian perspective remained part of the discussion.
“Hockey matters in Canada,” Edwards said. “It is important that voice is brought into the room.”
League revenue projection
The Board was also told that NHL revenue is projected to reach $8.1 billion in local currency this season, another marker of the League’s continued business growth as it weighs its next potential expansion move.
