It would be the first time the league has expanded since 2008 when the . While Quebec is the perfect fit for an NHL team, the NHL is more likely to put a team there via relocation as opposed to expansion. Yes, expansion is going to be Bettman's Valentine card to his owners after the 119-day unpleasantness of the lockout, says former NHL Players Association executive director Paul Kelly, who was . In fact, Canada is the country with the most football players in the NFL with 107. The outcome has been mostly weird and unremarkable. Meanwhile, Las Vegas has never had an NBA team, but the interest and success of the NHL's Las Vegas Golden Knights make Sin City an obvious choice. In 1972, the New York Islanders and Atlanta Flames (Calgary Flames as of 1980) joined the NHL . The Boston . Since the first round of expansion in 1967, the League has grown from the Original Six to 31 teams. Since 2016, the city has been the biggest without a full set of sporting teams. If there is a team in Toronto, there shouldn't be any . With the new Las Vegas team entering the league at the start of the next season, I look at 5 cities where an NHL team could land in the future to even the nu. Report this user for behavior that violates our Community Guidelines. . Richmond, Va. Six cities - St. Paul, Atlanta, Houston, Oklahoma City, Nashville and Columbus, Ohio - are awaiting the outcome of an NHL expansion meeting today in New York. Seattle Kraken are the latest expansion side in the NHL, playing for the first time in 2021; . NHL.com @NHLdotcom. Hamilton would also create great . (AP Photo) NHL-ready arena: Yes - Moda Center (18,280 hockey capacity) One thing needs to be made very clear if it isn't already - as far as Pacific Northwest markets are involved in NHL expansion, Portland is the clear Plan B for the NHL, and it's not even close. Montreal. NHL expansion occurred for the 13th time since the original six this offseason. The NHL is considering expanding by as many as four teams, according to a pair of reports, with Toronto and Quebec City in the mix to land new franchises. September 11, 2021 Bryan Murphy NBA 2. In 1974, the city was named one of five finalists for an expansion . Seattle has been considered a top-end option for the NHL for the last several years, but ownership groups decided against the massive expansion price tag, instead opting to wait it out and hope they can snatch up a team through relocation. The aggressive expansion and relocation experiment conducted by the NHL some 20 years saw the cold-based sport seek some southern, sunny comfort. Quebec City, CAN. Ice hockey is not that popular in NA. Facebook; Twitter . Report this User. During the expansion era of the NHL, the Kansas City Scouts joined in 1974, but with weak attendance numbers and a struggling sports market at the time, the Scouts moved to Denver in 1976, where . Those cities submitted a $10 million down payment, of which $2 million was nonrefundable. Hockey is not a regional sport. The 6,000-seat Ronald V. Joyce Stadium is primarily a football stadium with officials at McMaster University suggesting it may be the best soccer venue in the . Keeping those rules is simple enough, though the NHL modified its expansion draft rules to help their most recent expansion team, the Vegas Golden Knights, be competitive right away, and it was a . teams as it stands but Hamilton would be a great option as the second largest population center of all Canadian cities without an NHL team. Portland, Oregon. More than Canada's sport. Also, the city lacks a solid hockey history for them to go back in time and use a defunct or minor team's name. In what was probably the most predictable expansion decision ever, the NFL righted that ugly incident by awarding Cleveland a brand new franchise only three years later. Additional professional teams- Houston Astros and Houston Rockets. As recently seen with the ESPN deal, the NHL prioritizes their TV revenue and would find placing a team in a big US market more beneficial. . Then, in a move that shocked many and broke the hearts of Browns fans everywhere, they picked up and moved to Baltimore. Austin is an emerging city that should have a strong fanbase if a professional sports franchise hits the area . The Rams' and Chargers' moves to Los Angeles serve as reminders of the stability that Major League Baseball has . Case in point, the Vegas Golden Knights. These 10 cities should be candidates for NHL expansion in the future. But the one of the biggest events that opened the door for Southern expansion was the trade of Wayne Gretzky to the Los Angeles Kings. NFL reigns supreme. The six new teams were the Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota North . With a population of over 2.2 million and being the fourth most populated city in the United States, Houston is the most populous city without an NHL team. The team left Quebec City in 1995 to move out west to Denver. All the way back in 2018, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred brought up how expanding the MLB to 32 teams would be "great for our sport". People tend to relate to the sport they have some experience playing currently or in the past. City of Winnipeg/Province of Manitoba. The NHL should not have expanded the league into Southern cities and should keep NHL teams farther North. Night after night, Wild fans show why NHL hockey belongs in Minnesota. Other Sports Topics: Bombers, Moose, etc. I lumped all of these cities together because there shouldn't be more than 1 or 2 Canada teams. Houston, Texas. Quebec City, Quebec - the Nordiques left town in the mid-nineties only to see the Colorado Avalanche go on to Stanley Cup glory. Combine it with Austin, and you have 1.71 million TV households, which is more than Miami . 1992: Milwaukee After taking the 1980s off, the NHL's expansion machine roared back to life in the early 90s, with its sights set on adding teams in time for the 1992-93 season. Despite constant criticism, the NHL has continued expansion efforts into southern markets. The aggressive expansion and relocation experiment conducted by the NHL some 20 years saw the cold-based sport seek some southern, sunny comfort. The Real NHL Expansion Markets Are in Europe. 10 Possible NBA Expansion Cities Jason Miller via Getty Images. Business of Hockey. In their expansion season, they captured the imagination of sports fans everywhere by going to the . Hockey is more than, say, Minnesota's sport. Hartford. Anyway, Toronto has at least 5 million in their population, Montreal has 3.5 million, Vancouver has 2 million, and even Winnipeg & Quebec City has at least 700k people. But when those talks soured, the Pettits turned . Like plenty of other former NHL teams that left, they are always brought back up with people wanting them to return. Advertisement. During the last wave of NHL expansion, that fee was a mere $80 million in comparison. Reply; NHL Expansion to 4 Cities in the works. With Seattle coming to the NHL, ho. The 1967 National Hockey League (NHL) expansion added six new franchises for the 1967-68 season, doubling the size of the league to 12 teams.It was the largest expansion undertaken at one time by an established major sports league and the first change in the composition of the NHL since 1942, ending the era of the Original Six.. Manitoba Moose. (AP Photo) NHL-ready arena: Yes - Moda Center (18,280 hockey capacity) One thing needs to be made very clear if it isn't already - as far as Pacific Northwest markets are involved in NHL expansion, Portland is the clear Plan B for the NHL, and it's not even close. The outcome has been mostly weird and unremarkable. The Rangers and Astros might not be happy about this, but Texas is a very unique state that could handle a third baseball franchise. A new $400 million arena is soon to begin construction in Quebec City and is to be completed by 2015. Quebec City, Quebec. So many creative names will pop up on the Internet if the expansion becomes official. Seattle's entry into the National Hockey League on Tuesday was the end of a process that was four years in the making. For any professional sports league, growth is crucial. The main issue with expanding to Toronto is its proximity to Buffalo. At this point Seattle seems like the most likely city to receive an expansion franchise. 4. 22, 2014 3 stars of the week: Artemi Panarin, Marcus Johansson, Cam Talbot. NFL Expansion: Cities That Should Have an NFL Team Map of possible NFL expansion cities. Top 4 cities for NHL expansion Quebec City, Toronto and Seattle all make sense. Houston is always the city that is referenced for NHL teams that are considering relocation, most notably whenever rumors surface about the Coyotes moving, which the team has denied recently. St. Louis. Portland, Oregon. Jets Talk. 5y. The first is the $23-million Ron Joyce Stadium, and the second is the $30-million David Braley Athletic Centre.. The WNBA hopes to identify one or two expansion cities later this year, commissioner Cathy Engelbert told The Athletic. 1942: With the demise of the Brooklyn Americans, the NHL's Original Six era begins. With the new Las Vegas team entering the league at the start of the next season, I look at 5 cities where an NHL team could land in the future to even the nu. Eight cities that make sense for MLB expansion. L.A. has enough people to support a thousand sports teams. 5y. In 1966, the National Hockey League consisted of six teams. The following year, the league doubled to 12. Salt Lake City, Utah Shutterstock. With the National Hockey League now at 32 teams, the NHL is most likely done expanding. The League's 32nd franchise, which will . The city has become a destination for teams across the various major sports leagues. . Quebec City. Jets 1972-1996. It would cost $10 million, at least, to build a 15,000-seat arena . As a . The Nordiques had an intense rivalry with the Montreal Canadiens in the 80s. Two new sports venues opened up in Hamilton, Ontario in 2007-08, both of which are on the McMaster University grounds. Portland's Moda Center. SEA ISLAND, Ga. -- The National Hockey League announced today that it has granted an expansion franchise to Seattle. And in addition to . Quebec City has been gunning for a franchise ever since the Nordiques left town for Denver in 1996. There is also the potential for a natural rivalry with Kansas City . MTS Centre . It makes sense for realignment (whenever that gets settled) and it . He also mentioned that Las Vegas was a great pro . A new $400 million arena is soon to begin construction in Quebec City and is to be completed by 2015. . Polls. RELATED: . Videos. The $2.5 billion expansion fees for each team would be spread out evenly to the other 30 teams. Houston is always the city that is referenced for NHL teams that are considering relocation, most notably whenever rumors surface about the Coyotes moving, which the team has denied recently. During the 2022 offseason, the NBA Board of Owners voted to bring in two expansion teams for the 2023-24 NBA season. Cities That Should Have an NHL Team. It would later be decided that the expansion teams would be the Seattle Supersonics (making their return after moving to Oklahoma City in 2008) and the Las Vegas Blackjacks. 2. The NHL saw this huge increase in population and in the late 90's put two new teams into both California and Florida.