After Las Vegas arrived as an NHL city in 2017, could Seattle be next?
The NHL board of governors has agreed to allow Seattle to begin its preliminary motions to gauge if it is a viable location -- starting with an application for expansion and then a season-ticket drive, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman told reporters in Florida. The expansion fee will be $650 million. Las Vegas' cost $500 million.
Seattle could become an option for 2020-21, though there are no guarantees the league expands there, Bettman said at the board of governors meeting.
The Seattle city council on Monday approved a $600 million renovation of KeyArena, the potential site for the NHL team. It would be the first NHL team in Washington.
Las Vegas had conducted a season-ticket drive in its bid to land an NHL team, and the league eventually approved the application. The Vegas Golden Knights began play this season.
The NHL Board of Governors gathered today in Florida for their final meetings of the League's Centennial year. #NHL100 pic.twitter.com/wG687L1UPu
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) December 7, 2017
Currently, there are 16 teams in the Eastern Conference and 15 teams in the West.
In other NHL franchise news on Thursday, Dallas-based entrepreneur Tom Dundon has signed an agreement to purchase a majority stake in the Carolina Hurricanes.
When the sale is finalized and the league has approved the deal, Dundon would take control of all team operations. The Hurricanes would remain in Raleigh, N.C.
Peter Karmanos Jr. would continue to hold an equity stake in the team. He had purchased the then-Hartford Whalers in 1994 and moved them to North Carolina in 1997. The Hurricanes won the Stanley Cup in 2006.
