NEW YORK (AP) — Meeting for the first time since the NHL began exploring expansion to Houston or Austin, Texas in June, the league’s Board of Governors discussed the topic on Tuesday but did not make any decisions, according to Commissioner Gary Bettman.
Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly spoke to billionaire Dan Friedkin’s group last week and got a full report, and representatives from the 32 current teams were briefed on the situation with no timetable to consider a possible vote on adding a 33rd.
“I think everybody’s taking a wait-and-see attitude to see what’s being presented and what the pros and cons are,” Bettman said. “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.”
Expansion, if it happens, would involve a $3.5 billion investment between the fee paid to owners and the cost to build a new arena. Daly said Friedkin’s Pursuit Sports had looked at sites to build in Houston and Austin, with a lot left to figure out, including deciding between one of the biggest U.S. media markets and a place that does not have a team in any of the major four North American men’s professional sports leagues.
“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.”
The next board meeting is scheduled for December. The term sheet between the NHL and Friedkin’s family is for a six-month exploration, but that does not guarantee it will be wrapped up by the end of the year.
“I don’t think we’re putting time limits on things,” Daly said. “Originally we contemplated at least knowing where we are in December. I expect we will certainly know a lot more than we do now, come December, but I don’t think there’s any magic date by which something has to get done or not get done.”
Daly said earlier this month in Las Vegas that part of this meeting was getting direction from the board. If the league knows how members are leaning, officials are not saying.
“I think there are probably some owners who think expansion is the greatest thing ever, and I think there are some people who say, ‘Why do we need to expand?’” Bettman said. “I can’t tell you the numbers.”
Bettman and Daly said there also continue to be expressions of interest from ownership options in Atlanta and the Phoenix area. A feasibility study could be the next step, but those processes are not as far along as Texas.
“There’s always markets that are approaching the NHL, looking for expansion opportunities,” Calgary Flames owner Murray Edwards said after he was voted vice chairman and Washington’s Ted Leonsis chairman of the board. “We talk about it, but there’s no sort of fast process or slow process. We’re just looking at options.”
NHL board gets an artificial intelligence update
As sports leagues and teams look to artificial intelligence and how it can benefit them, consultant Shelly Palmer of the Palmer Group made a presentation to the board.
“In addition to how we operate at the business level, we think it’s very important to make sure that we and the clubs understand how to use AI to connect with our fans even better, to create an even more robust and unique experience,” Bettman said. “That involves lots of different things, including how we gather data and how we interact with our fans.”
Bettman addresses his future
After saying at the Stanley Cup Final on his 74th birthday that his retirement was not imminent and nothing had been determined on a succession plan, Bettman reiterated that he was not stepping down any time soon from the job he has held since 1993.
“I’m going to be 75 years old,” Bettman said. “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.”
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