We’re less than a month away from the start of the National Hockey League’s 2026-27 season. This will be the league’s sixth season with 32 teams after the arrival of the expansion Seattle Kraken back in 2021.
32 teams feels like the right amount for the league in terms of competitive balance and putting out a product that isn’t watered down. Now, I’m all for expansion in professional sports and giving cities an opportunity to have a team, but there’s a fine line between that and not diluting your product.
With that being said, the National Hockey League, who had been pretty mum on future expansion in recent years, appears to be set to add another club or two to the fold before the end of the decade.
Expansion on the Horizon For the National Hockey League
Earlier this month, National Hockey League Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly was in attendance at the European Media Tour, where he was asked for an update on expansion. In late June, the league had revealed they were exploring expansion opportunities in the state of Texas and were looking to see if either Houston or Austin would be viable spots for their 33rd franchise.
Daly have a significant update when speaking to reporters, saying that the league is hoping to have an agreement in place by December on either Houston or Austin. If that happens, Daly added that the league expects the new franchise to be able to begin play in the 2029-30 season.
“We have agreed on the framework of a transaction, and we’re all working to get toward that. We hope to have definitive agreements in place that would commit the franchise as early as December this year. And we expect that they’ll be able to begin play as early as the 2029-30 season, closing the transaction early 2029.” Daly said according to David Alter of The Hockey News.
The expansion fee for a new franchise is expected to be upwards of $2 billion USD, but the NHL has already found a potential owner for their 33rd club – Dan Friedkin, the CEO of The Friedkin Group. Friedkin reached an agreement with the league back in June worth $3.5 billion USD that includes an expansion fee, along with the cost of building a new arena suitable for a National Hockey League team.
Houston is currently the front-runner for the new franchise, with Austin, Texas being viewed as an alternate, should complications arise with the former. For those unfamiliar, Houston is a major sports city. The city is home to the MLB’s Houston Astros, NFL’s Houston Texans, MLS’ Houston Dynamo and NBA’s Houston Rockets.
Adding a National Hockey League team to the city makes perfect sense and they’ve been in the mix for a franchise for a while, including two years ago, before Arizona left for Salt Lake City, Utah.
The city of Houston is no stranger to the game of hockey. While they’ve never had an NHL franchise before, the city was home to the Houston Aeros of the World Hockey Association from 1972 to 1978. Among the notable players that suited up for the Aeros was Mr. Hockey – Gordie Howe. Howe spent four seasons in Houston, helping the Aeros win back-to-back Avco Cups in 1974 and 1975.
With the league likely Houston-bound in three years time, it wouldn’t shock me if they opted to go with a space theme for the team’s name and logo, given the key role the city has played in outer space and space exploration for decades.
Expansion Beyond Houston?
Expansion likely doesn’t stop there in Houston, as a 34th franchise probably will be added, too. The NHL hasn’t been big on having an uneven number of teams in one conference or division than the other. When the league announced they were expanding to Las Vegas, Nevada, they were hoping to get to 32 then, but that never materialized. It wasn’t until 2021 that they were able to get back to an even amount, with the 32nd franchise landing in Seattle, Washington.
At this point, it seem like Atlanta has the inside track at becoming the league’s 34th franchise. There’s no timeline for team number 34, but if Houston comes in for the 2029-30 season, the next one won’t be too far off, potentially the 2030-31 campaign.
Atlanta took major step last week in getting a new arena suitable for a National Hockey League franchise. At a city council meeting in Alpharetta, which is located an hour northeast of Atlanta, voted 4-3 to allow for the redevelopment of a local mall. This vote clears the way for mixed-use development including a 20,000 seat arena that could be the future home of an NHL franchise.
I know what you’re thinking – Atlanta again? Yeah, Atlanta again and to be completely honest, I’m all for a return to the state of Georgia. There are currently two groups in Georgia looking to bring an NHL franchise to the state, the aforementioned Alpharetta group and then one in Forsyth County.
Atlanta has been home to two National Hockey League teams in the past. From 1972 to 1980, the Atlanta Flames called the city home before relocating to Calgary, Alberta, where they kept the same moniker. Then in 1999, the league expanded to Atlanta again, with the franchise being called the “Thrashers”. The Thrashers played from 1999 to 2011 before relocating to Winnipeg, Manitoba to become the Jets.
The Flames and Thrashers’ franchises both had their issues and it came down to ownership. In the 1970s, the Flames’ ownership group faced severe financial strain, leading to the club eventually relocating north to Calgary. The same can be said about the Thrashers, with internal issues with ownership – including lawsuits, ownership focusing on and prioritizing the NBA franchise and significant financial loss playing roles in the relocation to Winnipeg.
I firmly believe another franchise could work in Atlanta, as long as they have the right ownership group in place with a focus on icing a competitive hockey team every season. Atlanta is the seventh-ranked US television market and second-highest without an NHL franchise, with Houston being the other.
Phoenix, Arizona and Kansas City, Missouri are also potential expansion destinations for the league in the years to come, along with Indianapolis, Indiana and New Orleans, Louisiana, both of whom reportedly expressed their interest to the league last year.
Unfortunately for fans north of the border, expansion into Canada is unlikely anytime soon. The Canadian dollar is a big reason for that. Quebec City, if expansion were to ever happen in Canada in the future, would be the only logical destination. The league already has small market teams in Canada in Ottawa and Winnipeg and adding another wouldn’t great for the league from a financial standpoint.