NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman addressed questions regarding the league’s expansion plans. While Bettman shot down talk of the NHL expanding at this time, he stated that the league is always “listening” to potential expansion bids.
During the second intermission of the Sportsnet broadcast on Wednesday night of the Ottawa Senators-Buffalo Sabres matchup, Elliotte Friedman spoke to Bettman on the sidelines of the NHL Board of Governors meetings.
In the conversation, Friedman asked Bettman point-blank about the league’s expansion plans. The longtime NHL Commissioner stated:
“It wasn’t discussed, period.”
Friedman pressed on the point, prompting Bettman to add:
“We’re not on an expansion mode. People have heard me say, you’ve heard me say, if somebody knocks on our door, and is checking the boxes of ownership market, arena, and making the league stronger, we’ll listen. But we’re not pushing.”
Bettman added that there are expressions of interest, but expansion is not something on the league’s radar at the moment.
Check out the conversation here.
The timing of the comments is interesting, especially when considering that rumors have abounded regarding a return to Atlanta, among other potentially big markets like Houston. The push for hockey to return to Quebec City remains ongoing, with other markets like Kansas City and Cleveland potentially getting a look.
NHL expansion could cause more harm than good at this point
NHL expansion could throw the league into a complex situation. Depending on which cities get franchises, the NHL would need to realign its current divisional setup.
For instance, teams in Houston and Atlanta could force the league to redraw its divisional maps. Adding Atlanta to the Atlantic Division would upset its balance. That could mean moving a team like Detroit or Toronto to the Central, where they have played before.
Similarly, adding a club like Houston, which could play in the Central Division, may prompt the NHL to move another team like Utah to the Pacific Division.
Then, there would be the issue of postseason seedings. Currently, 50% of the teams make the postseason. According to most opinions, that seems like a good balance. Every NHL club has a 50/50 shot at making the playoffs.
But expanding to 34 or 36 teams would mean either reducing the probability of making the playoffs or increasing the chances of making it. The league has resisted including a play-in round like the NBA does.
Perhaps a wildcard round like MLB plays could be an alternative, but again, the league has balked at any motions to alter its current 16-team playoff format. At best, the seeding process may change, but even that seems unlikely.
It remains to be seen if the NHL is willing to move on to expansion. Chatter regarding the matter last season posited that the league could revisit expansion in the 2030s. So, it might be another decade before expansion becomes a significant topic for the NHL.