NHL expansion was a hot topic going into Tuesday’s Board of Governor meetings. Representitives from both Quebec and Las Vegas made presentations to the board’s executive committee. Commissioner Gary Bettman announced that both presentations lasted about an hour long each, but he has still made it clear that there is still no decision likely to come in the near future regarding NHL expansion.



NHL.com said the following, “Commissioner Bettman said expansion requires a three-quarters affirmative vote from the Board of Governors, but the members of the executive committee would first have to make a recommendation to the group.”

“The process will lead us in many directions, raise lots of questions that have to be answered, and at the end of the process, whenever that is, the Board will be in a position to consider, to deliberate and to make a judgment,” Commissioner Bettman said.”

NHL.com also said, “NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said the executive committee is not scheduled to meet again, but he added that is something the League will contemplate in the next couple of days so the group can go through the process of disseminating the information it received Tuesday. The Board of Governors meets again Dec. 7-8 in Pebble Beach, Calif.”

Even if the league approves one or both teams for NHL expansion, they won’t be available to play until at least the 2017-2018 season, but could be later.

The NHL has increased the bid payment from $80 million in 2000 to $500 million this time around. The Quebec investor group insisted that the approx. $670 million in Canadian Dollars will not be a problem. They also did their effort to show the support a team could have by playing shots from the Pittsburgh/Montreal game that was played in Quebec City.

There should be no concerns about the fan base in Las Vegas. They’ve already sold over 13,500 season tickets and lets not forget how much revenue they could generate from tourists that maybe wanna catch their favorite team in the city of sin.

The idea of NHL expansion is always an exciting one for fans, so it’ll be fun to watch it all play out. But which city do you think has a more viable chance of long-term success as a franchise?