The National Hockey League had preliminary discussions about the potential viability of an NHL team in Houston, The Athletic has learned.

Multiple sources confirmed that there was a recent meeting between NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta at the league’s offices in New York.

It is believed the meeting between Bettman and Fertitta took place within the past few weeks.

When reached via telephone Wednesday evening, Bettman declined to comment on the meeting. He refuted the notion that the NHL was actively looking for relocation options.

“We’re not relocating any clubs right now,” he told The Athletic.

When asked whether Houston would be considered if that changes, he responded: “If Houston were to express an interest in having an NHL franchise, under the right circumstances, it’s something we might want to consider.”

Fertitta, who could not be immediately reached for comment, purchased the Houston Rockets in September for a reported $2.2 billion, and he previously expressed interest in bringing the NHL to Houston.

“I would love to bring an NHL team here,” Fertitta told Houston’s Fox affiliate station last month. “It’s just got to make sense. It’d be hard to fathom that we can’t support an NHL team here. Zero has happened, but we will start looking at it.”

News of Houston’s potential viability comes at a time when three NHL teams are seeking new arenas and encountering significant difficulty.

The commissioner was recently in Stockholm, Sweden, for the league’s Global Series game between the Ottawa Senators and Colorado Avalanche, before which he publicly expressed the need for Ottawa to obtain a new building.

“A new downtown arena is vitally important to the long-term future, stability and competitiveness of the Senators,” Bettman told reporters. “The process is ongoing, but I think asking Mr. Melnyk or the Senators the status would be more appropriate than asking us.

“However, we believe there needs to be a solution for the long term.”

The Senators are reportedly in negotiations with the National Capital Commission for a new arena downtown at LeBreton Flats, though Bettman would not comment specifically on those negotiations.

Ottawa is not the only team in such a situation, however, with both Calgary and Arizona seeking new arenas that the NHL has deemed vitally important.

Back in September, Flames president Ken King told reporters that talks with Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi had been unsuccessful and that the team was no longer holding out hope for help from the city in seeking a new arena deal that would allow them to move on from what Bettman described as the “old, antiquated” Scotiabank Saddledome.

After buying out his minority partners this summer, Arizona Coyotes owner Andrew Barroway affirmed his commitment to finding the team a permanent home in the Valley, but the organization continues to be plagued by financial uncertainty and the club’s lease at Gila River Arena expires following the 2017-18 season.

Additionally, the Islanders have stated their intentions to leave Barclays Center in Brooklyn, which was not originally configured for hockey, in pursuit of a new arena in Belmont Park on Long Island, though the team’s ownership has not made clear what their Plan B option would be should that not come to fruition. The Islanders recently toured Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena, the latest of the new NHL arenas.

Should those teams continue to encounter difficulty, and should those respective cities prove unwilling to participate in funding the cost, the NHL could turn to an option like Houston, which already has an NHL-ready arena and would make geographic sense.

It also does not hurt that Fertitta has developed the reputation for a savvy, aggressive businessman with firm financial footing.

The Houston-based billionaire made his fortune as the owner of the Landry’s restaurant empire, as well as Golden Nugget Casinos and Hotels. His acquisition of the Rockets also includes the operation of the Toyota Center.

The Toyota Center, constructed in 2003, is outfitted to hold 17,800 for hockey. It is the home of the Houston Rockets, but Fertitta, in a press conference last month, expressed a desire to fill additional dates in the arena beyond its use as an NBA arena and premier concert venue.

“Do I want to see Toyota Center filled up 300 nights a year? Definitely.” Fertitta said, according to the Houston Business Journal. “I would put an NHL team here tomorrow.”

(Top photo: Erik Williams/USA TODAY Sports)