Commissioner Gary Bettman opens applications for NHL expansion franchises today, and the process will run through August 10. Many have speculated that expansion would occur eventually ever since the 2013 realignment in which the Western Conference had two teams fewer, at fourteen, than the Eastern Conference’s sixteen teams. However, Bettman has stressed that this is the league’s way of determining interest and that this process does not indicate a commitment to expand. He has mentioned that although the conferences are currently imbalanced, it would be ridiculous to “expand just for notions of symmetry.” With the Glendale, Arizona city council terminating the lease agreement with the Arizona Coyotes last month, relocation is a possibility for the Coyotes and other struggling franchises; this would serve as an alternative to expansion, though Bettman has remained adamant that the Coyotes are fine and will not move, as the price tag for an expansion franchise will have a start around $500 million. Despite Bettman’s declarations that no city has priority, Las Vegas and Quebec City are nearly ready to go and may be the first applicants in line. Seattle and Tukwila, a city south of Seattle, are also expected to make competing bids by two separate ownership groups. Portland and the greater Toronto area are also expected to submit an application. The AOSN will cover these in more detail in the coming days.
One city that has been rumored to be in the mix is Kansas City, but that is very doubtful at this point in time. Although the Sprint Center was built eight years ago by the Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG) with the promise of bringing an NHL team to Kansas City, the project seems to have been abandoned. According to Sam Mellinger of the Kansas Star, “Lamar Hunt Jr., who owns the ECHL’s Missouri Mavericks, a minor-league hockey team that plays in Independence, called the NHL’s $500 million price tag for an expansion franchise ‘a ridiculously big fee,’ and said that he is not aware of anyone who is [looking to move a team to Kansas City].” Mellinger also notes that Cliff Illig, a billionaire who is part of the ownership group of Sporting Kansas City (a professional soccer team), shares the same feelings as Hunt Jr.
What also works against Kansas City acquiring a hockey team is that the NHL’s economic model is mostly dependent upon television contracts. Kansas City does not have enough of a market to sustain a successful NHL team. According to The Business Journal’s 2015 report, Kansas City comes up $86 billion short of what is required to support the baseball teams the Kansas City Royals and Kansas City Chiefs, the soccer team Sporting KC, NASCAR, and major college sports. It would not be economically prudent to also add a professional hockey team at this time.
But Kansas City hockey fans should not give up hope. According to Mellinger, despite the Mavericks “finishing 23rd out of 28 teams in points, they finished sixth in attendance. They recently signed an agreement as the New York Islanders’ lower affiliate, and are working toward strengthening hockey’s following in Kansas City.” With this grassroots approach, it is entirely possible that the there may be a return of the Kansas City Scouts. For those who are not aware, the New Jersey Devils trace their roots to the Scouts.
Check back later in the week for more of Jen’s insights on possible expansion.