Commissioner: No timetable for NHL expansion

NEW YORK -- The NHL continues to explore the possibility of expansion but no firm timetable has been set for the process, Commissioner Gary Bettman said Tuesday at the fall Board of Governors meeting.

Earlier Tuesday, the Board's executive committee heard presentations from representatives from the Quebec and Las Vegas markets. The Quebec presentation was headed by members of Quebecor, the company making the Quebec bid. Businessman Bill Foley led the presentation by the Vegas Wants Hockey group.

The presentations, made at the NHL office here, each lasted more than an hour, according to Commissioner Bettman. They were the latest step by the League to determine if expansion is a viable option.

Commissioner Bettman said no deadline has been established for a decision.

"We are in the process of gathering information," Commissioner Bettman said. "There have been no deliberations as to whether or not we want to expand, how many teams, or where. There's much work to be done."

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 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.

The members of the BOG executive committee are: Murray Edwards (Calgary Flames), Jeremy Jacobs (Boston Bruins), Peter Karmanos (Carolina Hurricanes), Craig Leipold (Minnesota Wild), Ted Leonsis (Washington Capitals), Henry Samueli (Anaheim Ducks), Ed Snider (Philadelphia Flyers), Larry Tanenbaum (Toronto Maple Leafs), Jeff Vinik (Tampa Bay Lightning) and Rocky Wirtz (Chicago Blackhawks).

"The committee is going to get together at least one more time if not more, and we have to ultimately begin deliberations," Commissioner Bettman said. "There are a lot of issues and questions that are going to have to be answered before any decision can be made."

If the NHL decides to expand, the new team or teams won't begin playing until the 2017-18 season, Commissioner Bettman said. He left open the possibility it could be later.

Commissioner Bettman also said the fee for an expansion team will be in the $500 million (U.S.) range. The exchange rate of the Canadian dollar to the U.S. dollar is approximately 74 cents, according to the Bank of Canada.

Quebecor Inc. chairman Brian Mulroney, the former Prime Minister of Canada, said the lower value of the Canadian dollar, which at the current rate would put the expansion fee at approximately $670 million (Canadian), will not affect Quebecor's bid.

"It's an important factor, but even with the exchange range, we can handle the team," Mulroney said.

Foley said the interaction in the room following his presentation was "pretty animated."

"We got asked a lot of really good questions, we had answers for all the questions," Foley said. "It was a complete presentation. We talked about our commitment to Las Vegas in terms of the fact that I'm a resident there and living there, arena background, economics of the team, ticket drive, 13,500 tickets. So we feel it went well."

Mulroney said the Quebecor group showed the executive committee videos from the game played Monday between the Montreal Canadiens and Pittsburgh Penguins at Videotron Centre, which opened Sept. 12 in Quebec City. The game was a sellout at the arena that would be home to the prospective expansion team.

"They were very impressed with the videos we put forward, including [Monday] night's game," Mulroney said. "They saw the excitement and the beauty of the [arena]."

Commissioner Bettman said fan passion and activation is a small part of the expansion process. He likened what happened in Quebec City on Monday to the Vegas Wants Hockey group already selling 13,500 season tickets for a team that doesn't yet exist that hopes to play in an arena that isn't scheduled to open until April 2016.

"The fact is obviously it's a great building and there are a lot of great hockey fans, but there's a lot more that has to go into the expansion process," Commissioner Bettman said. "We understand the interest that the people in Quebec City have for hockey. There's no doubt in my mind about that. That's one of the many factors that has to be evaluated, including whether or not ultimately the League wants to expand."

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