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5 hockey-crazed cities that deserve an NHL expansion team ft. Quebec City, Portland, and more
The NHL has 32 teams, the same as the NFL, two ahead of the other North American professional sports leagues, the MLB and the NBA.
The opportunities to make money through expansion are always discussed because the National Hockey League is a business.
Whether the league needs to relocate struggling franchises is an entirely different debate, but there's no reason it wouldn't consider expanding again someday.
There are more hockey players in the world today than ever before, and with rival opportunities popping up in Europe and Russia, the NHL would be wise to expand and keep talented North American players on home soil.
Although expanding into certain areas makes sense financially while creating instant rivalries, not every opportunity is worth pursuing. However, these five cities dominate the headlines as potential suitors whenever NHL expansion pops up in the news.
5 hockey-crazed cities that deserve an NHL expansion team
#1. Quebec City, Quebec, Canada
In 1972, the World Hockey Association welcomed the Quebec Nordiques into the league. When the league folded in 1979, the team joined the NHL, where it had an instant rivalry with the Montreal Canadiens, located three hours south.
Although the Nordiques were somewhat successful in the 1980s and early 1990s, ownership relocated the franchise to Denver, Colorado, in 1995, winning the Stanley Cup during its inaugural season.
Since the Norduques left, Quebec City built Videotron Centre, an 18,259-seat indoor venue that replaced the old Colisee Pepsi (15,176). The venue is the third largest arena in North America that doesn't have an NHL team and would be the 16th largest home rink in the league today.
As Canada's 11th largest city, with a population of over 549,000, Quebec City has been waiting for an NHL expansion team for over 30 years since the community loved the Nordiques.
Despite being ready for a team any day, economics play a significant role in why the Videotron Centre remains without an NHL team.
#2. Portland, Oregon, United States
Tucked away in the Pacific Northwest is the city of Portland, Oregon, home of the Western Hockey League's Portland Winterhawks. Besides hosting the NBA's Portland Trail Blazers, the community of 652,503 is a great hockey market and has embraced both men's and women's professional soccer.
The city's arena is the Moda Center, which seats 19,393 for basketball and has a capacity of 18,280 for hockey games. As mentioned, any venture with over 18,000 available seats would rank among the league's top half in capacity.
Despite being one of the older facilities available for expansion or relocation, Moda Center is larger than Climate Pledge Arena by a thousand seats, where the league's newest team, the Seattle Kraken, plays.
If the NHL explored opportunities in Portland for a franchise, it would have an instant rivalry with the Kraken (three hours north), the Vancouver Canucks (six hours north) and the San Jose Sharks (11 hours south).
#3. Salt Lake City, Utah, United States
During the NHL All-Star weekend, news began circulating that Salt Lake City and the owners of the Utah Jazz were interested in acquiring a professional hockey team.
Naturally, social media started to speculate if this were true, the Arizona Coyotes would relocate there, not causing any further disruption to the current state of the league.
With a metro population of 1.2 million people, Salt Lake City hosted the 2002 Winter Olympics and has been home to the NBA's Jazz since 1979.
Although the Jazz are the only professional team in the area, the University of Utah has very competitive college teams, making Salt Lake one of the most untapped markets for expansion.
Meanwhile, the city is interested in an MLB team, and legislation is already being discussed to build a brand new arena that would accommodate basketball and hockey to replace Delta Center, which has a capacity of 18,306.
If Salt Lake City obtained an NHL franchise, its closest rivals would be the Vegas Golden Knights (six hours) and the Colorado Avalanche (eight hours).
#4. Houston, Texas, United States
Houston has the United States' fifth largest metropolitan population, with over 7 million people living in the largest city in Texas.
Moreover, every professional sports league already calls the city home, with the Astros (MLB), Texans (NFL) and Rockets (NBA) having deep roots in the community.
Professional hockey has already been in Houston, where the Aeros of the WHA played from 1972 to 1978, winning four league championships in 1974, 1975, 1976 and 1977 while "Mr. Hockey" Gordie Howe skated with the club.
A lot has changed in 40 years since the last time professional hockey was in Houston, which means the NHL is missing out on a massive success story every day it goes without a franchise in one of the country's largest media markets.
If Houston obtained a team, it would share the Toyota Center with the Rockets, which has a capacity of 18,104 and 17,800 for hockey. The potential franchise's closest rival would be the Dallas Stars, who play just under four hours north.
Considering that the NHL has had success in Florida, having two teams in thriving markets in a southern state would continue to boost its appeal to anyone who thinks hockey is only a cold-weather sport.
#5. Atlanta, Georgia, United States
They often say, "Third time is a charm," which could be what happens if/when the NHL returns to Atlanta, Georgia. In 1972, the league had the Atlanta Flames, who moved to Calgary, Alberta in 1980.
Then, in 1999, the league returned to America's eighth-largest metropolitan area (6.1 million) with the Thrashers, who relocated to Winnipeg, Manitoba, in 2011.
Unfortunately for fans, neither franchise was successful during their stints in Georgia, leaving many perplexed that the league would even consider returning.
Right now, Atlanta has three out of the four major sports: Braves (MLB), Falcons (NFL) and Hawks (NBA). After decades of playing within the city limits, the Braves moved out of town in 2017 and have found the move financially successful.
Rumors indicate that some developers want to build a new arena complex, following the Braves model, outside the city limits, which many insiders think would allow an NHL team to succeed in the area for the first time.
Since Atlanta has no close competition, its natural rivals would be the Florida Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Nashville Predators and Carolina Hurricanes.
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