torontos finest
Joined: Jul. 2019
Posts: 9,558
Likes: 11,188
None by expansion. I think 32 teams is quite a lot for a sport like hockey. Unless the entry path for the sports gets more accessible, 32 teams will be the maximum.
By relocation - Quebec City and Houston are definitely on the list. Quebec has a fairly new, 18000 seater stadium designed for the sport. Houston has the population and could support a team as well, the Toyota Center can be fit for hockey and can seat 17800.
Another Toronto team is a long shot. A couple of reasons are 1) There isn't an NHL ready arena in the GTA outside of the Scotiabank Arena, and there aren't any plans for developing one, and 2) The Maple Leafs have the market on lock down and will fight tooth and nail to deny a competitor. If the Leafs are successful within the next decade, a second Toronto team will all but vanish, since I believe the project will rely on the frustrations of Leafs fans.
Outside of Quebec City I doubt another area could support an NHL franchise. Halifax, Saskatoon and Victoria don't have the population base to handle +15,000 spectators a game. Hamilton does but it's in the Toronto/Buffalo radius and the NHL has already rejected a couple of attempts there.
Don't really know too much about the States - I think Portland and Milwaukee would be interesting options - Portland already has a WHL team and I think Wisconsin is big on hockey; they've got an AHL as well. San Francisco might be a decent place to set up shop but I'm not sure the Sharks would be too keen on that, but they may not have the saying power like the Leafs to in Toronto.