NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said the league’s next expansion franchise fee, if it “were to expand,” would be “substantially more than a billion,” according to David Alter of THE HOCKEY NEWS. In a presser yesterday, Bettman said, “When you expand, the expansion fee is really to reimburse the existing clubs for revenues that you’re giving up. ... If you’re in 32 teams and you expand to 33, you’re now taking national league revenues, and instead of dividing them 32 ways, you’re dividing them 33 ways.” Bettman insisted that while there are “no immediate plans to expand,” discussions over interest “continue on an ongoing basis.” Bettman also discussed the state of Buffalo’s KeyBank Center, saying that it has “good bones” but needs “updates.” Bettman expressed that he had “confidence” that Bills and Sabres owner Terry Pegula “will turn his focus” to the KeyBank Center once the Bills’ new Highmark Stadium project “is settled.” With the stadium nearing completion, Alter wrote Bettman “all but guaranteed a return to outdoor hockey in the region.” Bettman: “I believe it’s not a question of if, it’s a question of when we play an outdoor game in the new stadium.” Bettman also discussed the PWHL, saying that its growth is “exceptional” as it approaches its third playoffs and plans to expand by up to four teams for the fourth season. He noted that the “NHL continues to offer assistance and promotion for the budding league” (THE HOCKEY NEWS, 4/21).
Bettman: NHL expansion would cost ‘substantially more’ than $1B
