The owner of the NBA's Houston Rockets said he has been in discussions with the National Hockey League (NHL) about the arrival of an expansion or relocation team in the Texas city.
In an interview with Bloomberg News this week, billionaire Tilman Fertitta explained that this project has been on his mind since he took over the Rockets seven years ago. He said the benefits for downtown Houston, the fourth-largest city in the United States, could be enormous.
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“We’re talking to the NHL, but it has to be good for both sides,” he said. All we know is that when there's a concert downtown, it's very active. We know what the Astros are doing for downtown. We even know what football means to the city center.”
The prospect of a rivalry with the Dallas Stars is enticing and the demographic base would support starting a team there. Houston had an American League club from 1994 to 2013 and the World Association in the 1970s.
The cities of Quebec, Salt Lake City and Atlanta are often the subject of discussion, but the NHL would not reveal plans for future expansions. However, Commissioner Gary Bettman indicated that he had received interest from several North American cities.