Allan Walsh : Two new teams (via expansion) are coming

We know the NHL would like to add teams to its league.

And if we trust Allan Walsh’s words, it’s going to happen.

The renowned player agent mentioned it in a recent tweet, and he also gave the location of “the two new teams”.

In short, Walsh claims there will be a new franchise in Houston and Atlanta.

It’s been a while since we’ve been hearing about these two locations when it comes to expansion. Those who wish to see the NHL return to Quebec will be disappointed, again…

As I’ve said several times recently, 2 new expansion teams are coming to the NHL. Expect new franchises located in Houston and Atlanta each paying an expansion fee of $1.5 Billion. #34Teams https://t.co/t3pi4kmYd9

— Allan Walsh (@walsha) March 20, 2025

According to Walsh, the two franchises will have to pay $1.5 billion to enter the National League.

That’s a lot of money.

Let’s recall that the Kraken, in 2022, paid $650 million to become the 32nd team in the NHL.

In 2017, the Golden Knights paid $500 million.

But what we need to ask ourselves in all of this – beyond the financial aspect – is whether it can really work in a market like Atlanta and Houston.

We know that the NHL has already been to Atlanta and the project wasn’t very successful. In Houston, however, it could be interesting… especially considering it’s one of the biggest cities in the United States.

Because the worst that could happen is to see one of the cities get an NHL team and not even be able to fill the amphitheater when needed.

The NHL will have to make sure there’s a good owner in place for each of these cities (not like with Alex Meruelo and the Coyotes) to ensure a certain quality.

They would also need to find a way to rearrange the divisions because going from 32 to 34 teams can’t be done overnight… but anyway.

The file remains to be seen, in other words.

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