One City 'Not Even Remotely Close' To NHL Expansion Bid
As NHL expansion keeps getting closer to reality for one part of the country, it sounds farther away than anyone thought for another city.
An X (Twitter) account called "NHL to Atlanta" posted something that got fans' hopes up in the ATL on Friday, saying expansion to return a team to that southeastern city was "imminent."
BREAKING: In an email released to a nearby community, the development team behind The Gathering at South Forsyth revealed they have secured financing for an NHL team and submitted a final packet for approval.
— NHL to Atlanta (@NHLtoAtlanta) September 4, 2026
Developers also revealed that the first phase of construction is… pic.twitter.com/EwuXanhrOA
According to Michael Russo of The Athletic, however, that couldn't be further from the truth. He reports NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly saying that Atlanta is “not even remotely close to an application phase.”
In the post, The Gathering in South Forsyth development team said it had submitted "a final financing packet" to the NHL for review and approval.
Not so much.
That group was forced to send out an announcement on Saturday that that news was "premature".
“Unfortunately, information shared during a recent community update — and subsequently distributed by email — was premature and incomplete, leading to inaccurate statements on social media,” the update read.
In fact, Russo reports that "none of what the group has provided forms the basis of an application."
Next NHL expansion team closer to being named
Out West, in Texas, things are looking much better. The NHL certainly seems to be very close to awarding an expansion franchise to Houston or Austin.
“We’re moving forward in Texas,” Daly told The Athletic’s Chris Johnston. “I expect ultimately we’ll be in a position to bring something to the board to get their view on it. So, that’s proceeding at a pace.
“If we finalize that and the board approves it, then (at the) end of this calendar year we’ll have an announcement that we’re expanding to either Houston or Austin.”
Daly adds that the Texas team should be able to become the NHL's 33rd team for the 2029-30 season.
Phoenix remains in the running, along with Atlanta, to potentially become the leagues' 34th franchise.