Along with Las Vegas and Quebec City, Seattle has been talked about as one of the most speculated-about destinations for NHL expansion. I even went as far to take a look at what a Seattle expansion roster would look like in the event of a two team expansion draft. However, it appears that Seattle may be out of the cards.
Phase one of the expansion process had a deadline of Monday, July 20th. Due on that date was a $10 million dollar deposit, with $2 million being non-refundable.
Chris Peters of CBS Sports noted that there were two groups that showed significant interest in bringing an expansion team to Seattle. One was headed by real estate mogul Victor Coleman, and the other by Connecticut businessman Ray Bartoszek.
The hiccup for both, however, dealt with the potential arena that a Seattle team would play in. There had been preliminary discussions with both potential owners for stadiums in different places in the Seattle area. Nothing had been set in concrete with the local government, however.
Peters wrote the following on Coleman’s potential arena:
A source involved from the Seattle effort said Friday the Coleman group had told the NHL it wanted to finalize the arena site before submitting an application…Coleman had reportedly been trying to strike a deal with Chris Hansen, the businessman who secured public support and land to build a NBA-NHL arena in Seattle’s SoDo area, in an effort to attract a team from the NBA and NHL. However, that project will only get the greenlight to utilize public funds if the city is able to land an NBA team first.
Regarding Bartoszek’s potential bid, preliminary discussions with the local government had been made but nothing was put to a vote. Unless both men got the potential arena deals figured out in short order, expansion in Seattle was looking grim.
Passing of the Deadline
The deadline passed on Monday with neither Seattle group being able to submit a bid for a team. Coleman had stated that he hoped to be able to fast-track the expansion process once the arena was figured out, but it appears the NHL won’t allow it:
Latecomers to the NHL expansion process "will not be considered," if their application was not submitted today, the league confirms. #TSN
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) July 20, 2015
That's interesting because Victor Coleman, leading group in downtown Seattle, hoped to "fast track" an app if he got green light for arena.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) July 20, 2015
Bartoszek has not given up on a potential arena in Seattle, but it appears it may not be happening soon:
Ray Bartoszek group did not file for #NHL expansion. The group continues to pursue an arena, but not a team at this time.
— Geoff Baker (@GeoffBakerTIMES) July 20, 2015
Ray Bartoszek's camp tells me his group could NOT meet the #NHL timeline, but continues to work on the #TukwilaArena proposal.
— Chris Daniels (@ChrisDaniels_TV) July 20, 2015
Unless the NHL changes their tune and allows a Seattle group to jump into the process later on, it appears the idea of an NHL team in Seattle is dead, at least for now. It has been confirmed that Las Vegas and Quebec City extended bids.