The NHL is expanding to the Seattle area, and the announcement to make it official could come as early as next week. The soon-to-be franchise do have things set up to begin preparation to be the 32nd team in the NHL, but the first season is not scheduled to begin until the 2020-21 season.
The franchise has paid $650 million to become part of the historic NHL, however this amount is $150 more than the last expansion team, the Vegas Golden Knights who began play two seasons ago. The Seattle franchise is hoping for the same kind of success, although repeating that kind of season is rare. The expansion does come with some questions though. Some of those questions a little more daunting than others. The most obvious thing after expansion is division and conference set up. Will the league readjust the divisions or will there be a total conference shake up? The Kings do look to be pretty safe in the Pacific division, but this will depend on what the league and Board of Governors want to do this announcement should come shortly before or shortly after the announcement. The Kings may see realignment within the division but do not look like they will move.
One of the rumors is 4 team divisions, or two conferences with no divisions. Personally the two conferences with no divisions may be more exciting for league play. Another question is a potential lockout. How will expansion and proceedings continue if there is a lockout before the 2020-21 season? The lockout is being talked about but does not seem like a serious threat at this time. The lockout could hurt the season but it could also potentially be more of a problem for the expansion Seattle team trying to get things together.
Featured Image: NHL.com
