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NHL Notebook: NHL expects to expand to Houston or Austin Texas by 2029-2030

Photo credit: © Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

By Tyson Cole

Aug 22, 2026, 17:27 EDT

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Welcome back to NHL Notebook — the series here at CanucksArmy where we deliver you news and notes from around the National Hockey League — oftentimes through a Vancouver Canucks-tinted lens!

We all knew expansion was at the top of the NHL’s priority list, and we have further confirmation of a time frame and location after what NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said on Saturday.

NHL planning to expand to Texas

In an interview with The Athletic’s Chris Johnston at the NHL European Media Tour in Munich, Germany, Daly shared the NHL’s plans to expand to 33 teams, the new team being located in either Houston or Austin, Texas.

“We’re moving forward in Texas,” Daly said. “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. We’ll probably get together with the group again in September and kind of see where they are in the process and what they want us to do to help, to the extent they need anything.
“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.”

Based on the 2024 US Census population, Houston is the fourth-largest American city at a population of roughly 2.4 million, while Austin ranks 13th at 993 thousand. Houston is the highest-populated city in the USA without an NHL team.

Once expansion is officially confirmed, the National Hockey League will be the largest of the big-four North American sports leagues. The National Football League has 32 teams, while the National Basketball Association and Major League Baseball remain at 30.

If all goes smoothly, the Friedkin ownership group projects a debut season for the newest Texas team in 2029-2030.

But the NHL isn’t planning to stop at 33 teams. According to Daly, the league is also in active talks to add a 34th team, listing potential destinations as Atlanta or Phoenix. Both of those cities have previously had an NHL franchise, but both have relocated. Atlanta had the Thrashers, who were in the league from 1999-2011, while Phoenix had the Coyotes from 1996-2024.

Daly shared that he does not view it as necessary for both the 33rd and 34th teams to enter the NHL in the same year.

Over the last 10 years, the NHL went from 30 teams to 32, after adding the Vegas Golden Knights in 2017 and the Seattle Kraken in 2021. And by the end of the calendar year, we may hear an official announcement that, by 2029, the NHL will expand to Texas with the league’s 33rd franchise.