Daniels report: SoDo is not applying for expansion by Monday

According to a report by KING5's Chris Daniels, Victor Coleman is not going to submit an expansion application to the NHL by the Monday deadline.

Three sources confirmed Friday that prospective Seattle NHL owner Victor Coleman will not submit an expansion bid by the league's mandated deadline.

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. The same source also indicated Vancouver, B.C., native Coleman hoped to "fast track" the expansion process once a land deal is completed. Coleman's camp, according to sources, also indicated it is still committed to bringing an NHL franchise to Seattle.

It's not clear if Bartoszek intends to submit an application on Monday either.

It's great that Coleman wants to do a fast track expansion to the NHL, but the league set this deadline for a reason. There is no reason to believe they will let SoDo apply some time after.

I'm not going to sugar coat this. This is terrible news. At this point, the best hope for hockey fans lies with Ray Bartoszek in Tukwila, though it's unclear if he's applying. There is also some hope in Bellevue, but that's a wildcard at best with no one having come forward publicly.

This has not been the best week for Seattle's hopes for winter sports.