On December 3rd, the NHL Board of Governors will gather in Sea Island, Ga for their annual winter meetings. The full agenda is yet to be released but we do know the league is set to vote on expansion to Seattle on the morning of the fourth. The group is also expected to announce divisional changes while the playoff structure will likely remain as is.
The big question heading into the day is whether the league will vote on a 2020 or 2021 inaugural season. While the Oak View Group has stated that they fully expect the renovations to KeyArena to be complete, the league is facing other hurdles with a potential 2020 lockout looming overhead due to an expiring Collective Bargaining Agreement.
A 2021 inaugural season is sounding more and more likely as each day passes but the league has kept quiet up to this point and, with some pressure relieved, a 2021 season could be beneficial in the long run.
”More likely the 2021-22 season than the 2020-21 season, so we have some time,” deputy commissioner Bill Daly told Emily Kaplan of ESPN. “A variety of factors. We’ve had that discussion on a preliminary basis with the ownership group and I think the ownership group is on board with that timeline. That’s not set in stone, but I don’t think either side is feeling any time pressure.”
Seattle Hockey Partners CEO Tod Leiweke and investor David Wright will be in Montreal to take in two Habs games before flying to Georgia where they will meet co-owner David Bonderman.
Dave Tippett, the team’s senior advisors, will remain in Seattle.
NHL Seattle fan event to be held at Henry’s Tavern
In a press release on Friday, NHL Seattle announced they will be hosting an event at Henry’s Tavern in South Lake Union (501 Fairview Ave. N., Seattle, WA 98109) where fans can join Tippet to watch the events in Georgia unfold. KJR Sports Radio will be hosting a remote show on-site from 8 to 10 am where there will be free food & beverages with some awesome giveaways. The event is open to all ages with doors opening at 7:30 am. We hope to see you there!
We will do our best to update you with any new information over the weekend.
Comments
Bring on the (anything but the Kraken)!
By crimsonpride24 on 12.01.18 9:50pm
2nd this!
Tod L., if you’re listening, we’re all fired up for hopefully the (non Kraken) announcement!
By 206er on 12.02.18 12:41pm
As far as the inagural year is concerned...
C’mon NHL! OVG and the mayor say the arena will be done! I believe them (with no actual knowledge). But for real, if it’s done in like November of 2020, can’t the team play like two games in the T Dome or Everett, then have a road trip? (If the chargers can play in a 20k seat soccer stadium for two years, I think they NHL can make Tacoma or Everett work for a few games.) By the time they come back Seattle Center would be ready. I trust OVG, simply because they’ve given us no reason not to. Let’s get this done for 2020, with a backup plan!
Can’t wait for Tuesday no matter what year they approve expansion. It means shovels will be in the ground! (Hopefully. Don’t put anything by city of Seattle)
By 206er on 12.02.18 12:49pm
Tacoma Dome won't work
If you seen the latest renderings of the renovation it wasn’t even design to be a hockey rink. Silvertips arena is only 8k.
By gstommylee on 12.02.18 4:16pm
Haven't seen the new T Dome stuff
I’ll check it out. T Dome lists a capacity for hockey on the wikipedia page (19,106), so they must have some hockey/ice events there. Also, I bet 8k in Everett would work for a month until Seattle Center is ready; particularly if there’s a road trip in the middle. There’s a restaurant and a whole little convention center attached for a team shop and other revenue streams. It’ll go by in no time!
(I’ll caveat this by noting that, while I do think the place will be ready by 2020, I’m writing from a fan perspective and am leaning much more heavily on bias than logic.)
By 206er on 12.02.18 4:38pm
good luck Seattle, the real fun begins Tuesday
make them the Pilots !
By Jeff - j1012 on 12.02.18 5:23pm
they should gift the old ice plant from Key to Tacoma
By Jeff - j1012 on 12.02.18 5:25pm
Tacoma dome doesn't even have a ice plant and i don't even recall seeing if the added one back.
By gstommylee on 12.02.18 8:47pm
Would Jeff's solution remedy this?
Serious question. I’m a basketball guy. Know nothing about ice plants. I want this thing to happen in 2020.
By 206er on 12.02.18 11:02pm
The issue with tacoma dome is more than jsut an ice plant
it becomes an issue of spending $$$ when its not even necessary. a couple hundred million to make it work as temp for want a month?
By gstommylee on 12.03.18 8:02am
damn expensive ice plant
By Jeff - j1012 on 12.03.18 8:16am
It has nothing to do with ice plant
Ice plant is just one thing that has to happen. The NHL and the team itself has to be prepared to play there if the arena construction is delayed. Tacoma Dome is not even viable as a temp facility with out hundred of million of dollar upgrade to make it work.
By gstommylee on 12.03.18 8:19am
article has a image of the Tacoma dome post renovation.
https://www.seattletimes.com/entertainment/music/tacoma-dome-returns-with-a-bang-after-30-million-renovation-expecting-boost-from-keyarena-closure/
https://static.seattletimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Tacoma-Dome-rendering-768×511.jpg
By gstommylee on 12.03.18 8:20am
if this market is about to explode for hockey, it may behoove Tacoma, to think about an ice plant for the dome.
By Jeff - j1012 on 12.03.18 8:20am
Timeframe...
LV was awarded a franchise in June, just 15 months before the first puck was dropped.
I know Tuesdays vote is needed to allow OVG to break ground. But why does the BOG need to make a decision on 2020 vs 2021 now? You could award the franchise with the year to be determined in June 2019 based on construction progress.
My understanding is that demo and excavation are the riskiest part of the timeframe. Why not allow OVG to push hard and see where we are in June?
By BBS117 on 12.02.18 5:26pm
my thoughts as well
By Jeff - j1012 on 12.02.18 5:26pm
That's what am thinking and saying
every time people comment about the possible 2021 date.
By gstommylee on 12.02.18 8:48pm
Works for me
By 206er on 12.02.18 11:04pm
The issue i have is
NHL basically has no faith that OVG can get this done on time and declare 2021 is the start time just for the sake of cause they can for no apparently real reason with actual facts backing it (Other than a lockout which we won’t know for a while anyways). Again we don’t know how long it’ll exactly take until they get the first phase of it done.
We could hit a scenario of arena done in time of 2020 but team still starts a year later.
By gstommylee on 12.03.18 8:04am
guess we will find out for certain in 24 hours
By Jeff - j1012 on 12.03.18 8:21am
i guess so
but i still find it stupid that they may prematurely declare 2021 based on "arena not being done on time" based on little evidence other than a estimate timeline that is not 100% exact.
By gstommylee on 12.03.18 8:25am
It's a clear "We're going to lock the players out in 2020" move
Why leave that "start in 2020" door open if you know that you’re locking out the players in 2020?
It’s so obvious that I find it strange that people don’’t immediately get it.
By Razztopia on 12.04.18 8:38am
it's not just a matter of faith
the NHL can’t risk having an expansion draft – schedule drawn up etc. in the summer of 2020 and then come October, whoops, the arena isn’t ready to go for a few months. The existing teams will want to know a year in advance of a concrete date for the expansion draft so they can plan accordingly.
Ksmith is right, award the team tomorrow – decide on the start date next summer when there is more clarity on the construction timeline.
The threat of a lockout and an ambitious construction timeline is probably going to lead to a 2021 start date, imo.
By Todd Little on 12.03.18 8:24am
That's what i been saying the entire time
let see where things are at next year before declaring a start date. No one knows for sure how soon it’ll get done until the actually building of it happens post demo/digging and that won’t start until sometime next year.
By gstommylee on 12.03.18 8:29am
Big difference...
is that Las Vegas broke ground on arena in 2014 and was fully finished a few months BEFORE the BOG vote to award them a franchise in June 2016.
The 15 months before puck dropped is dropped is apples and oranges to our situation, which is a major bummer.
By SuperSonicBoom on 12.03.18 9:27am