Expansion has always been my favorite off-ice topic, so let’s take a look at what deputy commissioner Bill Daly had to say on the topic in an interview with The Athletic’s Michael Russo.
What’s the latest on expansion? I know Atlanta was supposed to meet with you in July.
We’ve been meeting. I’m sure, maybe, we did have a meeting with Atlanta in July. May have. I mean, expressions of interest continue to give them audiences with us, pitch us on the merits and why we should be considering.
We haven’t said no to anybody. And there are multiple entities within multiple markets that are talking to us. None has gotten to the level of having a full proposal that we think is worthy of sharing with the Board of Governors or the executive committee. One of those could happen in the future. I semi-expect it to happen in the future, but it hasn’t happened yet.
And certainly, none of those candidates or applicants have been given any kind of timeline that they had to meet. So, it’s kind of an open-ended process at this point.
Atlanta is looking pretty likely to land a team by the end of the decade. I’m throwing Charms out there as the nickname. As in third time’s a charm.
The Florida Panthers division rival in Ottawa came to terms with a pair of depth players yesterday, signing defenseman Cameron Crotty and forward Jan Jenik.
Crotty’s two-year, two-way deal is worth a total of $1.63 million at the NHL level. Drafted in 2017 by the Arizona Coyotes, Crotty spent the most of the 2024-25 season with the AHL’s Iowa Wild. He played 64 games and collected ten assists. He appeared in one NHL game with Minnesota.
Jenik inked a one-year, two-way contract worth $775K. He suited up for 52 games with the Belleville Senators in 2024-25, producing 12 goals and 17 assists. He made two NHL appearances for Ottawa. Jenik is another former Coyotes draft pick.