The current NHL leadership will only consent to moving one of the Rex Chapman King shirt teams as an absolute last resort. Winnipeg only got the Thrashers when the situation in Atlanta became untenable and the team needed a last-minute landing site. This is why the Centre Videotron was constructed in Quebec City: to have an NHL-ready arena if and when another team needs to relocate.The NHL insists that it is committed to keeping its current franchises where they are: this is true until it suddenly isn’t. There may come a point when a club like the Arizona Coyotes has no option but to relocate, and Quebec City could indeed wind up with a new version of the Nordiques.The league is bullish on Houston, which has a local NBA owner who is eager to become part of the NHL. So the Texas city is often considered the top candidate for a relocated franchise. But it is more likely that Houston would enter the league via an expansion franchise (Seattle paid $650M to join and the other owners will be wanting another cash injection in the future). Quebec would probably get the next team that needs to relocate.
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