Talk of expansion in the NHL has been swirling for several years. When the league forced the sale of the Arizona Coyotes to create the Utah Hockey Club in 2024, the only way for the desert franchise to return under that name would have been to apply for an expansion franchise in five years time. With former team owner Alex Meruelo officially out on that idea, another city could swoop in and become the NHL's 33rd team. Per ESPN's Emily Kaplan, Dan Freidkin and The Friedkin Group have emerged as potential candidates to bring a franchise to Houston, Texas. The Friedkin Group's sports portfolio has historically been involved with European soccer, owning AS Roma of the Italian Serie A and Everton FC from the English Premier League. Kaplan noted the league has met "several times" with Freidkin and his representatives. A Houston NHL franchise appears to be just the latest of his exploratory sports ventures. Freidkin reportedly also made a bid for the NBA's Boston Celtics which sold for a record $6.1B on Thursday. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, however, has recently shrugged off rumors of imminent expansion, insisting it wasn't a "front-burner topic." The Vegas Golden Knights ($500M) and Seattle Kraken ($650M) were the NHL's latest additions, raking in a combined $1.15B in expansion fees. Kaplan noted in her report Thursday that if the league were to expand, it would be looking to add two clubs with Houston and Atlanta — the former home of the Thrashers who relocated to Winnipeg — among the top candidates. A 34-team league might revive talks of altering the current 16-team playoff format, something the league has declined it would do as recently as last year. Money always talks but it's yet to be seen whether the financial temptations will alter the NHL as we all know it.