Report: NHL deputy commissioner meets with potential Las Vegas ownership group

Two weeks after the NHL denied reports that it was discussing the possibility of bringing a team to Las Vegas, it appears as though the league may be tipping its hand the other way.

In an interview with Michael Russo of the Minneapolis Star Tribune, deputy commissioner Bill Daly admitted to having met with a potential ownership group in Las Vegas. Russo writes:

NHL officials no longer are striking down the notion that expansion might be on the horizon. Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said Monday that, while in Las Vegas for other business this past weekend, he met again with a potential ownership group that has expressed an interest in owning a franchise.

Daly, in an interview in his Manhattan office, said he also got a chance to tour the site next to New York New York Hotel and Casino where a $350 million, 20,000-seat arena is being built by MGM Resorts. MGM also has had preliminary talks with the potential owners who want the arena to house their prospective NHL team. The arena is expected to be completed by 2016, and Daly looked at suite mock-ups: “It’s nice,” he said.

The league still has to determine that Las Vegas is a viable market for a professional sports franchise, and hasn't yet confirmed expansion.

At this point, however, it seems as though the wheels are in motion, and Las Vegas may slot into the NHL landscape at some point in the future.