Seattle to begin ticket drive for potential NHL team on March 1

Gary Bettman updates the situation with the NHL's next potential destination for expansion, stating that the Oak View Group and those interested in a Seattle franchise are currently completing the application process, yet does not provide a timeline.

Fans will be able to send in deposits to become a season-ticket holder for a Seattle NHL franchise on March 1.

The deposits would allow fans to get priority access to tickets, should the NHL expand to the West Coast city.

The Oak View Group and its prospective NHL ownership group, led by billionaire David Bonderman and filmmaker Jerry Bruckheimer, submitted its expansion application to the league on Feb. 13.

Season ticket deposits will be sold for $500 per ticket, while “club season tickets” – which offer better seats, preferred parking and private club access – are being sold for $1,000.

Seattle has long been an expansion target for the NHL, which currently has an uneven 31 teams, only five of which are based in the Pacific time zone.

The city had no arena ready the previous time the NHL accepted bids for an expansion franchise, and Las Vegas was the only market to end up getting a team. The Oak View Group’s $600-million renovation plan for KeyBank Arena was approved in December, giving a prospective professional hockey (or basketball) team a place to play in the future.

[relatedlinks]

When submitting content, please abide by our submission guidelines, and avoid posting profanity, personal attacks or harassment. Should you violate our submissions guidelines, we reserve the right to remove your comments and block your account. Sportsnet reserves the right to close a story’s comment section at any time.