# NHL Texas Expansion Review Continues
The NHL has not chosen a new city, set a start date or awarded a franchise after its latest Board of Governors meeting. What it has done is keep the Texas review alive while changing the people who will lead the board through its next stage.
The league said on 23 September that it has received an update on recent expansion interest. Its current work with The Friedkin Group remains focused on whether Houston or Austin can support a second NHL club in Texas. Commissioner Gary Bettman said the evaluation is ongoing, and that the next formal opportunity to update the Board of Governors will be in December.
That wording matters. An exploration is not an expansion award, and interest is not a guarantee that either market will receive a team. The league has not announced a vote, a franchise name, an arena agreement, a first season or a final ownership transaction. For supporters following the story, December is a reporting checkpoint rather than a promised decision date.
What the board was told
The earlier June announcement established the framework behind the current review. The NHL entered an agreement with The Friedkin Group to assess Houston and Austin, with the practical question centred on market feasibility and a suitable new arena. The board was told this week that the assessment remains in progress.
Houston and Austin are therefore alternatives in a live study, not confirmed destinations. The distinction prevents a common jump from a headline about expansion interest to a claim that a club is already coming. The NHL has repeatedly reserved the formal decision for its governors, and no such decision was announced on Tuesday.
The timing is also open. Bettman said the league is not operating under a deadline-driven application process. That leaves the future dependent on the results of the feasibility work, the prospective ownership group's plans and the board's eventual vote. It also means any suggestion of a fixed launch season would go beyond the information currently available.
A new board chair
The meeting also unanimously selected Washington Capitals governor Ted Leonsis as chairman of the NHL Board of Governors, replacing Boston Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs. Calgary Flames governor Murray Edwards will serve as vice-chairman.
Leonsis is already a familiar figure in league governance through the Capitals and Monumental Sports & Entertainment. Monumental's own leadership material confirms that he serves on the NHL Board of Governors, alongside his NBA and WNBA responsibilities. The new chairmanship changes the board's leadership, but it does not alter the status of the Texas review or turn it into an approval.
For the NHL, the two strands of the meeting are related only in the broadest sense: governors received an expansion update and selected a new chair. Readers should not assume that Leonsis's appointment creates a new timetable or signals a preferred Texas market. The league has not said that it does.
Why the next update is worth watching
December is important because it is the next stated point at which the board can receive a formal expansion update. It is not, however, a date on which supporters should expect a franchise award automatically. A further update could confirm progress, identify problems or leave the work continuing.
That cautious reading is more useful than treating a developing ownership and arena process as a completed deal. Expansion involves more than a market's population or enthusiasm. A credible ownership structure, an arena pathway, the league's assessment and the governors' approval all remain relevant before a new team can be announced.
There is a further reason to keep the language precise. The current NHL is a 32-club competition, so adding a team would affect scheduling, competitive balance and the way the league presents its conferences. None of those questions has been settled publicly by this update. The best evidence available is narrower: the league and prospective owners are testing whether the proposed Texas markets work, while the governors await a later report. That is a significant business process, but it is not a sporting result or a completed expansion plan.
The NHL season itself continues in the meantime, with the league's current clubs beginning their campaigns and teams preparing their opening rosters. BetOwl's US Sports hub follows that wider picture. Our Connor Bedard captaincy report and Seahawks quarterback update offer further examples of separating confirmed news from inference.
Anyone considering a wager connected to future league developments should be especially careful. Expansion, venues and launch dates can change, and no current announcement establishes a new Texas team. Check the specific bookmaker's settlement rules and only bet what you can afford to lose.
For now, the clearest conclusion is deliberately modest: the NHL's review of Houston and Austin is continuing, its governors expect the next formal update in December, and the process has not yet produced a new franchise.