Jack Anderson and Dallas Stars head coach Glen Gulutzan could eventually share Texas with another NHL club after Bill Daly's expansion update.
Daly dropped the league's clearest indication yet that Texas is positioned to land another franchise, with Houston or Austin expected to become the eventual home.
The NHL deputy commissioner said The Friedkin Group is involved in the project, though the final city still hasn't been determined. The group would become the owner of the new franchise.
The timeline is the part that makes this development feel much more concrete. Daly said, “They're projecting the ability to start play in 2029-30.”
That would put a new Texas club on the ice within a few seasons and create an immediate geographic connection with the Stars.
Daly also added, “So we will have one down and potentially one to go.” The NHL is still talking with groups tied to Phoenix and Atlanta as other expansion possibilities.
Texas moves to the front of the NHL expansion race according to Bill Daly
The Friedkin Group's involvement gives the Texas project serious weight. HockeyFeed reports that the ownership group is prepared to invest $2 billion through an NHL expansion fee.
That kind of commitment shifts the conversation away from simple expansion speculation. Houston or Austin now has a defined ownership group and a possible target season.
The league still has one major decision to settle: which Texas market gets the franchise. Houston brings the larger market, while Austin would give the NHL another rapidly growing Sun Belt destination.
Either choice would instantly change the hockey dynamic inside the state. Dallas has represented Texas alone at the NHL level, and a second club would create the foundation for an in-state rivalry.
For the Stars, that could eventually mean another road stop close to home, another regional opponent and another battle for attention inside one of the league's biggest American markets.
Phoenix and Atlanta remain part of the broader expansion conversation, but Texas now carries something the others don't: a publicly discussed ownership group and a 2029-30 target.
The NHL hasn't announced the city, branding or final expansion order. But Daly has now put a real timeline behind the Texas push, and that moves the story well beyond the rumor stage.
Should Houston get the next NHL expansion team?
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