Elliotte Friedman has pushed Houston and Atlanta to the front of the NHL expansion conversation with a striking new 32 Thoughts theory.
Friedman isn't presenting either city as a confirmed expansion winner. But his read on where the league could be headed puts 2 major American markets ahead of the pack.
Houston carries the biggest television-market appeal of the group Friedman discussed. He identified Houston as the 6th-largest U.S. TV market, a number that immediately explains the league's attraction.
Atlanta sits right behind it at 7th. That gives the NHL another enormous southern market to consider if league owners decide the time has arrived to move beyond 32 teams.
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Phoenix remains part of the conversation, but Friedman placed its television market at 12th. That still carries weight, especially given the NHL's long history in Arizona.
The bigger problem is where a Phoenix team would actually play. Friedman specifically pointed to the arena situation as another obstacle for Arizona.
Houston and Atlanta suddenly have a clear edge
That's what makes Friedman's comments so significant. This isn't simply a list of cities capable of supporting hockey. His theory connects expansion directly to the business value of the NHL in the United States.
Houston and Atlanta offer something the league can immediately sell to broadcasters: access to the 6th- and 7th-ranked television markets in the country.
Friedman's belief is that adding those markets could strengthen the NHL's position when its next U.S. television agreement comes into focus. That creates a much bigger consequence than adding teams for geography alone.
Atlanta would also give the league another opportunity in a city that has already hosted NHL hockey twice. The difference this time would be the size of the market and its potential television value.
Houston has never had an NHL franchise, making it the cleaner expansion story. Its market size gives the league an obvious financial reason to keep the city near the top of any future list.
Arizona's path looks more complicated. Phoenix has the market, but Friedman's arena warning creates a problem Houston and Atlanta don't appear to carry in the same way.
Nothing has been awarded, and Friedman clearly framed this as his own projection. Still, when one of hockey's most connected insiders circles Houston and Atlanta together, the expansion race suddenly looks much tighter.
Should Houston and Atlanta be the NHL's next 2 expansion cities?
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