Doug McLean has delivered a blunt NHL expansion prediction, and Quebec Nordiques supporters won't like where he believes the league is headed.
For McLean, there's no debate. Houston is positioned to receive the NHL's next expansion franchise.
He isn't presenting it as a distant possibility or a loose theory. McLean sounds convinced that the league's attention is firmly fixed on Texas.
“Houston appears to be headed straight for an NHL team, an outcome that once again closes the door on the return of the Quebec Nordiques.”
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The discussion featured three familiar hockey voices, with Daren Millard putting the central question on the table.
Officially, is it Austin or Houston that gets the next concession?
John Shannon didn't hesitate.
Doug McLean backs Houston as NHL frontrunner
“At this stage, it's Houston,” he declared, dismissing the other candidates in the same breath.
McLean followed with an equally direct response.
“It's Houston,” he simply confirmed, leaving little room for doubt.
When several connected voices land on the same city, the message carries weight. Houston has become the name pushing ahead of the other potential expansion markets.
For Quebec Nordiques fans, that brings another familiar disappointment. The dream of seeing NHL hockey return to Quebec City appears to be sliding further down the league's list.
Houston offers the size, corporate reach and American market potential the NHL has repeatedly targeted under Gary Bettman. That makes the city difficult to ignore when expansion talks move behind closed doors.
Nothing is official until the league announces a decision. Still, the confidence shown by Shannon and McLean suggests Houston has gained real traction.
Quebec remains a passionate hockey market with history, identity and a fan base ready to fill the building. But passion alone hasn't moved the Nordiques closer to a return.
The question now feels painfully familiar in Quebec City: how many more markets will move ahead before the NHL finally looks north again?
Will Houston get an NHL team before Quebec City?
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