Las Vegas bid for NHL franchise advances
Bill Foley, the lead investor in a bid to start a National Hockey League team at the new $375 million privately financed arena on the Strip, talks to a reporter at the Las Vegas Review-Journal offices in Las Vegas in March. (Las Vegas Review-Journal file)
Businessman Bill Foley's bid for a National Hockey League team in Las Vegas has moved to the next phase of consideration, NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly told the Las Vegas Review-Journal on Friday.
It "only means that they have satisfied requirements of this phase and get to progress to more comprehensive due diligence and additional submission requirements," Daly said.
The NHL will continue evaluating Foley's business plan for a franchise, which could potentially start playing at the new $375 million MGM Resorts International-AEG arena on the Strip by the 2017-18 season.
Foley says he has more than 13,000 season ticket deposits from local Las Vegas fans.
After Foley's application is considered and he answers questions from league officials, the NHL Board of Governors could potentially vote on Foley's bid at a meeting in September or January.
An application from Quebec City also advanced.
