Las Vegas is getting an National Hockey League team

Also, imagine a brand new multi-million dollar stadium on the Las Vegas Strip.

The NHL’s Board of Governors is next scheduled to meet June 22, but one source told the AP expansion was a “done deal” after the NHL’s executive committee recommended the move.

Although the Black Knights are only the rumored team name, it seems like a likely choice, at least based on the team-run website VegasWantsHockey.com, which was established as part of the expansion effort.

The NHL league office declined to comment on the report.

Within days of the death of NHL legend Gordie Howe and the Pittsburgh Penguins’ claiming of a fourth Stanley Cup, professional hockey is reportedly ready to expand – to the desert gambling mecca Las Vegas. That year the Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets each paid $80 million to join the league.

The Vegas hockey team would be controlled by Bill Foley, a Florida insurance executive who also owns a winery in Healdsburg. The earliest a team would be in place would be the 2017-18 season.

But that’s a far cry from the Las Vegas Black Knights. Public support for Foley’s bid has been robust, and the National Hockey League has noticed the appeal of being the only major sports show in a town that loves a big event. The arena can seat 17,500 people and 13,200 have already signed up for season tickets. “It’s an exciting step for us but I’m waiting for the Board of Governors to approve it before I start to really celebrate”. Las Vegas has been waiting for this for decades.

Just over three years after selling the Sacramento Kings, the Maloof family is on the verge of returning to major league sports ownership. Rob Manfred, commissioner of Major League Baseball, has kicked around the idea of expanding to Las Vegas since he became commissioner.

And Bloomberg TV takes an analytic look at how a team in Vegas might play as well. Neither is expected to be an issue in getting a team to Vegas.

The NHL is opening the door to a new market. The arena’s first sporting event was Saul Alvarez vs. Amir Khan for the WBC middleweight championship on May 7.

The NHL hasn’t expanded since 2000.