The NHL is looking south of the border for potential games in the future.
The NHL is strongly considering playing outdoor games in Mexico City, according to Greg Wyshynski of ESPN.
David Proper, the NHL SEVP of Media and International Strategy, told Wyshynski that the NHL would like to create the first outdoor game outside of North America, with potential suitors interested, but looks at Mexico City as a site of interest.
"It's certainly something that we are looking very, very carefully at," Proper said. "There's some things we got to figure out if we're going to make it work." - Proper
Following the success of playing two pre-season games in Melbourne, Australia last week, the league is now looking at all possible options for bringing the sport to unusual markets in an attempt to grow the game at a global scale.
It remains uncertain at this time if they would be pre-season, or regular season games.
Last season, the San Jose Sharks and Nashville Predators kicked off their regular seasons by playing a two-game series in Prague, Czech Republic.
Around other professional leagues in North America, the NBA has played 32 regular-season games in Mexico City since 1982, and the NFL has played 4 regular season-games there as well, most recently in 2022 between the San Francisco 49ers and Arizona Cardinals.
The MLB played their first Mexico series this past year, two games between the San Francisco Giant and San Diego Padres.
The NHL looks to become the final team in North America to finally dip its toes into the Mexican sports market. This will certainly be interesting to see where the games will take place, and when.
Should an Outdoor NHL game in Mexico City take place?
Yes
No
Grow the game! You can’t survive playing just in traditional markets!