SEATTLE A STEP CLOSER TO NHL

Seattle city council has unanimously approved plans for a privately funded US$700-million renovation of KeyArena, clearing one of the last big hurdles in the city’s bid to land an NHL franchise.

The 8-0 vote Monday was the last step needed to complete Seattle’s expansion application in time to potentially ice a team for the 2020-21 season. Seattle Hockey Partners, the ownership group attempting to land the expansion team, is set to present before the NHL board of governors’ executive committee next week.

Issues with KeyArena led to the NBA’s Seattle SuperSonics moving in 2008 to Oklahoma City, where the franchise was rebranded as the Thunder.

The final scheduled event for the arena in its current state is an Oct. 5 NBA exhibition game between the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings.