from Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times,

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said Wednesday that all remains on track for an October 2021 launch of a Seattle team “that has got to be done right.”

Bettman and deputy commissioner Bill Daly visited the city for the first time since the league last month awarded a team to a Seattle group headed by David Bonderman and Jerry Bruckheimer. After meeting with Mayor Jenny Durkan, touring a planned practice facility and future season ticket sales office, Bettman said opening night will come quicker than many people think and that the remaining 33 months will be busy ones.

“If you talk about it in the terms of kicking the tires — the tires are in great shape,” Bettman told reporters at an afternoon news conference at the Space Needle. He added: “This is going to be great not just for Seattle but for the NHL as well.”

Bettman said the NHL has promised the city will host an All-Star Game within seven years of the team beginning play. He is also looking at the possibility of Seattle hosing the NHL entry draft, but could not confirm a date as of yet.

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