 The NHL also found itself competing with the WHA for markets . Initially , the league had no intention to expand past 14 teams , but the threat the WHA posed changed this . Hoping to keep the WHA out of the newly completed Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale , New York and the Omni Coliseum in Atlanta , Georgia , the league hastily announced the creation of the New York Islanders and Atlanta Flames as 1972 expansion teams . Following the 1972 – 73 season , the NHL announced it was further expanding to 18 teams for the 1974 – 75 season , adding the Kansas City Scouts and Washington Capitals . In just eight years , the NHL had tripled in size to 18 teams . 
