The NHL's annual draft could be going through some major changes in the near future, as the event may take place at a decentralized location  that does not require teams to show up in one city. However, that may not start until 2025 and the final draft that includes full participation may take place at the Sphere in Las Vegas.

That facility is owned by New York Rangers owner James Dolan, and discussions between the league and the $2.3 billion building are ongoing.

The NHL needs to find a location for this year's draft because T-Mobile Arena became unavailable. The UFC is holding one of its events at that building in late June.

While an event at the Sphere involves extra costs, the NHL would like to become the first major professional sports league to host a major function at that building.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said the league is still studying how it wants to conduct the draft in future years. “We were very comfortable — and still are — with the format that we’ve been using,” said Bettman. “It’s different from what anybody else uses, and we kind of liked it. This was an organic proposal that a number of clubs suggested and we just said ‘We’re not going to fight it. We’ll take a poll of the clubs.’ ”

The majority of the 32 member teams in the NHL favor a change in the draft format that would decentralize the event.

The NFL changed its draft format years ago, and while players and league officials are present at a central location, the teams stay at their headquarters.