It's not as dull-bladed an idea as you may think, according to Markham council.

At its meeting earlier in March, council passed a resolution to publicly express the town's interest in hosting an NHL franchise in Markham.

The expression of interest comes after much speculation about the possibility of a second NHL team in Southern Ontario.

Much of this stems from Research in Motion co-CEO Jim Balsillie's attempts to try to purchase an NHL franchise amidst rumours he would move the team to Southern Ontario, likely Hamilton.

A much-talked-about October 2008 Globe and Mail article had unnamed NHL sources saying Hamilton would be a tough sell for American franchises and could negatively affect the Buffalo Sabres.

It went on to say that another Toronto-area franchise wouldn't hurt the Sabres and that NHL governors are informally talking about putting a second franchise in Toronto.

Vaughan has been informally tossed around as a possible home for the hypothetical team, but Markham is the first York Region municipality to formally record its interest in hosting one.

Council's resolution didn't set out how it would express its interest.