NHL Commissioner Tells Board to “Prepare for His Retirement”
It is being reported that NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman will be stepping down soon. The controversial NHL Big Cheese has held that position since 1992. At this weekend’s Board of Governors meeting, he informed the group to “Prepare for his retirement.” No timetable as of now is known. Will he go another season after this one? Or might he step down soon after the NHL calendar year ends in 2025. Also, who is a strong candidate to replace him? We will have to wait and see. Meanwhile, here are some of the good and bad highlights of Bettman’s tenure. Let the boooooing commence.
Bad:
Since Bettman’s Legacy is filled with troublesome times, we will start with the negative. Many NHL fans look upon Gary as a villain. Many others outright hate the man. That aside, here is some of his notable struggles and issues he has dealt with.
Bettman has had THREE work stoppages under his tenure including one just a year after he took the job. The NHL lost half a season as he promised the league owners he could instill a salary cap. He failed. Years later, Bettman finally got that cap at a huge cost. Hockey fans lost the entire 04-05 season to a lockout. The only major sport in America to date that has lost a full season to labor issues.
As far as expansion and relocation, it hasn’t all been a good look. Atlanta became a two time failure as their second run with the new Thrashers was a disaster as well. Worse yet, as talk of more expansion heats up, Atlanta is often discussed as a possibility again. Quebec City, which will always hate Bettman, are a true hockey loving city that will probably be passed over. Gary shows a real prejudice towards Canada it seems. The NHL lost 2 Canadian teams in Bettmen’s first three years on the job. Also, no Canadian team has won a Cup while he has been in charge. That is probably a coincidence but conspiracy theorists believe otherwise. And what about the mess in Arizona? Years and years of struggles with that franchise, culminating with the team playing in a 5,000 seat arena to stay afloat. Now in Utah, they seem to be on the right track. But another long time fan base must deal with losing their franchise. At least Winnipeg got a team back.
Now onto all the advertisements. New ads on the ice in each corner are an eyesore. Some teams have now adopted ads on their jerseys which is a crime against humanity. Especially the classics. I certainly hope the Sabres never succumb to that travesty. FInally, we now get projected ads on the boards. These distractions have been toned down a bit lately and don’t glitch nearly as often like when they first began. But these overabundance of advertisements shoved down out throats are ridiculous. The all mighty dollar is what Bettman is all about, not the integrity of the game.
The NHL All Star weekends have turned into a gimmicky spectacle now. The NHL also hasn’t participated in the Olympics since 2014. But they are glad to give us this Four Nations tournament most people don’t care about. Also, the NHL is now striking down Youtube videos for copywrite claims. The only one of the four major sports leagues to do so.
Bettman was at the helm when the NHL adopted the dreaded shootout as well in 2005-2006. Many hockey fans hate having a skills competition decide a hockey game. (this guy too) Then in 2015, the 3 on 3 overtime was brought in as well. A little more excitement yes but not a true way to determine a winner of a 5 on 5 sport.
There is also a plague of referee issues almost nightly in the NHL. From general bad calls to rule interpretations gone wrong. Not to mention the inconsistency in league discipline. All on Bettman’s watch since the early 90’s. And how about the draft? The logo reveal process of turning over cards has always been suspect to many. It should probably be more transparent.
Good:
The recent expansion teams have been a major success. Las Vegas got it’s first professional sports team and has won a Cup already. Seattle has not had as much on ice success (unless they are playing Buffalo) but they are a big money maker in a market that craved an NHL team. Hockey crazed Minnesota got a franchise back under Bettman’s watch and the Jets got to fly once again in Winnipeg.
It took a while to get there and it sure was costly, but the salary cap helped even the playing field in the NHL. Deep pocket teams could no longer corner the market on the best players. It has created more parody. The NHL is also more profitable than ever. Their TV deals with ESPN once again and TNT have them in good shape. The league is projected to make between 6-7 billion in revenue this year. That is staggering amounts of money.
A total of eight new teams play in the NHL since Bettman took control. The game has changed under his watch, much more speed and skill on display. The clutching and grabbing has been greatly reduced. The 72 year old Bettmen is the one and only man to have served as commissioner in NHL history. Before that, the NHL’s top dog was known as the League President, where John Ziegler last held that title.
Final thoughts:
Being the NHL Commissioner is no doubt a thankless job. Gary Bettman has had a plethora of issues to deal with over the years. He has had his ups and downs and so has the entire league. Like him or not, he is going out with the NHL in good shape, with strong financial success right now. He will always have that going for him. And the legacy that there is nobody better to give a round of booing to.
UPDATE: The latest word on Gary Bettman’s retirement is that he will most likely stay on for one more season beyond this one. That will give the NHL more time to find a strong replacement.