Bettman: All teams will face eachother next year

[Chaldean 0]

Sorry if this was posted already. Good for hockey next year

Bettman says every team will play all others at least once next year

Associated Press

Updated: May 24, 2008, 8:11 PM ET

DETROIT -- The Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings won't have to wait until the Stanley Cup finals to play next season.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said every team in the league will play all the others at least once next season. The announcement came Saturday before Game 1 of the finals between Pittsburgh and Detroit, two teams that did not meet this regular season.

Bettman also used his annual pre-Cup news conference to say the size of goaltenders' equipment will be analyzed in the offseason.

The commissioner said he hopes changes can be made, but the issue first must make its way through a committee process.

"All goaltenders should be on equal footing," he said, noting scoring is down, goalies are bigger both physically and with the equipment they wear, and he wants more room for skaters to shoot on net.

Bettman's comments came several weeks after it was announced the NHL and its players' union had formed a group to examine the size and configuration of goalie equipment. They will meet June 11 in Toronto.

The idea to have a group examine the issue came about at the general managers' meetings in Naples, Fla., in February, where there was unanimous consent to do something about the size of the equipment.

If the group decides changes to the rules governing goaltenders' equipment are warranted, its recommendations will be forwarded to the league's competition committee for consideration.

"This is going to be the best attempt that can be made to deal with goaltender equipment," Bettman said.

Bettman also waded into the controversy over the Red Wings hosting Game 1 the same night the Detroit Pistons were playing the Boston Celtics at home in Game 3 of the NBA's Eastern Conference finals.

Criticism of the NHL in the matter has been "unrealistic and unfair," Bettman said, citing the NBA's admission that it decides on its conference final schedule far in advance.

"Guess what? They're not the only ones who have to lock things in," he said.

No city until now has hosted a Stanley Cup finals game and an NBA conference finals game on the same day, according to STATS LLC.

NBA spokesman Tim Frank this past week called the scheduling conflict "unbelievably unusual" but said the Eastern Conference finals dates are locked in for nearly a year, taking into consideration TV needs and arena availability.

"It's set up so far in advance," he said. "There's not any flexibility."

In other scheduling news, Bettman said he expects the league to again kick off its regular-season schedule in Europe. And an announcement will be forthcoming on the participants and venue for the second Winter Classic outdoor game.

The Penguins and Sabres played a game in snowy Buffalo on New Year's Day that proved to be a ratings success.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=3411195

Edited May 25, 2008 by Chaldean

[Nero 20]

1. Playing every other team at least once should please a lot of people. It is simply unacceptable that each team plays 82 games a year and they aren't even against 29 other teams.

2. I'm not too concerned about the Europe game. Perhaps if it's the Wings playing...

3. I will not be pleased if the Winter Classic remains in the East for another year. At least let a team from the West participate, is that too much to ask for?

[Chaldean 0]

3. I will not be pleased if the Winter Classic remains in the East for another year. At least let a team from the West participate, is that too much to ask for?

How about having 2 games one of each conference?

[Ladsud2002 0]

How about sticking Detroit in Torontos division Gary. Please?

[Nero 20]

How about having 2 games one of each conference?

You'd better stop making sense BETTMAN NO LIKE BRAINS. BETTMAN SMASH.

[sjradio 0]

During Gary's little press conference before game 1 he said there was no chance of expansion or relocation anytime soon. Which means the Wings are stuck in the west for another 5 years or so.

Our best hope for an Eastern alignment would have been if Pittsburgh was moved to Kansas City.

But not happening. Gary did mention that KC and Seattle were looking at teams. Seattle I think is a knee jerk reaction to them losing the Sonics. Key Arena isn't an NHL arena, they would need a new arena, which is why the Sonics moved anyways.

If the NHL is serious about a team in the Pac Northwest, Portland would be the best choice, the Rose Garden is NHL ready, has 18,500 seating capacity for hockey. And they wouldn't be ruffling the territorial rights of the Canucks as Seattle would.

Las Vegas is out of the question.

I would expand to Milwaukee Wisconsin before Las Vegas.

[BigShooter 0]

I would expand to Milwaukee Wisconsin before Las Vegas.

I just don't see that happening. There's not enough interest in hockey in my neck of the woods. We have the Admirals, and nobody even goes to those games. Considering people aren't willing to fork out 10 bucks for tickets, and the fact that this is truly a Packers state, and the Bucks and Brewers are really an afterthought for the most part, I just don't see the market being large enough to suport a team.

Another thing to keep in mind is that we have Detroit, St. Louis, and Chicago surrounding us, and just about everyone in Wisconsin is a fan of one of those three, or the Avs by way of the bandwagon.

[Chaldean 0]

I would expand Northern Europe before I go anywhere south of Detroit.

Edited May 25, 2008 by Chaldean

[sjradio 0]

I just don't see that happening. There's not enough interest in hockey in my neck of the woods. We have the Admirals, and nobody even goes to those games. Considering people aren't willing to fork out 10 bucks for tickets, and the fact that this is truly a Packers state, and the Bucks and Brewers are really an afterthought for the most part, I just don't see the market being large enough to suport a team.

Another thing to keep in mind is that we have Detroit, St. Louis, and Chicago surrounding us, and just about everyone in Wisconsin is a fan of one of those three, or the Avs by way of the bandwagon.

There was a cartoon a while back in the Milwauke Journal Sentinel. It was the funniest thing I had ever seen.

I wish I had it but it went something like..

--First frame had two guys talking, about the Packers, Bucks, and Brewers.

--The next frame had the other guy ask, "Why doesn't Milwaukee have an NHL team?"

--The final frame had the first guy respond... "Because Chicago would want one!!!"

[eva unit zero 271]

During Gary's little press conference before game 1 he said there was no chance of expansion or relocation anytime soon. Which means the Wings are stuck in the west for another 5 years or so.

Our best hope for an Eastern alignment would have been if Pittsburgh was moved to Kansas City.

But not happening. Gary did mention that KC and Seattle were looking at teams. Seattle I think is a knee jerk reaction to them losing the Sonics. Key Arena isn't an NHL arena, they would need a new arena, which is why the Sonics moved anyways.

If the NHL is serious about a team in the Pac Northwest, Portland would be the best choice, the Rose Garden is NHL ready, has 18,500 seating capacity for hockey. And they wouldn't be ruffling the territorial rights of the Canucks as Seattle would.

Las Vegas is out of the question.

I would expand to Milwaukee Wisconsin before Las Vegas.

If the NHL expands, it will be two of Portland/Kansas City/Houston. All three cities have repeatedly expressed interest and have arenas that can readily host an NHL team.

[edicius 3,269]

Yeah, I heard Bettman mention this on XM on Thursday. Can't say I'm disappointed at all. This means that I'll get to see the Wings play the Rangers and Devils out here every other year. No complaints.

[Reds4Life 51]

Good moves by Bettman. Maybe he's not so bad after all

[SouthernWingsFan 854]

It's a start and at minimum I hope the schedule remains like this at the very least. I'd like the NHL to use something similar to the NBA schedule though. In the NBA, you play 4 regular season games (2 home 2 road) against ALL conference opponents, regardless of whether they are in your division or not. You play non-conference opponents 2 times (1 home 1 road).

14 conference opponents x 4 games = 56 games

15 non-conference opponents x 2 games = 30 games

86 games would be stretching it, but I'd like them to mimic something around this.

[puckbags 863]

How about sticking Detroit in Torontos division Gary. Please?

We can't have that because apparently our division is too easy already!!

[betterREDthandead 58]

How about having 2 games one of each conference?

Because too much of a good thing ruins it. Keeping the interest high by not overdoing it is important. I like the idea of switching the game between conferences each year. For '09, maybe Blackhawks-Wings....for '10, maybe find a way to match up the Flyers and Rangers. But the worst thing would be to do it so much that people lose interest.

[GMRwings1983 8,803]

I would expand Northern Europe before I go anywhere south of Detroit.

I'm sure the players who play for that Northern European team would just love the travel across the Atlantic for every other game, right?

[selkie 10]

Milwaukee might also be within Chicago's rights area.

And two teams west of the Mississippi makes sense from an alignment perspective because it would let Columbus move into the East along with Detroit, putting all the eastern time zone teams into the same conference.

[Chaldean 0]

I'm sure the players who play for that Northern European team would just love the travel across the Atlantic for every other game, right?

It was a joke but I still wouldn't expand south of Detroit.

Edited May 25, 2008 by Chaldean

[johnnyoski 0]

Bettman doesn't deserve any credit for the improved schedule. The majority of the GMs voted for the change during the winter meetings.

[GMRwings1983 8,803]

It was a joke but I still wouldn't expand south of Detroit.

Is there any place north of Detroit where the league could expand? There's not that many Canadian cities where the league even has an option to move.

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

I saw the press conference, and when he was talking about the schedule, he made sure to say "even though the majority of fans don't want it" they're going to expand play between the conference.

This is what drives me nuts about Bettman. His passive aggressive little invented comments when people are talking about the game and potentially changing it. It's like he still has to say "I'm right, but I'm nice enough to do it for some fans."

That is one of the major reasons I think the guy is a d-bag. He's done it constantly over the years.

[GMRwings1983 8,803]

The only words I want to hear out of Bettman's mouth at this point are:

"Nicklas Lidstrom, come get the Stanley Cup"

[CdnWingsFanEh 2]

Bettman is a retard, and has little man syndrome...

[Z and D for the C 712]

2. I'm not too concerned about the Europe game. Perhaps if it's the Wings playing...

No thanks, I'd hate for the wings to have to play in europe. The time difference and travel messes up a team and just reeks bad start.

[Barrie 900]

Wow, the League is actually starting to make some sense! Every team will face each other starting next year, and there's talk of Seattle as a city for a new team. What's this game coming too?