Gary Bettman is the worst thing to happen to hockey

[Guest Johnz96]

If you are going to attack someone's intelligence you might want to reword (or at least properly punctuate) that sentence.

wen txtn or postn on forums such as this I prefer to spel lyk this but for som it is even more incomprehensible for som

Control yes, fix no. He is truly a weasel, but I am not giving up one game for him, let alone a season.

I don't know how old you are but some of us have already missed a season and a half because of him

Edited May 4, 2012 by Johnz96

[Nightfall 871]

wen txtn or postn on forums such as this I prefer to spel lyk this but for som it is even more incomprehensible for som

I don't know how you are but some of us have already missed a season and a half because of him

Johnz96 = 15 posts and a -26 reputation

I believe that says it all.

[Guest Johnz96]

Johnz96 = 15 posts and a -26 reputation

I believe that says it all.

I'm not getting good goaltending

[drwscc 212]

I'm not getting good goaltending

OK, now that's funny!

[Nightfall 871]

I'm not getting good goaltending

+1

Best comment I have read today.

[kipwinger 8,756]

Last I knew Gary Bettman didn't become commissioner of the NHL through a coup d'etat. The league brought him in with the expressed desire to increase the profile of the league and expand the sport. If revenue increases from 400 million to 3 billion per year are any indication, he's done exactly what he was hired to do. Personally, I don't like his expansion policies, and some of the rule changes are garbage, but it's not like the league didn't know what they were getting. There's plenty to criticize Bettman about, but I think alot of the criticism that Bettman receives should be focused on the Board of Governors rather than the commissioner considering they obviously wanted the changes he's made.

[dirtydangles 1,328]

I saw on TSN that Torres will appeal the 25 game suspension and that Bettman will be the arbitrator. How is this okay? Then nhl owns the coyotes....

[BigWillieStyle 662]

I'm not getting good goaltending

I'd say that your defence is pretty weak, also.

[Dabura 12,232]

Is everyone here afraid of being fined?

[Guest Crymson]

Well, I think it's safe to say that the OP's attempt at self-promotion has been an unequivocal failure.

[kipwinger 8,756]

What do you mean trollin??? First time anyone has accused me of trollin

Bettman changed the game so his weaker teams would have a better chance of success 96 Panthers being a perfect example.

Major offensive records will never be broken. 2459 fewer goals and over 6000 fewer points scored by players were scored in 97-98 than just 5 years previously in 92-93, Bettman's first full year as commissioner and more than 2000 fewer goals last year than in his first full year.

Personally I don't care too much where the game is being played or about the finances of the NHL except where it concerns the on ice product.

All the obstruction that was allowed favored the trap and so did the bigger goalie equipment, you had to use some form of the trap to win. This was all manipulated by Bettman to manufacture parity by circumventing talent.

His excuse initially for allowing all the obstruction is that too many penalties would slow the game down but as it has been argued then and has been proven now that the player and coaches will adapt to how the game is called. If all penalties are called all the time (when humanly possible, of course a ref may miss some if his view was obstructed and of course we all mistakes) the players, coaches and fans would know what to expect. His excuse for the goalie equipment is that players are bigger and stronger with harder shots and that they need the bigger equipment to protect themselves. At the all-star games they record speeds of slap shots, rarely do they post times higher than Al MaCinnes or Al Iafrate used to post back in the eighties. Back in the seventies Bobby Schmautz shot the puck right through the net a few times. When a goalie played the puck before Bettman was commissioner the players could check him where they can't touch the goalies anymore. So why do they need the extra equipment? I work out with a 20 lb. vest and i could put a regular sized jersey over it and I can't even notice in the mirror and I am sure it would offer more protection than all that big huge padding that they are wearing. It is not protection but puck stopping equipment. On Hockey Night in Canada, Ron MacLean once put Grant Fuhr's entire catching glove into a catching glove goalies use today to demonstrate the great difference in size.

The bigger goalie equipment benefited the trap style of play and Bettman allowed both so he indeed can get blamed for it.

His underlying motive for allowing obstruction and the bigger goalie equipment was to manufacture parity. As I have shown the goalie equipment need not be any bigger to protect in fact they are more protected by the rules and with the development of technology I am sure they can produce goalie equipment just as big as it was in the eighties that is be much more protective as well. And now that they have instituted the "new rules" it is proven what a joke "calling all the obstruction would slow the game with too many penalties" excuse is.

I think it is so funny when the NHL refers to the adjustment they finally made after the last lockout as "new rules". Excuse me but interference, hooking, tripping, holding, have always been rules the only difference is how often they are to be called.

If they don't reduce the goalie equipment to the size it was before Bettman was commissioner major offensive records will never be broken. It always creates a lot of excitement and media attention when someone is going for a record. I think hockey is more entertaining to watch when there is not such a strict emphasis on defense

Just from a personal standpoint I think that more offense is not necessarily a good thing. 1-0 or 2-1 games are usually more nail biting than 4-1 or 8-3 games. The level of competition matters in my opinion and that's one area where the game has benefited during Bettman's tenure.

[akustyk 84]

before last CBA richest teams came around $50M in payrolls. at this point salary cap for all teams is $60M and is likely to get higher. before the CBA NHL games were often dog boring with all the clogging, trap and low scoring, monster goalie pads games. now it's fast, with lot to see in terms of skills and with extremely competitive and unpredictable playoffs.

I'll take NHL AD 2012 over the AD 2004 version. any day. and it's really tough to say this is not to attribute to Bettman and the team of people who lead the league. apparently, they've raised the bar significantly and the product, as of now, is much better to the fans. and it makes a lot of money...

[Dabura 12,232]

Help! I fell through a wormhole and now I'm stuck in some alternative universe wherein everyone is cool with Gary Bettman!

Edited May 4, 2012 by Dabura

[BigWillieStyle 662]

Last I knew Gary Bettman didn't become commissioner of the NHL through a coup d'etat. The league brought him in with the expressed desire to increase the profile of the league and expand the sport. If revenue increases from 400 million to 3 billion per year are any indication, he's done exactly what he was hired to do. Personally, I don't like his expansion policies, and some of the rule changes are garbage, but it's not like the league didn't know what they were getting. There's plenty to criticize Bettman about, but I think alot of the criticism that Bettman receives should be focused on the Board of Governors rather than the commissioner considering they obviously wanted the changes he's made.

+1 For seeing the forest through the trees. He's just doing the job asked of him by his employers. When people get the thought that Bettman ( owns/ runs ) The NHL out of their head, and see that he is just the figurehead of the company instead, maybe they will better understand why he does what he does.

Most people didn't like Jack Walsh, from G.E. But, the Board of Directors, and shareholders loved him because they made a ton of money with him in charge. And in todays business world, that's the bottom line.

Should they fire Gary Bettman? Remember when Apple thought it would be a good idea to force Steve Jobs out? That worked out well for them, didn't it?

Good post, kipwinger.

[kipwinger 8,756]

+1 For seeing the forest through the trees. He's just doing the job asked of him by his employers. When people get the thought that Bettman ( owns/ runs ) The NHL out of their head, and see that he is just the figurehead of the company instead, maybe they will better understand why he does what he does.

Most people didn't like Jack Walsh, from G.E. But, the Board of Directors, and shareholders loved him because they made a ton of money with him in charge. And in todays business world, that's the bottom line.

Should they fire Gary Bettman? Remember when Apple thought it would be a good idea to force Steve Jobs out? That worked out well for them, didn't it?

Good post, kipwinger.

Thanks for the kudos, and I agree that profits are the bottom line. But it's not just that, increasing the market share and the profile of the game makes the sport more viable in terms of talent too. If there are more fans, and more people viewing the game as something other than the odd man out between the NBA, NFL, and MLB then more kids start playing at an early age, and more high quality athletes are likely to play hockey rather than one of the others. There's a lot to be said for expanding the game, but I think people tend to lose sight of that when all they focus on is a struggling team in Atlanta or Phoenix.

[MabusIncarnate 5,359]

Man this early offseason sucks.

[Guest Johnz96]

I never once said Bettman is the worst thing to happen for the business of the NHL or even the NHL itself.

I can't believe all the love and admiration for Bettman here.

[Hack & Whack Rule! 160]

I think the OP IS Gary Bettman, and he's trying to figure out why people still boo him and call him names. Don't fall into the trap! I seem to recall this article being referenced on another site. It was posted by a guy with the user name Bary Gettman...I can't figure out why, but that names seems very surreptitious, if you ask me.

[Guest Shoreline]

You're all Gary Bettman.

[Nev 1,085]

Much as I dislike Bettman, and think there are a great many legitimate reasons to criticise him, believe you me, he isn't the worst person to be running a major sport

We get up in arms about Bettman and the Coyotes and "Colie" and disciplne, and their conflicts of intrest, but they are amateurs in the field of corruption and self intrest compared to these guys.

[akustyk 84]

Much as I dislike Bettman, and think there are a great many legitimate reasons to criticise him, believe you me, he isn't the worst person to be running a major sport

We get up in arms about Bettman and the Coyotes and "Colie" and disciplne, and their conflicts of intrest, but they are amateurs in the field of corruption and self intrest compared to these guys.

you nailed it, buddy! and I don't even know which of those is worse. though, after kicking away of Fuhrer Mosley F1's become much better sport, so I'd probably spare Ecclestone in this comparison. FIFA on the other hand... my god... now this is a mafia!