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JoePuckster

New Commissioner?

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You don't need to know hockey to run a league. It's a business proposition. I really don't think any former player (except for Ken Dryden, like someone said already) would be the next comissioner. It would likely be some CEO or other corporate head because of their expertise.

I know NHL profits have gone up under Bettman, but it's undermining the integrity of the league. At the very least we need a commissioner who can keep the league running every year. His labor relations are terrible.

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Guest irishock

David Stern.

Not a bad thing really, he's the polar opposite of Bettman. Can you imagine very year the Wings, Leafs, Habs, Rangers and Bruins in the hunt for the Stanley Cup? It's better than seeing the Devils and the Coyotes as conference finalists.

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David Stern.

Not a bad thing really, he's the polar opposite of Bettman. Can you imagine very year the Wings, Leafs, Habs, Rangers and Bruins in the hunt for the Stanley Cup? It's better than seeing the Devils and the Coyotes as conference finalists.

Yep, God forbid that the teams that earn their way to the finals be allowed to play due to their markets. Much better for the fans in Edmonton or Calgary to know their team has no chance to win due to being in smaller markets.

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Maybe they could do some sort of commissioner/vice-commissioner type of thing..? Have someone who knows the law/business/politics/whatever be commish then have a very knowledgable former player as vice-commish..

Idk, just an idea.

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All I care about is that it was a former player or GM or somebody involved in the game. Somebody needs to care about the sport itself when all the money talks are being thrown around. I'm not saying that this person should side with the players at all, its just somebody to remind the owners what is realistically an option when negotiating with the players.

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You don't need to know hockey to run a league. It's a business proposition. I really don't think any former player (except for Ken Dryden, like someone said already) would be the next comissioner. It would likely be some CEO or other corporate head because of their expertise.

I know NHL profits have gone up under Bettman, but it's undermining the integrity of the league. At the very least we need a commissioner who can keep the league running every year. His labor relations are terrible.

I strongly disagree with the bolded part. I believe that if you're going to run a sport then it should be something that you actually know. You shouldn't be in charge of rule changes and such things unless you've actually played the game and know WHY changes need to be made. Coaches would be fine candidates as well. Someone like Scotty Bowman as mentioned would be good. My personal favorite from my list prior would be Messier. Either way, the league should be someone that the NHL, NHLPA and fans can all RESPECT.

I agree wholeheartedly with the rest of your post though.

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I strongly disagree with the bolded part. I believe that if you're going to run a sport then it should be something that you actually know. You shouldn't be in charge of rule changes and such things unless you've actually played the game and know WHY changes need to be made. Coaches would be fine candidates as well. Someone like Scotty Bowman as mentioned would be good. My personal favorite from my list prior would be Messier. Either way, the league should be someone that the NHL, NHLPA and fans can all RESPECT.

I agree wholeheartedly with the rest of your post though.

Ya I don't think a lot of people would boo scotty or mark out of respect during a cup presentation. you always get a few uneducated assholes though.

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It seems like Bettman has good business acumen. Not everything has been a success but the league's revenue has greatly increased each year.

They just need someone who can speak publicly without coming off like a condescending ass and is more of a diplomat. Instead Bettman never hesitates to tell the fans how we feel about the game, to take a shot at the NHLPA whenever possible, and to threaten lockout every time a CBA expires.

His job isn't just about legalities and business management. He is supposed to get 30 owners, some of them well documented idiots, to generally agree and work in the best interest of the league. That's where he fails pretty regularly.

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The owners love him and he's doing a great job for them increasing the value of the league so much over the past bunch of years so he isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

That said, I think Burke's refusal to sign long term contracts and stuff like that is an indication that he wants a clean record because he wants to be commissioner one day.

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The owners love him and he's doing a great job for them increasing the value of the league so much over the past bunch of years so he isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

That said, I think Burke's refusal to sign long term contracts and stuff like that is an indication that he wants a clean record because he wants to be commissioner one day.

I agree with both parts of your post. Especially, with your take on Burke. He has been everything that Brian Burke isn't/wasn't over the last two seasons. I think that he is shaping his business model (ignore that it's The Leafs) into a very safe and conservative model that the league may want to use as an example for all teams to follow.

I've always liked his hockey mind, and understanding of the game. But his business demeanor has always been one that I wasn't all that fond of. I think he sees the possibility that Bettman's job could open up in the future, and is distancing himself from the Burke of old. Someday, that may pay off for him.

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At the end of the day, if you have a commissioner that's responsible to run the league and he can't even figure out to start CBA talks earlier than 2 months prior to expiry for the 3RD TIME IN A ROW then not only should his salary this year go to a charity fund of the NHL's choosing, but he SHOULD be replaced by someone who doesn't actually seem to WANT a lockout. Don't cancel meetings with less than 3 weeks left in the CBA. Get to the table and hash it out and schedule MORE meetings and sit longer until you get the FANS their game back. f*** the NHL and NHLPA....WE PAY YOUR SALARIES! Maybe it's time for them to consider that and find middle ground, or at least start talking about it in the same room and not just meet with your lackeys for a week and then have a closed door meeting with the head D-bags where you cancel the afternoon session and give the fans even less hope. Pure garbage.

there's my angry rant for the day.

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At the end of the day, if you have a commissioner that's responsible to run the league and he can't even figure out to start CBA talks earlier than 2 months prior to expiry for the 3RD TIME IN A ROW then not only should his salary this year go to a charity fund of the NHL's choosing, but he SHOULD be replaced by someone who doesn't actually seem to WANT a lockout. Don't cancel meetings with less than 3 weeks left in the CBA. Get to the table and hash it out and schedule MORE meetings and sit longer until you get the FANS their game back. f*** the NHL and NHLPA....WE PAY YOUR SALARIES! Maybe it's time for them to consider that and find middle ground, or at least start talking about it in the same room and not just meet with your lackeys for a week and then have a closed door meeting with the head D-bags where you cancel the afternoon session and give the fans even less hope. Pure garbage.

there's my angry rant for the day.

The counter to that is that it is very difficult to negotiate something unless you are really up against a dealine...a real deadline. Also, it's tough to do during the season as well anyway for obvious reasons.

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The counter to that is that it is very difficult to negotiate something unless you are really up against a dealine...a real deadline. Also, it's tough to do during the season as well anyway for obvious reasons.

The NHLPA players have only been in on 1 meeting so far anyways. The NHL and NHLPA reps have pretty much been doing whatever Gary Bettman sees fit and that is negotiate for 1 1/2 hours and then go on Twitter saying there's no hope and the players won't budge. If it was going to be just the heads doing 90% of the meeting and negotiating, then why not start during the season instead of counting down to D-Day? This whole process is pathetic.

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I would love to see Stevie Y as commissioner just because he's a classy guy but I agree with everyone who's saying it should be a businessman because really that is the main part of the job.

I don't think it needs to be an ex player or coach but I'm gonna go ahead and say the next commissioner should be a guy who actually LIKES hockey at least because from what I can tell, Gary doesn't really give a...he doesn't care.

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