The New York Sun, April 7, 2008, Monday

The New York Sun

April 7, 2008, Monday

The New York Sun

Bettman Steers NHL in Right Direction

By KEVIN GREENSTEIN | April 7, 2008

The National Hockey League's playoffs are set to begin on Wednesday night, an intense eight-week competition that tests the endurance of the competitors as much as, or even more than, their skill. At the end of the arduous journey, the commissioner of the NHL, Gary Bettman, hands North America's most recognizable sports trophy — the Stanley Cup — to the winner. Though the commissioner's introduction has often precipitated a showering of boos, there are some clear signs that the tide is turning with regard to his approval rating among the sport's die-hard fans.

The league's commissioner for approximately 16 years, Bettman has overseen an approximately 700% increase in league revenues (to a reported $2.8 billion in 2007–08 from $400 million in 1991–92), far outpacing the rate of inflation. In 2005, after a year-long work stoppage, he was at the forefront as the league made some dramatic changes to the on-ice product. Most notably, the league implemented a shoot-out to settle deadlocked regular season games, and they imposed a crackdown on obstruction and interference in order to speed up the game and showcase its superstars.

By all measures, the changes have been a success, as attendance has been rising annually since the lockout, despite consistent increases in ticket prices. The NHL's fans are the most dedicated professional sports fans in North America, this fact certified by their enthusiastic return after the 2004–05 lockout. To put this immediate recovery into proper perspective, it took Major League Baseball nearly a half-decade to recover from the work stoppage that canceled the 1994 World Series and delayed the start of the 1995 season.

"What we believe needed to be accomplished with our new system was to ensure no matter which team your affinity was with, that you would believe or could have the belief in the hope that your team can make the playoffs," Bettman said in an exclusive interview with The New York Sun. "The game is healthier than it's ever been, both on and off the ice. Our economics are better, our competitive balance is great, and as a result, our fans have responded to our game being healthier than it's ever been."

Without question, parity is a driving force in today's NHL. The Washington Capitals won the Southeast Division title in their final game, and many playoff matchups remained undetermined at the onset of the season's final day. Looking back at the pre-lockout NHL, Bettman sees some critical differences that have helped improve the league's overall health.

"That was an environment where the payroll range was over $60 million," he said. "That impacted the product and made it so that teams couldn't compete. Now, by spending a little more — and with revenue sharing to help bridge the difference — teams can now all afford to be comfortably within that range."

In evaluating the success of the league under the new collective bargaining agreement, Bettman also stressed the importance of revenue sharing. Though it can be argued that more wealth should be shared between the league's haves and have-nots, there is no question that the existing system for revenue sharing has helped bridge the gap considerably. Just as importantly, the salary cap — which restricts teams from spending to solve their problems — places a greater emphasis on strategic team construction, thereby holding teams more accountable for their success on and off the ice.

"In excess of $100 million was doled out last year to the teams in the bottom half of the league in revenues," he said. "Some teams got revenue sharing in excess of $10 million. Teams are now required to perform better since we're now under a system where everybody can be competitive. One of the things that a salary cap system holds teams accountable for is how they perform. It's not about how much you spend anymore, it's about how you do your work in putting a team together: the players you assemble, the chemistry and culture you create for your team."

Of course, the NHL is healthiest in Canada, where it is the national pastime, and in the American cities where hockey is part of the lifeblood. But although the Canadian dollar's meteoric rise in recent years (as compared to the value of the American dollar) has played an important role in the economic success the six Canadian teams are currently enjoying, Bettman believes that the collective bargaining agreement has also been a huge factor.

"At the turn of the century, there were articles speculating that there would only be one team left in Canada," Bettman remembered. "[Eight years later] all six clubs are healthy and playing to virtually 100% of capacity. The increased value of the Canadian dollar has been a factor, but it isn't what fixed the problem. The Canadian teams were healthy coming out of the work stoppage, and the Canadian dollar then was at least 20 cents lower [as compared to the American dollar] than it is now."

Bettman hosts a weekly radio show on XM Satellite Radio's hockey channel NHL Home Ice, taking calls from fans and giving them an opportunity to interact directly with him. But he was quick to point out that his one-on-one interaction with the fans isn't something new.

"When I go to spend a day with a club, and I try to do that with most clubs over the course of the season, in addition to meeting with the organization and the local media and sponsors, I'll also meet with season ticket holders," he said. "I've done it with groups as small as 20 and with groups as large as 1,000."

"I was in Nashville about two months ago, and I did a season ticket forum for somewhere between 800 and 1,000 people," he recounted. "I walked in and got introduced, and I actually got a standing ovation. That doesn't happen very often, and it was actually kind of fun to see."

Though he claims not to be bothered when the fans boo him, the admission that the Nashville fans' standing ovation gave him a positive feeling is a sign that he does indeed care about how he's viewed. But rather than trying to please everyone — a near-impossible task given the fact that he is primarily beholden to the league's 30 owners — he instead tries to steer the operation toward what he thinks is right, knowing full well that no matter what direction he chooses, there will be some very vocal naysayers.

"These members of the board are all trying to win the Stanley Cup, and only one of them can," he reasoned. "The same is true in any sport. The longer you do one of these jobs, and the deeper your relationship is with the club owners, the relationships evolve. Some get stronger and some probably get weaker. And that's why you don't have the luxury of doing anything other than what you think is right. You can't guess what you think will be popular, what's popular one day may be unpopular the next. You have to have the type of internal compass to say 'I've analyzed it, I understand it, and this is what I think is right.'"

At the end of the day, Bettman has an understanding that — whether through his experiences with his radio show or through face-to-face interactions — the NHL's greatest strength is its fans' unwavering support. Whether they agree or disagree with his stewardship, they are the league's lifeblood.

"The passion and commitment of people to this game is rivaled by none," he affirmed. "And I'm talking about people who work in the game, the players and the fans. The people associated with hockey are spectacular. Even when I get booed, I say to myself, 'You know what, they've got an opinion. We may not agree on everything, but they care, and I'll take that.'"

Mr. Greenstein is the editor in chief of InsideHockey.com.