NEW YORK – NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman realizes the importance of being at the forefront of trying to take hockey to the next level each season.
It has been his goal, his passion and his priority for 30 years.
“The world is changing and if you’re not moving forward and you’re not thinking big, then you’re going to go backwards,” Bettman said. We need to find new ways to reach the supporters. You have to use the things that are part of our world today that weren’t part of it when I started in the sports world. It gives you the opportunity to use the platform that sport represents to do more than ever. »
It is because of this vision that Commissioner Bettman received the Lifetime Achievement Award of Sports Business Journal in a ceremony at the Marriott Marquis on Wednesday.
“I never wanted to be the center of attention,” Bettman added. The important thing is the owners, the supporters. The people who work here and within the teams. If I can be a reflection of all their efforts, then that’s fine with me. »
Bettman celebrated his 30th anniversary as commissioner on Feb. 1. He surpassed the late David Stern, who served as NBA commissioner from Feb. 1, 1984, to Feb. 1, 2014, as the longest-serving commissioner among the four major sports leagues in North America.
Bettman served as the NBA’s senior vice president and general counsel under Stern before being selected as the NHL’s first commissioner at age 40 on Dec. 11, 1992.
“The specifics of basketball versus hockey aren’t what I learned,” Bettman said when asked about his time in the NBA. “What I learned was the importance of relationships, being thorough and doing your homework. You have to think about your goal and make decisions for the right reasons, which means you have to do your homework to make the most thoughtful decision possible.
“You have to do what you consider best, because if you’re wrong, at least you will have done something because you believed it was the right thing to do. This is how you sleep soundly at night. »
The Sports Business Journal listed among Bettman’s accomplishments the growth of the NHL during his tenure. The League has grown from 24 to 32 teams and its revenue has jumped from $400 million per season to $5.2 billion last season, a record. Bettman confirmed Wednesday that that figure has since risen to $6 billion.
“It went by so quickly,” Bettman said of his 30 years in the job. “I have a hard time understanding how time could have flown by so quickly, but my job is to care about a sport. And say it’s called business? It doesn’t get any better than that, and not just because of the sport, but because of all the things we can do with our different platforms to make a difference. »
The Sports Business Journal also highlighted Bettman’s “creativity” with its expansions and relocations into non-traditional markets. Teams like the Dallas Stars, Nashville Predators, Carolina Hurricanes and Vegas Golden Knights are healthy organizations today.
The NHL became the first professional major sports league with a team in Las Vegas when the Golden Knights joined the league in 2017-18. The Seattle Kraken became the NHL’s 32nd team in the 2021-22 season.
The NHL Winter Classic, the traditional outdoor game created in 2008, has become a major regular season event. On April 11, the League announced that it will travel to Australia for the first time when the Arizona Coyotes and Los Angeles Kings play preseason games for the 2023 NHL Global Series at Melbourne on September 23 and 24. This will be the first presence of the NHL in the southern hemisphere, after having visited Europe, but also in Asia.
Yes Sports Business Journal noted the three work stoppages during Bettman’s reign, he also noted that Bettman gave “significant victories to the League at the bargaining table.” Among these gains are the predictability of costs for owners starting in 2005 “with the introduction of the salary cap, improvements to the on-ice product and greater parity in the League between large and small markets.” »
“I love hockey and I love everyone associated with hockey, and that’s a challenge,” Bettman said. Every day is different, and you’re not just dealing with one-day challenges, because you want to do what it takes to move forward, and we’ve done a lot of things to move hockey forward.
“Working here is part of the ultimate team effort within the ultimate team sport. Everyone worked together, and that’s why we’ve come so far. »
2023-05-25 01:31:34
#Bettman #Receives #Lifetime #Achievement #Award
