NHL Lockout: 15 Biggest Reasons NHL Fans Hate Gary Bettman

By
Carol Schram
(Featured Columnist) on September 17, 2012

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Here we are. The NHL has locked out its players once again and fans are left wondering when their favorite sport will return.

The NHL has paid lip service to fans' pain, while acknowledging that the issues at hand right now are actually not that significant. From nhl.com:

While our last CBA negotiation resulted in a seismic change in the League's economic system, and produced corresponding on-ice benefits, our current negotiation is focused on a fairer and more sustainable division of revenues with the Players -- as well as other necessary adjustments consistent with the objectives of the economic system we developed jointly with the NHL Players' Association seven years ago...(We) all have a stake in resolving our bargaining issues appropriately and getting the puck dropped as soon as possible. We owe it to each other, to the game and, most of all, to the fans.

From the moment he took office in 1993 right up to the present, NHL fans have been keen to show their distaste for the leader of the NHL pack, Commissioner Gary Bettman.

To pass the time while we wait for resolution, here's my look at the 15 biggest reasons behind the hatred, featuring quotes from the Twitterverse from the fans themselves.

1. Three Lockouts in 20 Years

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Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

As this 1993 article from the New York Times explains, Gary Bettman was hired as the NHL's first Commissioner with a mandate to end labour unrest, among other things. Instead, his two-decade tenure has turned out to be the most unsettled of any major professional sports league.

He is now presiding over the league's third lockout, meaning Bettman has been an utter failure at running a harmonious NHL. The owners who employ him continue to support him, but fans see it differently:

2. Lockout: 1994

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Mike Powell/Getty Images

In 1993-94, during his second season at the helm, it was clear that Gary Bettman brought a different approach to NHL business.

The New York Rangers won their first Cup in 50 years, and that was deemed to be positive to the sport's American profile. But it wasn't enough to prevent a 103-day lockout as owners and players each struggled for their rightful piece of the pie.

The league regrouped at Christmas to play an abbreviated 48-game schedule in 1995, but by the end of the season, there was upheaval everywhere. One year removed from the Stanley Cup Finals, the Kings declared bankruptcy and owner Bruce McNall was on his way to jail. The Quebec Nordiques were on their way to Denver, and the Winnipeg Jets were on tenuous ground. Even '95 cup winners New Jersey looked like they could be on the move.

3. Lockout: 2004

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Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

In 2004, the players had a much tougher PR battle than they do today. Their salaries had increased dramatically following the '94 lockout, causing many fans to stop viewing them as "working stiffs" and start thinking of them as "privileged millionaires."

The owners held their ground, the season was canceled, and the NLHPA disintegrated into rival factions. In the end, the owners were able to institute a salary cap and institute most of the other terms on their wish list.

Fans were bitter about the lost season, and more subtle damage was done to the foundation of the game. Witness this Tweet from Chris Peters, spotlighting the dip in hockey development in the USA due to the 2004-05 lockout:

4. Lockout: 2012

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Bruce Bennett/Getty Images

In 2012, public perception is not on the owners' side. Fans know that revenues have increased by 50 percent since the 2004-05 lockout. Player salaries have also gone up, because they're linked to revenue under the salary cap. Lest we forget, USA Today reported that in 2003-04, before the last lockout, the Detroit Red Wings' total salary commitment was more than $77 million—well above today's salary cap without accounting for inflation or increased revenues. They had eight players on their roster making $5 million or more.

Since the players took a 24 percent rollback in 2004-05, their piece of the pie is only 26 percent larger than it was before that lockout. So despite the franchises who still lose money, the owners are making more, and keeping more, than they were prior to 2004.

The owners' opportunity to lock out the players is the one chance they have to try to leverage an even larger piece of the pie. As business owners, they do assume much of the risk, and sports franchises are typically more about vanity than they are about the bottom line.

Fans and media might grudgingly acknowledge that the NHL's financial growth though the recession of the last few years could prove that the business model is, basically, working. But most would rather hammer on Bettman. Here's Adrian Dater, hockey columnist for the Denver Post and SI.com:

5. Disrespect to Canadian Franchises

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Phillip MacCallum/Getty Images

In 2012, the seven Canadian hockey franchises are among the strongest in the league, almost regardless of their on-ice performance. Attendance figures are high, and tickets are priced accordingly.

But it was not always so. Canadians have not forgiven Gary Bettman for relocating the Winnipeg Jets to Phoenix or the Quebec Nordiques to Colorado early in his tenure or for blocking the potential relocation of the Nashville Predators to Hamilton.

The return of the Jets has been lauded, and the rumblings continue that Quebec might also reclaim a franchise, but Bettman's image remains unchanged.

Also worth noting: the last time a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup was Montreal in 1993, when Gary Bettman had been on the job for just half a season. Coincidence or conspiracy?

6. Misguided Expansion into Nontraditional Markets

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Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

When Bettman took over in 1993, the NHL had expanded to 24 teams, and the Florida Panthers and Mighty Ducks of Anaheim were poised to join the league.

Under Bettman's watch, the league added the Nashville Predators, Atlanta Thrashers, Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets, while moving the Minnesota North Stars to Dallas, the Quebec Nordiques to Denver, the Winnipeg Jets to Phoenix and the Hartford Whalers to North Carolina.

According to ESPN, nine of the team's bottom 11 franchises in terms of attendance come from these ten expansion or relocation teams. Minnesota is the only one to escape, at a lofty No. 16.

If you build it, they won't necessarily come? Let's examine the plight of some of these franchises.

7. Atlanta Thrashers (R.I.P.)

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Al Bello/Getty Images

The Atlanta Thrashers franchise was awarded under Bettman's watch in 1997, as part of a four-team expansion that also included Minnesota, Columbus, and Nashville. This was not Atlanta's first foray into hockey: the Flames originated there in 1972 but moved to Calgary in 1980.

The Thrashers franchise lasted a little longer—from 1999 to 2011—before also relocating to a smaller Canadian market, this time Winnipeg.

According to Hockeydb.com, over 902 games in 11 seasons, the Thrashers put up a record of 342-437-45-49-29, for a winning percentage of .447. They made one playoff appearance, where they were swept 4-0 by the New York Rangers despite having home-ice advantage. Attendance started at 17,206 in their first expansion year and dwindled to a low of 13,469 in their final season.

In 2011, James Mirtle of The Globe and Mail explained that the demise of the Thrashers had more to do with poor, fractured ownership than anything else. As fans are well aware, finding and nurturing good owners is Gary Bettman's responsibility. No matter how large the market or how many big corporations might call it home, stable ownership is absolutely necessary for a franchise's long-term success.

8. Stubbornness in Phoenix

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Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Of all the "non-traditional" markets Gary Bettman has pursued, Phoenix is the one that troubles fans the most.

On top of bearing the weight of being the dearly departed original Winnipeg Jets, the Coyotes franchise has been plagued with problems from the outset. Their original home at the AmericaWest arena was not well-suited to hockey; their current home in Glendale is in the middle of nowhere. Combine this with the fact that hockey is not indigenous in the desert and the Coyotes have struggled to build a fanbase.

But, as David Shoalts of The Globe and Mail explained back in 2011, even a bankrupt franchise has value to the NHL. The Phoenix area is the 12th-largest television market in the US, and American television partners wanted it included in any national TV deal.

As this fan points out, a lockout is one way to solve the Coyotes' attendance woes:

9. Shane Doan's Return to the Coyotes

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Christian Petersen/Getty Images

It's fantastically ironic that after all their statements about how the current economic system needs to be tweaked, the Phoenix Coyotes joined the pre-lockout frenzy in signing Shane Doan to a rich free agent contact.

 

10. Columbus on the Brink

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Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

It's never a good sign when any franchise player asks for a trade. Rick Nash's departure could spell the beginning of the end for the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Since joining the NHL in 2000, the Blue Jackets have amassed a record that's almost identical to Altanta's: 902 games played, for 342-441-33-40-46 and a 0.445 winning percentage.

Attendance peaked in their second season, at 18,136. The last two years have been their worst, although there was a slight rebound in 2011-12 from the previous year's franchise low. Like Atlanta, they've made the playoffs one time and like Atlanta, they were swept 4-0 in their lone appearance—in this case, by Detroit in 2008-09.

The state of Ohio had also previously hosted an NHL franchise, the Cleveland Barons, from 1976-78. After just three years, the team ceased operations and merged its assets with the Minnesota North Stars.

The Blue Jackets have had a more successful run than that. Because they're not in the sun belt and because they generally don't do damage to anyone's favorite franchise, they're rarely the object of fans' wrath. But Columbus is in trouble from a hockey operations standpoint.

In another eerie coincidence, Atlanta was awarded the All-Star Game in 2005, the season lost to the last lockout. This year? It's Columbus.

11. Sun Belt Teams...Especially the Ones That Win

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Grant Halverson/Getty Images

One strange result from the age of parity is that Canadian teams, with all their fan support and all their ticket-sales revenue, have generally struggled to be successful on the ice. Meanwhile, Bettman's expansion teams have done pretty well.

The Phoenix Coyotes made the Western Conference Final in 2012, and the Tampa Bay Lightning did the same in the East in 2011 (as well as having won the Stanley Cup right before the 2004 lockout). The Carolina Hurricanes were named the first cup champs after the lockout, and the Anaheim Ducks followed in 2007.

To the chagrin of Canadian fans, during the Bettman years, the sun belt teams have been a lot more successful in the playoffs than their Canadian brethren.

12. Not a Fan

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Let's hand this one over to Steve Ott, now of the Buffalo Sabres, who sums up fans' suspicions of Bettman's loyalties in 140 characters or less:

13. He Sidesteps the Issues

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Jim Rogash/Getty Images

Gary Bettman never met a microphone he didn't like. But that doesn't mean you'll get a straight answer out of him.

Bettman is a master at sticking to his talking points and never letting a good question get in the way of his agenda. It keeps his message clear, but it drives fans crazy.

14. He's Right About Fans' Blind Loyalty

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Michael Heiman/Getty Images

As Canadian Business magazine points out, when Gary Bettman said that the NHL recovered well after the last lockout "because we have the greatest fans in the world," he was dead right.

The evidence shows that attendance actually increased after the last two work stoppages, and we all know that revenues have increased even more.

Fans wish they could punish the league more for taking away their favorite thing, but they most of them know they'll be back the moment an agreement is reached.

 

15. He's Short

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Harry How/Getty Images

Hockey's a game where size matters. The idea that the proceedings are determined by a suited man who never played the game and might measure up at 5'6" definitely rubs fans the wrong way.

When it comes to pure insults, Bettman's height is often part of the package. There were loads of Tweets in this area that aren't suitable for reposting here. Here's one of the milder ones for our last word.

 

Thanks for reading. You generally won't find me hurling insults at Bettman on my Twitter, but I can't promise that it won't happen, depending on how this lockout shakes down. Follow me if you're so inclined:

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