Gary Bettman has been the NHL commissioner since 1993 and he hasn’t looked back over these past 30 years.

Bettman is extremely controversial and a lot of people just do not like him, whatsoever. Having said that, there are a lot of good things about Bettman.

For instance, he was able to expand the league to the Souther United States, which was a huge win for the sport.

Now, some believe Bettman is about to be replaced in the not-so-distant future. This is because of the following promotions: Steve McArdle to COO, Keith Wachtel to President of NHL Business, Steve Mayer to President of NHL Content & Events, and Julie Grand to Chief of Staff for Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly.

While speaking about Bettman on 32 Thoughts, Elliotte Friedman spoke on the potential for Bettman to be replaced.

“The most successful league by a mile in North America is the NFL. The commissioner is Roger Goodell. He started as an intern and has come all the way up through the league, and if you ever listen to him talk, it’s all about protecting the shield.

He’s indebted to the NFL and I think the NHL likes that…” said Friedman. “There’s no doubt in my mind the most qualified person to take over if Bettman ever leaves is Bill Daly. He’s been the right hand man for a long time. He knows the league, he’s the most seamless person to take over. If it isn’t him, they’re thinking about ‘who’s our Roger Goodell?'”

Gary Bettman out as NHL commissioner

 

The promotions have also sparked some questions about why the league would make such a move now.

“One thing other people are wondering is why now? This isn’t the end of the NHL fiscal year and I wonder if this has something to do with CBA negotiations. I wonder if it has something to do with a succession plan. All of this stuff is interesting I’ve wondered about after the next CBA. I wonder if he wants to get one peaceful one done before he retires.”

At this stage, it remains to be seen if and when Bettman will relinquish his job as the commissioner.

Having said that, the league probably isn’t in a rush. The new CBA negotiation is coming up, and we’re sure the league would rather Bettman be in charge for that.

However, the next decade will very likely come with some new leadership and some new ideas.