Gary Bettman setting himself up for storm of boos with big NHL draft change

Get ready to boo Gary Bettman even more during the 2025 NHL Draft. The NHL will have the commissioner announce the names of every first-round selection at the draft being held in Los Angeles in late June, as the league marks its first decentralized draft. The move mimics what the NFL and NBA have done for years: having their respective commissioners announce first-round selections while teams participate virtually from their respective cities. Bettman has always drawn the ire of hockey fans whenever he appears at major NHL events such as the draft and Stanley Cup Final. “The clubs asked for this,” Bettman said over the weekend while at the Kings-Utah Hockey Club game, according to Front Office Sports.“I wasn’t looking for any more exposure.

I have more than enough.But this is what the clubs told us they wanted, and we’re going to try it.

And we’ll see after this year whether or not everybody likes it better.”NHL general managers, team owners or special dignitaries typically made the first-round pick announcement in years past. The NHL draft returns to Los Angeles for the first time since 2010 when it took place at Crypto.com Arena – then known as Staples Center.The Rangers used the 10th overall pick in that edition to take defenseman Dylan McIlrath, which was announced by Blushirts alum Gordie Clark. Kevin Connolly, who starred in the hit HBO show “Entourage” and is an Islanders superfan, announced the Isles’ No.30 overall pick of Brock Nelson that year. The move to a decentralized draft ends the long-running tradition in the NHL in which the entire league and its fanbases came together in one location. While teams won’t be there, the league is hopeful the appetite will be the same among hockey fans as it has been for football fans, who have flocked to drafts in record numbers. “The prospects and our fans can expect a first-rate event with a new look and creative approach,” NHL president of events and content Steve Mayer said ...