One last blog entry about the NHL, since I was on this topic in a blog entry published earlier today. I happened to run into this article by Colin Horgan from the Guardian (see the link below). It elaborates a bit on my overall point of how the NHL, and commissioner Gary Bettman - surely the worst NHL commissioner in history now - and other prominent NHL figures (like Wayne Gretzky, who I have lost a hell of a lot of respect for now in recent years) have effectively gone to bed with Trump and MAGA. And yes, this reflects on the NHL
This article illustrates how the NHL seems to have lost any sense of being politically impartial and gone fully in support of Donald Trump, for all intents and purposes. Hockey was the great Canadian past-time. But Trump of course never backs away from an opportunity to try and denigrate Canada, to disrespect it's status as an independent country and to refer to it as the "51st state."
Now you might think that the NHL, being the league that represents the sport the most in North America, might try and come to the defense of Canada.
But no, not so much. Apparently, Bettman, who's tenure saw the troublesome trends of Canadian franchises leaving for American markets, or almost leaving. And it has seen favoritism towards American franchises, particularly those in newer, non-traditional hockey markets. Now, in the age of Trump and MAGA bending over backwards to show blatant disrespect towards Canada, it sees Bettman enthusiastically supporting some initiatives by President Trump to promote "restoring tradition" to sports. That's rich, considering how Bettman seems to have thrown not just a bit of dirt on Canada's rich hockey tradition, but to have made hockey tradition in Canada a de facto garbage dump, scrapping traditional markets for his emphasis on new markets, especially in the American South and other warm weather markets.
Here is a snippet from this article (again, see the link below) which illustrates Bettman's support of Trump's sports initiative:
Last week, Bettman was named alongside NHL legend Wayne Gretzky, Florida Panthers’ alternate captain Matthew Tkachuk and various representatives of other sports as a member of Donald Trump’s sports council. The council will be responsible for – among other things – playing an “important role in restoring tradition to college athletics, including … keeping men out of women’s sports.” Not what you’d call an opportunity for Bettman et al to gain a better understanding of the nuances of gender identity, by the sounds of it.
This article focuses mostly on Trump's issues with transgender representation in sports, and not so much any kind of focus on how Bettman has hurt NHL hockey traditions in Canada to the extent that he was permitted to. However, it seemed to me that this nonetheless illustrates how Bettman seems to waffle between emphasizing inclusion and diversity while also apparently wanting to cash in on what he apparently feels is an opportunity to work with President Trump. The same President Trump who idiotically and continually refers to Canada as the "51st state."
Bettman is a terrible NHL commissioner. Surely the worst commissioner the NHL has ever seen. And his de facto support of Trump by (a) joining this ridiculous council and (b) not really speaking out in any meaningful way that I can tell when Trump continuously and relentlessly denigrates Canada and calls it the "51st state."
As I have said before, especially in that last blog entry earlier today, screw this version of the NHL. Bring back the NHL which I loved before Bettman became the commissioner, and in the early days, before his policies did the extensive damage that has made the NHL a joke.
Until that happens, screw the NHL.
The NHL preached inclusion. So why has it got into bed with Donald Trump? by Colin Horgan, Thu 7 Aug 2025.
Commissioner Gary Bettman and Panthers captain Matthew Tkachuk are on the US president’s sports council. It’s hardly a sign of social progress Colin Horgan Colin Horgan Thu 7 Aug 2025 05.00 EDT
https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/aug/07/the-nhl-preached-inclusion-so-why-has-it-got-into-bed-with-donald-trump
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