Gary Bettman, the commissioner of the NHL is making headlines once again. Reported by Sports Business Journal, writer Ian Thomas has claimed that Gary Bettman made $9.6 million in salary, correlating to the 2013-14 NHL season. The tax filing covers July 1st, 2013 to June 30th, 2014.
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"The filing covers the period of July 1, 2013, through June 30, 2014. That 12-month span includes the league’s first full season back following the lockout-shortened 2012-13 NHL campaign.Bettman’s compensation for the year that included the lockout-abbreviated season was $8,854,610. His pay during the year covering the prior, full 2011-12 season was $8.3 million, according to the tax filings for those seasons."
"Bettman’s growth in compensation put him only behind Shea Weber, Sidney Crosby, Zach Parise and Ryan Suter as the highest earners for the 2013-14 NHL season, according to General Fanager.It wasn’t just the commish getting a raise, other top NHL executives saw fatter wallets in 2013-14. Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly’s compensation rose from $2.98 million to $3.1 million; CFO Craig Harnett earned $100,000 more; and Director of Officiating Stephen Walkom made $547,955 in his return to working for the league.COO John Collins, according to SBJ, saw a $100,000 drop in total compensation, but an increase in base salary. The drop was due to a decrease in bonus and incentive compensation that was dependent on business growth within the league."
These are the type of stories that put disconnect between fans and sports. While the figure Gary Bettman makes is enough to outrage fans, it’s worth noting that he ranks 4th for commissioner salary in North American professional sports, just barely ranking ahead of the PGA Commissioner. Now just because Gary Bettman takes a more reasonable salary compared to other sports commissioners, it’s doesn’t change the fact that each of them are wildly overpaid.
Unfortunately, this is the way of the world now. Executives of big money-making corporations deem it necessary to accept unnecessarily high salaries and bonuses. These people are so greedy that they have more money than needed, and live outside their means. They spend unnecessary money on over-priced materialistic products (living, dining, clothing, travel, etc.) simply because they have the money to spend.
Why can’t these leagues and corporations do something more productive with the extra money? The gap between classes only continues to get bigger, but the problem is obvious. When that big executive takes home an extra $1 million dollar Christmas bonus, think about how far that $1 million dollars could go to helping the lower class (i.e. maybe you save a homeless person’s life with shelter from freezing in the winter).
What if NHL executives had the same heart as Montreal Canadiens defenseman P.K. Subban, one of the most classy individuals in the NHL. How in tune with the way of the world is this young man? Back in September, P.K. Subban made a $10 million dollar donation to the Montreal Children’s Hospital. Imagine if other players and NHL executives shared the same sentiment as P.K.
Even to put that money directly back into the sport could a long way. Instead, hourly ice rate rentals continue to soar higher. Hockey equipment and registration continues to be a major contributor that prevents kids from playing. Even things like travel and tournaments can get costly for parents.
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But who are we as fans to complain, right? We only pay these players and executives bills with our hard-earned money. Perhaps we should be thankful that Gary Bettman takes less salary than that of NFL, MLB, and NBA commissioners. Is it fair that these people behind the scenes in NHL are taking home more than a majority of players? Does it make sense that only four players earned more than the commissioner in 2013-14? Feel free to chime off below, whether you’d like offer a perspective from the other side, or add something related.