What the clubs want, the clubs will get, according to Gary Bettman.
Speaking to the media ahead of Game 5 of the Western Conference Final between the Edmonton Oilers and Dallas Stars on Thursday, the league commissioner discussed the future of the draft format, with the first non-COVID-season decentralized draft less than a month away.
“What we’re watching is: what do the clubs want? We made this change because the clubs overwhelmingly asked us to do it,” said Bettman.
“Then we had a nice event at The Sphere (in Las Vegas), and a number of clubs started saying, ‘Well, maybe this wasn’t the best idea.’ So ultimately, after this draft, we’ll ask the clubs if they’re comfortable leaving it this way or if they want to go back the other way.”
This year, top prospects, fans and media will attend the event at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on June 27 and 28, while NHL executives, scouts and coaches will participate virtually — a similar setup to those of the NFL and NBA.
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At the NHL’s general manager meetings in March, Bettman explained that at least one representative from each team will still need to be in attendance to relay information from their club.
And, according to Sportsnet’s Eric Engels, many clubs expressed a realization that the financial savings they thought would be gained by not being on location for the draft have largely been offset by the costs of hosting their staff in their respective cities.
When it comes to picks, the plan is for selected players to be walked through the doors of what NHL chief content officer and president of events Steve Mayer called “a virtual hockey house.” Inside, the background will reflect their new team’s branding, and they’ll be connected via a two-way camera with the team’s front office for a televised first interaction.
“This was not us saying ‘Let’s do it differently,’” said Bettman on Thursday, referring to the change in format.
“This was us responding to what the clubs were telling us at the time. I’ve heard some clubs are already having second thoughts, but I can’t tell you that it’s overwhelming or even a majority. So we’ll go through the experience and see what the clubs want.”
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