NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, in Los Angeles for Game 4 of the Kings' playoff series against the Vancouver Canucks at Staples Center Wednesday, addressed a variety of topics during an interview with The Times.
Question: Having the Kings in the playoffs after a long absence, having the L.A. market involved, what are your thoughts?
"It's always good for the fans of a team. Any team. It's always good for any organization to overcome the long droughts when a team hasn't been as successful as everyone would have hoped."
Q. Also having the draft here …
"It's a coincidence. It's good to be here. We've been planning it, as have the Kings, for a while, but we know that this is a market that will support hockey. We had a terrific All-Star Game here in 2002, when things were not as exciting as they are today. But you always have to look at these things for the long term."
Q. Looking back at the situation the team was in when Phil Anschutz and AEG bought it, there's been a dramatic turnaround in terms of stability. Competitiveness aside, stability.
"It's interesting that you say that because I don't think Phil Anschutz gets enough credit. That's probably because he's a private individual and the fact that he doesn't choose to be out in the public doesn't diminish the fact that he's passionate about the team, and that since AEG bought the team….
"He has been there for the team in every way that mattered and he has been supporting the team financially and so to the extent, and it always amazes me when I read the stories, [how] this is the equivalent of corporate ownership where nobody cares, or it's only about the money. They really aren't looking at what's happened here during the term that Phil Anschutz has owned this team, supported this team and made sure that the team has been stable."
Q. I think that perception is fed by his choice to not be in the public.
"But he's like that in all of his endeavors. It's no different than any of the multitude of businesses that he owns. This is the way that he chooses to conduct himself, but I think ultimately he should be judged by the fact that he has always stood behind this team. And believe me, because over the years I've seen firsthand how he feels. He does not like losing."
Q. Can you give an example of conversations that you might have had with him, issues important to him?
"It's more that I know it pains him when the team isn't successful."
Q. At the moment, the issue that everyone seems to be looking at is the Coyotes. … If you can just update a little bit on where that situation stands. [The Coyotes are being operated by the NHL following their filing for bankruptcy. They're in the process of being sold].
"The good news is the city approved a memorandum of understanding. That was a big step forward. But the process still has work that remains to be done. We remain optimistic that everybody's going to do what they need to do, and it's nice to see that the team has had success because it's demonstrating, among other things, that people in the Valley of the Sun, will support a team that has credibility on the ice. And that people know how to get to Westgate.
"Hopefully it will all come together. We've put a lot of effort into stabilizing the team and doing what needed to be done last year. And hopefully the things that will need to get done in order to finalize all the arrangements that are necessary for the team will hopefully get done in the not too distant future."
Q. Is there an ownership issue as well in Dallas, with Tom Hicks?
"I think first and foremost it's been very public that Tom Hicks has been in a process to sell the [Texas] Rangers. I think it's just been announced that there's a process to sell Liverpool. And he's made no secret that he's looking at his options with respect to the Stars. I believe there are a lot of people who, if the team is ultimately to be sold, would be interested in buying the Stars."
Q. They're going through a down time competitively, but in terms of people supporting them, are they OK over the long term?
"I think the issues are less about the Stars than a more general issue with respect to Tom's relationship to his banks. The team is doing OK. That team is not a concern."
Q. Looking at the playoffs so far, so many games have been so close and so competitive. Home ice has not really been that huge an advantage. Is this ultimately what you envisioned in terms of parity and competitiveness?
