Gary Bettman was walking down a Toronto street recently when a fan approached him.Some guy walks up to me and says, I really dont like you, the NHL commissioner recalled. And I said, But you dont know me. And he says, Yeah but I dont like work stoppages, and I go, Well neither do I, so we have that in common.Bettman will forever take a popularity hit for three lockouts during his tenure, but he wont apologize for them. Ten years after the league ground to a halt and the 2004-05 season was cancelled, he maintains it was necessary for the health of the sport.Pointing to the 04 Stanley Cup final between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Calgary Flames in which the team to score the first goal won each game of the series and contrasting that with the 2013 playoffs and its unpredictability, Bettman believes the on-ice product is better than ever.To get to this point, though, Bettman said implementing the salary cap a€” which came out of the 2004-05 lockout a€” was essential.We had teams with 80-, 90 million-dollar payrolls and we had teams with 20-million-dollar payrolls, Bettman said at a recent Canadian Club luncheon. And I would talk to the managers and coaches of the 20-million-dollar teams and go, How are you doing this? And they would say to me, to a man, We clutch, we grab, we hook, we hold and we do everything possible to neutralize skill for 50 minutes and then we try to steal the game.That is why the game as it was being played in the late 90s and early 2000s wasnt nearly as good as it is today.In his 21-plus years as the first official commissioner of the NHL, Bettman has overseen expansion, change and booming business. In the process he has also become a popular target for fans because he has shown a willingness to sacrifice games to affect the kind of change he and the owners want.The game was unhealthy, the competitiveness wasnt there, Bettman said of the 2004-05 lockout. We did what we had to do to not have six, eight or 10 years of a mess. We go through these things not because we want to but because we have to get to a point where the game can be healthy.Now that its healthy, Bettman doesnt look like an executive on the way out. When Bud Selig steps down and Rob Manfred takes over Major League Baseball, Bettman will officially be the longest-tenured commissioner in North American professional sports a€” though he insists because Selig previously had an interim tag that he already is.I will be the oldest when he steps down, said Bettman, who says he hasnt considered any kind of a succession plan. Im still trying to figure out how I got to be 62 years old.Bettman said on multiple occasions during a public interview with George Stroumboulopoulos at the Canadian Club luncheon and in a sit-down with The Canadian Press that he loves his job and the people associated with it. After he hands out the Cup each June, the New Yorker wonders What do I do with myself at night with no games? and insists he hasnt thought about how long he wants to remain in his post.Its as long as Im happy and excited and energized as I am today, Bettman said. If I ever reach the point where Im not, then I need to let somebody else do it. But its a joint decision. Its the owners and its me. But I love what I do and I come to work excited and energized every day.NFL counterpart Roger Goodell is going through a crisis period amid criticism of how he has handled domestic violence and child abuse cases in his league. NBA counterpart Adam Silver recently forced Donald Sterling to sell the Los Angeles Clippers after racist audio recordings surfaced, and the Atlanta Hawks are going through a similar process.Selig, like Bettman remembered for games not played because of the 1994 strike that cancelled the World Series, has a legacy tied to an era of performance-enhancing drugs but also introduced revenue sharing.Pending concussion lawsuits, particularly in light of the deaths of Wade Belak, Derek Boogaard and Rick Rypien, look like the NHLs biggest concern. But Bettman has pointed to the league creating concussion study groups well before the NFL or any other sports league.On the ice, Bettman called last season the best in an almost 100-year history and expects this one to be even better. On a personal level, he doesnt know when, or if, he hit his stride in this job but is proud of where the league is.The game is growing and the game both from a business standpoint and more importantly on the ice has never been healthier, Bettman said. If thats a measure of my stride, then were moving at a pretty good pace. ...Its an honour for me to be associated with the game. Theres no place else Id rather be.---Follow @SWhyno on Twitter . Right-hander Ricky Nolasco and the Twins agreed to terms on a free-agent contract Wednesday, a person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press. . -- Former NHL star Jeremy Roenick shot a second-round 69 to take the lead after 36 holes and former LPGA great Annika Sorenstam and Chad Pfeifer, who lost his left leg above the knee serving in Iraq, are among several players in contention in the American Century Championship tournament on Saturday.
http://www.cheapnhldevilsjerseysauthentic.com/. The Extreme Heat Policy was enacted at Melbourne Park just before 2 p.m. Thursday, suspending all matches on outer courts until the early evening and requiring the closure of the retractable roofs at Rod Laver and Hisense arenas before play could continue on the show courts. . Joel Embiid was nearly unstoppable in the paint in the second half, and Naadir Tharpe seemingly couldnt miss. . The 57-year-old Tietjens has coached New Zealand to nine IRB World Sevens titles and to four Commonwealth Games gold medals as its only coach in the professional era. New Zealand Rugby Union chief executive Steve Tew said the re-signing was made with a focus on 2016 when sevens will be in the Olympics.NEW YORK -- Always calm on the mound, shaggy-haired rookie Jacob deGrom shook off all the zeroes on the scoreboard and just went with the flow. DeGrom outpitched Jake Peavy in a tantalizing hitless duel that carried into the seventh inning Saturday night before the New York Mets broke loose and beat the San Francisco Giants 4-2. "I knew it at the fifth inning, so it was kind of a mental battle," deGrom said, "but I was sticking to the plan we had and I was going right after the guys." With an energized crowd trading "Lets go Mets!" and "Lets go Giants!" chants, Pablo Sandoval doubled off deGrom with two outs in the top of the seventh for the games first hit. Peavy was perfect until Daniel Murphy hit a one-out double into the bottom of the seventh on a ball that left fielder Michael Morse misjudged. The Mets went on to score four runs to back deGrom (6-5), and the rookie won win his fifth straight start. Peavy (1-11) lost his 11th decision in a row, a streak that started with Boston. "At the end of the day, you are trying to put up zeroes and their guy did an outstanding job. I did not do enough," Peavy said. This was the second time this season that a game didnt have any hits until there were two outs in the top of the seventh inning. Milwaukees Matt Garza and Atlantas Aaron Harang each had their no-hit bids broken up in the seventh on April 2. Peavy had never taken a no-hit try past 5 1-3 innings, but the 2007 NL Cy Young Award winner was dealing in his second start for San Francisco. Murphys double came soon after there was a brief delay when Sandoval ran into the third base railing chasing a foul ball. Morse took his first step in on Murphys line drive and couldnt recover, setting off the Mets four-run inning. Travis dArnaud had a sacrifice fly, Juan Lagares hit an RBI single and Wilmer Flores added a two-run double. "I was playing shallow in, and he hit it pretty good, iit just kept going away towards the line," Morse said.dddddddddddd Both deGrom and Peavy got some help in keeping the bases clear until Brandon Belt walked with two outs in the fifth. The Mets backed their starter with fine glovework, while Peavy benefited from a replay call. DeGrom, batting eighth in the Mets lineup was initially safe for an infield hit in the third, but was the ruling was reversed. DeGrom was pulled with one out in the eighth following pinch-hitter Travis Ishikawas two-run single. In a career-high 7 1-3 innings, the lanky 26-year-old allowed four hits and two runs. He struck out seven. Jenrry Mejia put runners on the corners in the ninth but got former St. Johns star Joe Panik to ground out for his 16th save. TRAINERS ROOM Giants: Catcher Hector Sanchez, on the seven-day concussion list since July 26, went through a full workout. Manager Bruce Bochy says hes not sure if Sanchez will need rehab games before he returns. Mets: Right-hander Jeremy Hefner made his fifth minor league start since having Tommy John surgery Aug. 28. He allowed two runs and two hits over four innings for Class A St. Lucie. UP NEXT Giants: Madison Bumgarner (12-8) takes a 2-0 record with a 1.80 ERA into his fourth career start against the Mets. Bumgarner can hit, too. He has two grand slams this year. Mets: The 41-year-old Bartolo Colon (10-8) is going for his 200th win. MAGIC GLOVES Mets: Lagares, left fielder Eric Young Jr. and first baseman Lucas Duda all made spectacular catches early to help protect deGroms gem. DeGrom was most grateful for Lagares diving attempt on Sandovals sinking liner to left-centre that broke up the no-hit bid. Giants: Hunter Pence made a sliding catch in foul territory in right field to help Peavys perfect-game bid in the sixth inning. DANGEROUS FALL Before the game, a fan injured his arm when he fell over a railing above the left-field wall and landed on the warning track. ' ' '
