What Gary Bettman Really Said About Nashville

The headline making the rounds after Gary Bettman's "State of the NHL Address" before Game 1 of the Finals is that the Nashville Predators are "not going anywhere," despite owner Craig Leipold's plans to sell the team to Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie this summer. But what did Bettman actually say about Nashville? From the press conference transcript:

"The Predators have a lease that goes, I think, for another 14 years, give or take. There is a possibility that the lease could terminate in a year if certain things do or don't happen. But as far as we're concerned right now, Mr. Balsillie's request for approval and the transaction related solely to him buying the Nashville Predators subject to whatever lease is in effect, and if, in fact, at some point the lease is terminated and he seeks to relocate the franchise, that is something that would have to be considered under the league's constitution and bylaws at the time..."

"Not going anywhere?" Not quite. Bettman merely did what he and the league usually do when faced with a potential relocation, which is to let the drama play out on a local and legal level before taking a stance. (Unless you're talking about Pittsburgh, in which case the NHL assembles a Seven Nation Army and unleashes hell until the last slot contract is awarded.) There's no reason to even acknowledge relocation until the Nashville escape clause debate is settled; as The Tennessean reports, that includes triggering the clause and determining when the team is legally allowed to leave town. To claim the Predators are "not going anywhere" is either wishful thinking or a complete misread of the cunning way Bettman approaches these scenarios. Say what you will about his ability to sell the game, but the guy's a master at managing his message - after this NHL thing dries up, he could have a home in the White House communications office. Other notable news from the presser:

Bettman floated the idea that Canada is ready for another franchise, calling a potential return to Winnipeg an "interesting and intriguing thought." When asked if he's ever considered bringing a second team to Toronto, Bettman said "it's not something that I have given any thought to." (The transcript did not indicate if the press in attendance burst into spontaneous laughter at this point.)
When asked about television ratings: "The research also says that we probably have somewhere around 50 million fans. Some avid, some casual. What it tells you is people who follow this game who are passionate about the game don't watch it on TV in the United States as much as we'd all like." Again, the biggest problem the NHL faces is translating its live in-arena experience onto the small screen. Until that happens, the NHL will not draw on television. It's that simple.
Nice shot at the print media that have decided not to cover the Finals, after talking about the tough economic outlook for newspapers and the growth of electronic media: "I saw one editor say he wasn't sending somebody because he didn't like the geographic match-up. With all due respect, if you're making your decisions as to how you cover your sports based on geography, I'm not sure that your readers are going to be reading your sports pages that often."
Finally, for those of us worried about things like the league enlarging the net just to turn 3-2 games into 8-7 games, some scary words from the Commish: "We like the way the game is being played. We think there are lots of scoring chances. We think there's good flow. We think there's lots of lead changes, but the question is, does the game, and particularly our fans, need more moments of gratification that only the scoring of a goal can bring them? And that's something that we've got to look at." Dear Lord...