Gary Bettman discusses salary cap, ABC

BOSTON – NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman was at TD Garden on Sunday for the Boston Bruins’ Centennial Game against the Montreal Canadiens and discussed several league-related topics, including the upcoming collective bargaining agreement with the Players Association.

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When asked, Bettman said the relationship between the league and the players’ association was on track to lead to negotiations.

“Absolutely,” he said. “Marty Walsh (executive director of the NHLPA) is proving to be an excellent partner. We have a little collective bargaining to do, which will begin in February and I’m pretty confident that I won’t change my answer to the question when you ask me at the end of the year. The two organizations work very well together and I am happy to count Marty as a partner and now as a friend.

The current collective agreement will expire on September 15, 2026, but Bettman hopes to finalize a new agreement with the NHLPA before then.

“That would be nice,” Bettman said. However, “it would be purely begging of me to answer this question. Marty has a responsibility to his players. He has a lot of players to talk to, and in terms of communication level, my job is a little easier in terms of who I have to interact with, so don’t put up a hard wall, focus on how long this will take. I hope it goes well. I hope this moves along quickly, but don’t pay too much attention to it in case it becomes a little longer than people think. This does not mean that the process is not working properly or that we are not getting along.

The commissioner added that it takes time to properly inform all affected voters on both sides. The current salary cap is $88 million and some speculate it could increase as high as $92.5 million for 2025-26. Bettman said those numbers aren’t final, adding that negotiations haven’t been discussed, but he hopes the process will go “smoothly and steadily.”

“I have seen these speculations and they are not based on the numbers as we understand them,” he said. “And that would require us to come to a new agreement and figure out how to calculate the cap for next year and we haven’t had those discussions yet at all. I wouldn’t rule anything out or exclude anything, but these stories were a little too far from reality.

Bettman said he is happy with his relationship with Walsh and both are working to find what is best and makes the most sense for the game, its players and the league.

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