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NHL Executives and Players Beginning to Turn on Gary Bettman After Bedard Lottery


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Wade Messier
May 11, 2023  (2:04 PM)
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It's expected after every draft lottery that fans will call it rigged, or claim the NHL fixed the lottery in favor of a specific team. It's another when league sources and NHL players are calling out the league for "rigging" the draft lottery, but that's exactly what's happening right now.

Executives and Players Alike Think Lottery Was Rigged For Chicago

It's not too often we get to hear players talk about the NHL's draft lottery, and for an understandable reason. They're concerned about the present day, and having success now. Unless the player their team drafts is going to make an immediate impact, why would they care?
Apparently, this draft is a special case. Probably due to the fact that the grand prize is NHL draft phenom Connor Bedard, who will become an NHLer immediately. Elliotte Friedman spoke on the issue of the draft lottery on the 32 thoughts podcast recently, and he shared that sources inside the NHL are suspicious of the results.
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Friedman says that a surprising number of people who work for NHL teams came forward to both media and the league to express their concerns that the lottery was rigged. Friedman said that he knows people who he "considers to be very intelligent that were convinced the lottery was rigged."
"These were people across the league in executive jobs to even some players on teams coming forth with their apprehensions."

It's normal to see this type of reaction from fans, but from players and team personnel? This is truly an odd case, and really makes you wonder if the NHL was doing Chicago a favor here.
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