Popular player agent slams Gary Bettman, points out his biggest flaw as NHL commissioner

Hockey during the 80's and 90's was very different than the game that we know and love today. For one, it certainly wasn't as fast-paced. The skill elements of the game have also come a long way between then and now. That's not to say that the NHL in the 80's and 90's wasn't exciting and fun to watch, but it was certainly for different reasons.

When Gary Bettman took over as NHL commissioner in February of 1993, nobody really knew what to expect from the former NBA executive. Well, it didn't take long for "the poison dwarf" to make his presence felt, as he was at the helm through his first of three lockouts in 1994-95. The second Bettman-led lockout occurred in 2004-05 (which resulted in the implementation of a salary cap) and again in 2012-13.

While Bettman was able to successfully grow and balance the game from a revenue perspective, he has fallen short of the mark when it comes to marketing the product and building a larger following league-wide - something player agent Allan Walsh wanted to highlight on Wednesday.

It's true that the NHL has put together a very fun and entertaining on-ice product. It's also true that Bettman has managed to oversee several successful NHL expansions into new markets. It is, however, a bit alarming that Bettman has remained committed to keeping teams in markets that haven't really taken to hockey, namely Arizona and Florida - which is a shame, considering how good the Florida Panthers have been in recent years. A lot of that is the league not spending the right amount of time and money to grow the game within those specific markets and other markets that face similar struggles.

All in all, for the crap we give to Bettman as fans, he's actually done a fairly good job in a number of areas. Unfortunately, there are areas where he's also fallen completely flat. His failure to oversee the proper marketing of the product is ultimately what has the NHL sitting far below the NFL, NBA and MLB. The NHL is actually in jeopardy of falling behind MLS as well, which is concerning. It very well might be time for new leadership.