Gary Bettman earned more than $9.6 million in compensation for ’13-14 NHL season
NHL revenues are growing, which means everyone is getting raises, including the head of the league, Commissioner Gary Bettman.
According to Ian Thomas of the Sports Business Journal (sub. required), Bettman took in more than $9.6 million in salary and benefits for the 2013-14 season as per a recent tax filing. That was $800,000 more than what he made during the lockout-shortened 2013 campaign.
The filing covers the period of July 1, 2013, through June 30, 2014. That 12-month span includes the league’s first full season back following the lockout-shortened 2012-13 NHL campaign.
Bettman’s compensation for the year that included the lockout-abbreviated season was $8,854,610. His pay during the year covering the prior, full 2011-12 season was $8.3 million, according to the tax filings for those seasons.
Bettman’s growth in compensation put him only behind Shea Weber, Sidney Crosby, Zach Parise and Ryan Suter as the highest earners for the 2013-14 NHL season, according to General Fanager.
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It wasn’t just the commish getting a raise, other top NHL executives saw fatter wallets in 2013-14. Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly’s compensation rose from $2.98 million to $3.1 million; CFO Craig Harnett earned $100,000 more; and Director of Officiating Stephen Walkom made $547,955 in his return to working for the league.
COO John Collins, according to SBJ, saw a $100,000 drop in total compensation, but an increase in base salary. The drop was due to a decrease in bonus and incentive compensation that was dependent on business growth within the league.
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Sean Leahy is the associate editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Sean_Leahy
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