The NHL's dogged pursuit of the Chinese market the past several years is starting to bear fruitGETTY IMAGES
NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly indicated that the league has not "rethought" its stance on deepening its ties with China in "light of the recent firestorm involving the NBA," according to James Mirtle of THE ATHLETIC. Daly said, "We are obviously monitoring with interest. But, no, there has been no thought given to changing course." The effect the China situation could have on NBA "revenue streams could be dramatic," and the NHL is "generating a relative pittance" by comparison. To some extent, that would "insulate hockey from potential fallout if NHL executives or players suddenly started to speak out against the communist regime." The NHL "could make a principled stand and walk away without taking the financial hit that the NBA is clearly concerned about." However, the NHL's "dogged pursuit of the Chinese market the past several years is starting to bear fruit." Beijing will host the '22 Games, which could feature NHL players, as "more sponsors are signing on and more revenue is coming in." The NHL also has a multi-million dollar "commitment to play exhibition games" in China in six of the next seven seasons. The NHL likely will "never achieve basketball's level of prominence in China," but the question now facing the NHL is "should it even try to, given the moral and ethical compromises involved?" Former MLSE President & CEO Richard Peddie said that there is a "lot of overlap between ownership groups in the NHL and NBA." Any backlash over what is happening in China "experienced by one group of league governors could easily affect how they proceed in the future in other situations" (THEATHLETIC.com, 10/23).
