Gary Bettman

There are lots of come-from-behind wins, games getting tied in the last period, teams going on to win. That, I think, tells the best story. Whether or not some teams have more grit, better chemistry, or more luck or more skill, it's still within the parameters. I think that makes for great storytelling and great interest for our fans.

There are a couple people who have complained on other teams about some of the things that Pittsburgh players have done. Some of that goes in the category of gamesmanship. Some of that goes to the fact that we need to be vigilant as a league to make sure that players aren't unnecessarily and inappropriately hurt.

I think it's fair to say that all of the teams that have been in the playoffs have played very physically.

We are not giving up on the Coyotes in the Greater Phoenix Area... The team has got a number of options and is going to pursue them, so nobody should think that team is moving other than out of Glendale.

Our economics are not baseball's economics. Our game is not baseball's game. Our owners are not baseball's owners, with one or two exceptions. Our union is not baseball's union. What we do has to be crafted and suited to address hockey, to address the NHL, to address our 30 teams and our 700-plus players.

The good news for us is the NHL has never been stronger, never been more popular, and that, I guess, has led to a lot of interest being expressed from a number of places, an interest in getting an expansion team, and Las Vegas happens to be one of those places.

My rooting interest these days is first and foremost competitive hockey, and secondly in officials not making a mistake.

You can have the biggest markets in the world, but if the game isn't exciting, compelling, and competitive, it's not going to generate a lot of interest.

Our franchises have never been healthier. Our league, in terms of its economic footing, has never been healthier.

The fact is, I view part of what I do is, if necessary, on difficult issues, be the lightning rod.

The issue of how the game is played is something that's constantly being reviewed internally with the Players' Association, with the general managers, and it's something that we continue to monitor on a daily basis.

I think it's very difficult to generalize as to why, in a particular league or a particular industry, somebody has or has not come out. We certainly don't want a player to come out for our sake. It should be what's right for him and something that he has to be comfortable with.