Bettman Wants Deals For NHL's Canadian TV Rights In Place By Next Month

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman wants to have all the Canadian TV rights deals "in place with the major networks -- CBC, TSN, RDS and Sportsnet -- by next month's board of governors meetings," according to Bruce Garrioch of the OTTAWA SUN. A source said that Bettman is "determined to double the TV money" to the C$400M range, up from the C$185M value of the current deal. The deal is expected to keep "Hockey Night in Canada" in its current form, "but the CBC may end up with [fewer] playoff games and possibly lose the rights to some major events," including the All-Star Game and the Winter Classic. The expectation is that Sportsnet "will be part of the national package, possibly on Sunday nights" ( OTTAWA SUN, 11/10 ). The NHL in April '11 signed a 10-year deal to keep its U.S. TV rights with NBC ( THE DAILY ).