Conflicts and Corruption. Shame on you NHL!

From CBS Sports

Bettman had his contract quietly extended five more years back in November, The Globe and Mail reported Friday. The newspaper reports that the nine-member executive committee unanimously approved the extension.

Bettman's current contract, which pays him $7.2 million annually, was originally set to expire this summer. Apparenlty, one of his biggest backers may very well be the owner of the team at the center of this week's controversy.

What will surely fire up the conspiracy theorists, who have been venting loudly on all forms of media following Zdeno Chara’s hit on Max Pacioretty of the Montreal Canadiens, is the identity of the driving force behind Bettman’s new contract. It is Jeremy Jacobs, the NHL’s chairman of the board of governors who just happens to own the Boston Bruins, the team that employs Chara. However, as chairman, one of Jacobs’s duties is to keep the commissioner and the other key executives of the NHL under contract.