NHL’s Gary Bettman humiliates NBA’s Adam Silver with Four Nations masterstroke that left America hooked

In a year packed with All-Star fluff and viral dunk clips, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman made the most daring call of his tenure—and it paid off in spectacular fashion. Scrapping the traditional NHL All-Star Weekend for a bold, high-stakes Four Nations Face-Off wasn’t just a gamble.

It was a message. A direct shot at the NBA, its declining midseason format, and Commissioner Adam Silver’s lukewarm grip on fans' attention.

Gary Bettman humiliates Adam Silver as NHL proves America wants blood, not dunks

“Talk about the state of the sport,” Pat McAfee told Gary Bettman during a recent appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, praising the February 2025 event as a cultural pivot. “It feels like that was a real, like, kickstart to hockey becoming a huge part of Americana.”Bettman didn’t dodge.

“There was so much demand for international best-on-best competition,” he said. “The Four Nations was really important to our players, and you could see how much it meant to them.”

While Mac McClung’s third Slam Dunk Contest win barely cracked 3.3 million viewers, the NHL’s Four Nations final between Team USA and Canada exploded with over 9.3 million U.S. viewers—the biggest non-Olympic hockey broadcast ever. The tournament opener saw a fight nine seconds in.

Anthem standoffs went viral. The final saw Connor McDavid net a sudden-death winner. The NBA simply couldn’t compete.Even Adam Silver admitted the NBA’s All-Star Game has “grown stale,” while hockey delivered a moment that felt like war for the sweater—not brand deals or social media moments.It wasn’t just about numbers. NHL stars returned to their clubs injured because they cared that much. Bettman underscored that point: “They showed it even after Four Nations was over… based on the number of players that came back to their NHL teams injured.”Also Read: Who is Lanny McDonald? Hockey legend retires as Hall of Fame chairman after a decade of behind-the-scenes brillianceWith the NHL headed back to the Olympics in 2026 and the World Cup of Hockey planned for 2028, this wasn’t just a one-off—it was a cultural reset. One that exposed how stale and safe American sports can be—and how raw, patriotic, and real hockey still is.