Report: NHL commissioner Gary Bettman earned $8.8M during lockout season

The most recent NHL lockout cost 34 regular season games and led to losses of over $70 million for the league, but it was a good year for commissioner Gary Bettman, who apparently received a raise for his efforts.

Yahoo! Sports' Puck Daddy cites a report by Chris Botta of Sports Business Journal that puts Bettman's earnings during the 2012-13 season at $8.8 million, a half-million more than he earned in the previous fiscal year.

The report (available to SBJ subscribers) also says the league spent almost $17 million in legal fees during the lockout, which added to a total loss of $71.9 for the shortened season.

As the Puck Daddy piece points out, Bettman's salary ranked him among some of the league's highest-paid players that season, including Alex Ovechkin ($9 million) and Eric Staal ($8.5 million).

The NHL's deputy commissioner Bill Daly and COO John Collins both saw pay decreases in 2012-13, with $280,000 less for Daly and $500,000 less for Collins.