"We DO NOT want this" "Dumb": Hockey fans react as insider reports update on NHL decentralized draft

NHL fans are not happy after a new update about the draft format. On Saturday, NHL insider Darren Dreger shared on X that most general managers voted to keep the decentralized draft. The league plans to use the format again next year.

"Expect the NHL to give the Decentralized Draft model another try," Dreger wrote. "Strong majority of GM’s voted in favour of the new status quo with some potential production tweaks to move the 1st round along."

Soon, fans noticed the update from Dreger and shared their response.

“We DO NOT want this,” one fan said, showing his disapproval. “Dumb,” another fan wrote, referring to the idea to do decentralized draft. "I knew the whole thing was doomed when a 73-year-old Gary Bettman said the draft would be connecting everyone together with 'the magic of technology,'" one fan mentioned.

In the 2025 draft, players went to Los Angeles, but teams stayed in their cities. The draft used cameras and video calls to make it easy for teams to focus while fans enjoy at home.

Gary Bettman said it was a test, and the league would hold a vote to decide if this should continue. And it seems that after the votes from GMs, it will be conducted again next year in the same fashion.

Here are some more reactions from fans to the NHL's draft format.

"It's unbelievable how Bettman and NHL owners are sometimes disconnected from the fan base," a fan wrote. "That's a shame cause the draft is much more entertaining when it's centralize. ..." "Might as well move to behind closed doors just like the lottery," one fan reacted. "Horrible idea. I’d honestly give that an entire draft watching experience an F," another fan reacted.

Analyst critiqued the NHL decentralized draft

Not everyone shares the NHL general managers' perspective. On Friday, NHL analyst Dan Kingerski voiced his opposition to the decentralized draft, noting that even Commissioner Gary Bettman acknowledged the move was unpopular.

"Wait, didn't everyone, including Gary Bettman, admit the decentralized draft was unpopular and we'd go back to the real draft! Yuck," Kingerski wrote on X. "The elimination chamber, awkward press conferences, and waiting days to talk to prospects was brutal."

In March, Bettman said the 2025 draft's format was decided based on what teams had asked for. But Kingerski's statement represents the voice of a section of fans who want the league to return to the old format.

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Edited by Ribin Peter