Ed Looney has worked closely with officials from pro baseball, football and basketball to develop education programs about the dangers of gambling. But when he offered to do the same with the NHL, the league was not interested.
Looney, executive director of the Council on Compulsive Gambling in New Jersey, hopes that will change.
Last week, police charged Phoenix Coyotes assistant coach and former Penguins player Rick Tocchet with running a betting ring. Janet Jones, the wife of Coyotes owner and hall of famer Wayne Gretzky, also has been implicated.
The "Operation Slap Shot" investigators have dug up evidence of $1.7 million worth of bets placed on football and basketball games.
"Now is the time (the NHL) can make a difference," Looney said. "I think they have to catch up now. They have to realize it is a problem."
Friday, Looney e-mailed another offer of help to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman.
Looney said a few years ago, he helped one NHL player -- "a guy whose face people would recognize" -- find counseling for a gambling addiction. Looney also said his council already has been contacted by one person implicated in the current scandal.
The NHL contractually forbids its players from betting on hockey, but they are permitted to make legal wagers on other sports. Any changes to that policy would have to be negotiated with the players' union.
"They need to develop a better approach to this thing," Looney said.
The NHL's approach is softer than those taken by some other pro leagues and the NCAA.
Major League Baseball covers gambling with a two-sentence edict, Rule 21(d). A player or team/league official would face a lifetime ban for betting on a game in which he "has a duty to perform." The penalty for betting on a game in which he is not involved is a one-year suspension.
Baseball's disdain for gambling is evident in the large, bolt-print warning signs -- explaining Rule 21 (d) in English and Spanish -- that are posted near the entrance of every major-league clubhouse.
The NFL prohibits players from associating with gamblers and gambling activities. Those who break the rule can be fined, suspended or banned from the league for life.
Only three players -- Art Schlichter, Alex Karras and Paul Hornung -- have been suspended by the NFL for gambling.
The NBA does not allow players to bet on pro basketball games. All gambling, even a game of cards in the clubhouse, is forbidden at events sponsored by the PGA Tour.
The NCAA mandate is simple: a student-athlete who places a wager on any college or pro game is banned for life. Even in Las Vegas, it is against NCAA rules for a college athlete to make a wager on any sports event.
A University of Michigan study released in March 2000, found that betting has affected the outcome of some games.
Of the 640 Division I football and basketball officials who responded to the survey, 84 percent said they had gambled since becoming officials. Twelve officials said they knew of other referees who had not called a game fairly because they were influenced by point spreads.
A 2004 study conducted by the NCAA revealed that nearly 35 percent of male student-athletes had gambled during their college careers. About one percent of football players admitted accepting cash to intentionally play poorly in games.
This is not the first time the NHL has dealt with a gambling scandal.
In 1946, the league expelled Babe Pratt of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Two years later, Billy Taylor of the New York Rangers was expelled and Don Gallinger of the Boston Bruins was suspended.
Last year, referee Andy Van Hellemond was fired after the league discovered he was borrowing money from other refs to pay off his gambling debts.
All-Stars Jaromir Jagr and Jeremy Roenick have previously admitted to betting on non-hockey sporting events. Jagr ran up debts of nearly $1 million with two Internet gambling sites between 1998 and 2002.
The potential effect on Pittsburgh
Penguins officials should pay close attention as the fallout from "Operation Slap Shot" continues to unfold. Time timing of the scandal could be bad for the team, which has allied itself with Isle of Capri Casinos, Inc., in a bid to build a new arena in Pittsburgh.
Isle of Capri has promised to build an arena for the Penguins if it wins the lone license to operate a slot-machine parlor in the city.
Jill Hoynes, director of corporate communications for Isle of Capris, noted that the company is not involved in sports betting. She said neither the Penguins nor the Isle of Capri would be tarred by the "Operation Slap Shot" scandal.
"There is a difference between legalized gaming and illegal gambling," Hoynes said. "They're two completely different things, so it shouldn't have any effect on (the arena-slots situation)."
Still, the scandal could affect public opinion of the arena plan. Looney said that was a risk Penguins ownership took by aligning itself with the gaming industry.
"There's a cost to everything," said Ed Looney, executive director of the Council on Compulsive Gambling in New Jersey. "The positive is, you're getting an arena. But, you're in bed now with gambling as a way to pay that off. You're making the money from people who can't afford it."
