As expected, NHL Twitter (or X these days) was abuzz following the first round of this year’s NHL Entry Draft.
However, the reason for said buzz had just as much to do with the ensuing absence of a familiar hockey media personality as it did with typical speculation around which recent draftee will emerge as the game’s next superstar.
After hosting the first-round show on June 28 from The Sphere in Las Vegas, veteran Sportsnet insider Jeff Marek was suddenly removed from the broadcast.
Following weeks of inactivity on his X account, Marek announced on July 26 that his time with Sportsnet was over.
Six days later, a report by The Athletic revealed why his tenure with the outlet ended abruptly after 13 years.
Marek had reportedly come under scrutiny from the NHL for allegedly relaying the names of draft picks to a friend in the media before they were officially announced.
With the allegations, came concerns that the tips would make for an unfair betting advantage. And, therefore, a threat to standards of integrity, fairness, and compliance for the league.
Series of correct predictions by fellow media member tipped off NHL officials
According to The Athletic, at least one league official had questions for Marek after the conclusion of the first round.
NHL representatives were apparently curious after Mark Seidel, a veteran scout, nailed a series of correct draft pick predictions.
What first appeared to be great scouting, later prompted questions surrounding the source of Seidel’s selections.
The former Minnesota Wild scout, who most recently held player personnel roles with the OHL Barrie Colts, is well-known in the industry for his work through his company, North American Central Scouting Independent Bureau.
For Seidel, who regularly appeared on Marek’s 32 Thoughts podcast, both his connection to Marek and the timing of his hot streak raised suspicion.
Compared to other first rounds in recent memory, this year’s draft had a few surprise picks sprinkled throughout.
As a result, NHL officials wanted more information.
Postmedia reportedly reached out to both Marek and Seidel. However, the former expressed that he’d prefer not to comment while Marek didn’t immediately respond to the request.
NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly later confirmed to Postmedia that the NHL does not have an agreement with third-party entities specializing in external integrity and compliance to monitor draft coverage.
That said, Daly did not comment on whether a league representative approached Marek that Friday night.
Athletic: NHL officials shared concerns with Nevada gambling regulator
The NHL wasted little time contacting the Nevada Gaming Control Board to raise concerns over Marek’s situation.
While the regulator did respond, it didn’t exactly provide any additional insight. As a law enforcement and regulatory agency, the NGCB said, it does not comment on whether it is or isn’t investigating particular persons or entities.
According to the agency’s rules, licensed sportsbooks cannot accept bets on the NHL draft less than 24 hours before the beginning of the first and subsequent rounds.
NHL taking extreme precautions in wake of gambling scandal involving Senators’ Pinto
To be clear, there is no available evidence to suggest a tie between Marek’s alleged information sharing and gambling. However, the NHL is taking severe precautions in the aftermath of the gambling scandal involving Ottawa Senators forward Shane Pinto.
Last October, the 23-year-old received a 41-game suspension for violating the league’s gambling policy.
Details in Pinto’s case remained scant following the suspension, which raised questions as to why he didn’t appeal the ban. It wasn’t until mid-July, some nine months later, that the New York native opened up about the investigation.
Speaking on the Empty Netters podcast, Pinto said the suspension was due to proxy betting. In other words, he said that he had friends in the United States place bets on his behalf.
“I had my buddies, because I was in Canada, just place bets for me in America,” Pinto said on the podcast. “I wasn’t a Canadian citizen so I couldn’t really use a Canadian sportsbook… That’s proxy betting, so that’s obviously a big no-no. It was an illegal act so, obviously, it was a pretty big deal.
“So that’s why we didn’t want to fight (the suspension) and we just kinda accepted it.”
Unlike former Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter, who received a lifetime ban from the NBA for betting on games, there was no evidence that Pinto’s proxy betting involved NHL games.
