NHL Image Problem

Quick - can you name the leading scorer in the NHL?

Todd Bertuzzi's name has been etched into our consciousness and that's not a good thing for the NHL. Now that the NHL season is almost over - can you name the leading scorer? When you think of the NHL - what player do you think of?

Many people I believe would answer Wayne Gretzky or Mario Lemieux when asked that question. That's a bad thing for the NHL. Those guys don't play anymore (Mario is really retired like Michael Jordan at this point - he only played 10 games this year). More people now know Todd Bertuzzi than know who the leading scorer is (for those scoring at home - the answer is Martin St. Louis of the Tampa Bay Lightning).

How many people knew that Jarome Iginla was the leading scorer last year?

I blame the NHL for this lack of public awareness. Bettman was brought in because he was supposed to be a marketing genius from the NBA (it wasn't his connection to hockey that got him the job) but the marketing has been awful. More people know Todd Bertuzzi than Martin St. Louis - that's an abject failure on the part of the NHL.