Bettman and the owners made the decision.
Actually while it has been home white, visitor darks for quite a while, it was apparently the reverse like now at the start for a long time until the switch to home whites. Don't know the reason for the switch.
CFL teams up here have darks for home games and I've never gotten used to it. I doubt I'll do the same for quite some time with hockey. Hard to shake something you've been used to all your life... :-)