The National Hockey League will lock out its players

[alphaone]

Once upon a time in Hartford we had a team called the Whalers now known as the Carolina Panthers.

LOL, arent' the Carolina Panthers a football team? The hockey team is the Carolina Hurricanes.

Go Sharks Go! (Maybe this lockout will give them some time to get their butts in gear. Losing to the Flames in the conference finals last year, pathetic... )

btw, Hockey is huge here in SJ (or at least in the general area I'm at). They are our only professional team after all...

 

[Brettla]

I wish pro sports wouldn't get to this type of problem, i still respect pro hockey players more than most other pro sports athleats because they seem to complain less about the amount money they get paid, unlike the NBA, MLB, and NFL players that think they need even more money per season than most of their fans will earn in their entire lives.

 

[sockdoggy]

I'll play for free!

The owners should open the rinks to some remotely talented people who will play for free.

Or how about starting an 'extreme' footba-- hockey leauge; call it say, the XHL. Calling Vince McMahon...

(I know it's inevitable it will fail within a year, but hey, hopefully by then the NHL will be back in action.)

 

[Chip NoVaMac]

The owners should open the rinks to some remotely talented people who will play for free.

Or how about starting an 'extreme' footba-- hockey leauge; call it say, the XHL. Calling Vince McMahon...

(I know it's inevitable it will fail within a year, but hey, hopefully by then the NHL will be back in action.)

Actually they should do what the NFL did during their strike. Hire replacements. Give some others a shot. When the NFL did it, it was some of the best ball playing I had seen in some time.

 

[Abstract]

As an Atlanta resident, that kinda hurts. I am a huge fan of hockey. A lot of my friends love the sport too. Is there any reason we shouldnt be able to enjoy the game live. It is much better in person than it will ever be on television. You dont get to enjoy the speed of the game and what happens away from the puck when watching it from home. Why shouldnt we be able to enjoy it as well?

In all fairness, does it really matter how much you like hockey? There's someone in Nevada right now who loves hockey as much as you do, but there won't be a team there anytime soon, and I don't think there should be. Any hockey fan can say its unfair to not have a team where they live because he and his friends love the sport. That doesn't mean anything. Its like saying that Montreal deserves a baseball team because in 2002, one home game brought in a whopping 700 people to the stands. I know this example is extreme, as Atlanta fills their arena with a bit more than 700 people, but point made.

Most doctors that work in a hospital or ER (although not regular MDs running general practices) should get paid a lot, and they do. Teachers get paid a bit more. Athletes get paid as much as they do because there are very few people who can do what they do at that level. People love competition, and people are willing to pay to be entertained. I'd rather go to a hockey game than buy 1 or 2 video games, but that doesn't go for all people. We only pay for what we want.

I'm not saying that a pro athlete's salary is justified. Hardly. However, if they got paid a maximum of 2 million dollars, I wouldn't be complaining.

 

[stcanard]

Actually they should do what the NFL did during their strike. Hire replacements. Give some others a shot. When the NFL did it, it was some of the best ball playing I had seen in some time.

Well, there is a slight issue with that. For instance here in BC that's actually illegal (it was brought up as a suggestion before). I wouldn't be surprised to find it's illegal in Ontario and Quebec as well.

Although I'd lay money that Ralph has made sure it's quite legal in Alberta!

Lose the Canadian audience, and the NHL loses a huge portion of it's viewer base.

 

[MongoTheGeek]

Actually they should do what the NFL did during their strike. Hire replacements. Give some others a shot. When the NFL did it, it was some of the best ball playing I had seen in some time.

This isn't a strike though, its a lockout. Its like management calling a strike.

Professional sports needs to be remodeled some. Superstar free agents are a mixed blessing they draw people in but they also raise the costs.

Hockey really has to watch it. Baseball never really recovered from the strike.

 

[wdlove]

Actually they should do what the NFL did during their strike. Hire replacements. Give some others a shot. When the NFL did it, it was some of the best ball playing I had seen in some time.

I don't know if the NHL is even in a position to do that. The owner of the Bruins was on the news last evening. He was visibly disturbed and upset. Said that he is fighting for the very survival of the game. We are in a deficit situation.

 

[yellow]

I guess it would be hard for a hockey athlete to look at it's cousins in the NFL, NBA, and MLB who are getting retardedly huge contracts, and not feel a little stung. Especially if you're playing for a Canadian team, you can just look at players in the US who make more than you do. I think the demand for more money forced the owners to make a stand and say no more. We want to sit on gold toilets too!

 

[OldManJimbo]

Fall out

I heard an interview this morning with the mayor of San Jose (CA) who described the ripple effect this lock-out will have on people who are far less fortunate than the hockey players or their owners.

Thousands of jobs are at stake in every NHL city as restaurants, hotels, parking garages and concession stands stand empty.

Even if NHL players and owners are the "poor step children" when it comes to pro sports - they are still being paid considerably more than the person who cleans their hotel room and hauls food to their table.

One more example of people caring more about themselves than others.

 

[Chip NoVaMac]

I heard an interview this morning with the mayor of San Jose (CA) who described the ripple effect this lock-out will have on people who are far less fortunate than the hockey players or their owners.

Thousands of jobs are at stake in every NHL city as restaurants, hotels, parking garages and concession stands stand empty.

Even if NHL players and owners are the "poor step children" when it comes to pro sports - they are still being paid considerably more than the person who cleans their hotel room and hauls food to their table.

One more example of people caring more about themselves than others.

Hadn't thought of that. The area around the MCI Center has been transformed into restaurant row. These people will really be hurt with this lockout.

Maybe, I'll head downtown on the scheduled game days, and have a nice meal.

 

[MacNut]

LOL, arent' the Carolina Panthers a football team? The hockey team is the Carolina Hurricanes.

Go Sharks Go! (Maybe this lockout will give them some time to get their butts in gear. Losing to the Flames in the conference finals last year, pathetic... )

btw, Hockey is huge here in SJ (or at least in the general area I'm at). They are our only professional team after all...

Yes my bad, the Hurricanes are the hockey team, but they will always be the Whalers to me.

 

[Peyote]

For those of you down on how much the players are getting paid, let's not forget that they were getting paid that much because of the contracts that the NHL agreed to the first time around. Now, the CBA has run out and the teams want to renegotiate for smaller salaries, or salary caps, or no more free agents, or whatever, and the players don't want to take a cut in pay. I can see their side, I wouldn't want to take a cut in pay just because my company was losing money. Ticket prices really are the problem here. To be a fan of hockey is expensive, therefore there are less fans than baseball or most other major sports.


Oh Yeah...


GO STARS!

 

[SilvorX]

I'm dying for hockey, I need to see some NHL hockey up close as well, I haven't been to one NHL game since '94 or '95, wow.. been that long already.

But I wish the lockout wouldn't wish long since a winter without nhl hockey in canada isn't a good winter at all. I could always settle for WHL hockey but it bores me for some reason and since tootoo is in the NHL now, no reason to go

 

[Chip NoVaMac]

For those of you down on how much the players are getting paid, let's not forget that they were getting paid that much because of the contracts that the NHL agreed to the first time around. Now, the CBA has run out and the teams want to renegotiate for smaller salaries, or salary caps, or no more free agents, or whatever, and the players don't want to take a cut in pay. I can see their side, I wouldn't want to take a cut in pay just because my company was losing money. Ticket prices really are the problem here. To be a fan of hockey is expensive, therefore there are less fans than baseball or most other major sports.


Oh Yeah...


GO STARS!

No one likes a pay cut. But in the real world (on people that earn far less than those in the NHL), that if a business is doing poorly cuts have to come some where. Employee salary cuts are one way to obtain that.

 

[Peyote]

No one likes a pay cut. But in the real world (on people that earn far less than those in the NHL), that if a business is doing poorly cuts have to come some where. Employee salary cuts are one way to obtain that.

When an employer cuts your pay you can always work somewhere else though. The new CBA will effect all of the teams, so in effect, all employers.

I can see both sides, however I don't think the league is going to solve any problems, and just create more, by imposing this lockout, and treating the situation like player salaries are the problems that need fixing.

 

[Chip NoVaMac]

I can see both sides, however I don't think the league is going to solve any problems, and just create more, by imposing this lockout, and treating the situation like player salaries are the problems that need fixing.

I agree also. There needs to be belt tightening on both sides for it to work. And the savings should also be passed on to the fans when and where possible.

 

[maxterpiece]

I'll break it down for you

I guess it would be hard for a hockey athlete to look at it's cousins in the NFL, NBA, and MLB who are getting retardedly huge contracts, and not feel a little stung. Especially if you're playing for a Canadian team, you can just look at players in the US who make more than you do. I think the demand for more money forced the owners to make a stand and say no more. We want to sit on gold toilets too!

The average hockey salary is about 1.8 million. The average NFL salary is about 1.2 million.
MLB averages 2.5 million, NBA averages 4.5 million.

This, however, all makes sense - it all has to do with popularity, the importance of team vs individual and simply the number of players on a roster. In the NFL there are only a few positions where players can make an impact on their own - it is more or less a team effort. This is why there is a lot of parity in the NFL and it is also why a team can go from good to bad so quickly. The talent may not change that much but hte team can come together. The NBA, on the other hand, is a game that is dominated by individual creativity and athleticism. The individual matters more and can therefore demand more money. You also just require fewer players - the average NBA team only has like 8 players who play on a regular basis. NHL it is 10+ players, MLB it is like 15 and NFL it is 30+. There are more people to spread the money between. Now the NBA is seeing a little bit of a renaissance in terms of team play. New rules which allow zone defense in the nba make it harder for individual players to dominate a game. NBA teams like Utah, Denver and Memphis have responded to this by building teams that go 10 players deep, have no superstars and focus on playing as a team and maintaining high energy. These rules will make hte average NBA salary drop. Although there is individual creativity in hockey (stick handling), there really aren't any teams that win with two players (see the lakers). The MLB on the other hand, has always been a game of individual talent. It is the pitcher vs. the batter, one on one, and although the team element is very much there both in the clubhouse and in the way defense is played, the focus is the individual matchups.
Finally, hockey is just plain not very popular. For the same reason basketball has lost a bit of popularity, hockey has lost a lot. THe sport has turned into a sport of superstars who don't play the team game, but unlike basketball where these individuals have the opportunity to do some amazing athletic and creative stunts, hockey is really only entertaining as a team game. This is why it is 1) necessary for hockey salaries to go down and 2) Essentially for hockey that the superstars fade away. I personally don't watch hockey anymore despite the fact that i very much enjoy playing it, and haven't been able to sit through an entire game since the mid 90s.

This lockout has been a long time coming.

 

[umgolfer]

People will start to care about hockey being gone once football is over and by that time it will be too far gone to save anything...I will be getting my college hockey tickets soon so I have something to watch....

 

[rdowns]

Hockey? Pfft, lower market share than Apple.

 

[Chip NoVaMac]

People will start to care about hockey being gone once football is over and by that time it will be too far gone to save anything...I will be getting my college hockey tickets soon so I have something to watch....

One of the reasons that I have supported the Bowies Baysox, Prince William Cannons, and the Frederick Keys while Angelos has held the VA and DC area hostage over the Expo's.

What I saw were players that had heart and desire. Most if not all players were out before or after the game to sign autographs. Unlike many of the O's players. There was also a "hustle" to make each of them look good. Since the next day they could be flipping burgers at Burger King, unlike the players in a MLB team.

 

[Abstract]

What I saw were players that had heart and desire. Most if not all players were out before or after the game to sign autographs. Unlike many of the O's players. There was also a "hustle" to make each of them look good. Since the next day they could be flipping burgers at Burger King, unlike the players in a MLB team.

Actually,the great thing about hockey is that most players are still greatful to be playing hockey. NHL hockey players play for their countries, and few would give up that opportunity because that's it's a part of their heritage. What about the NBA? The desire to play for your country diminished once they do it once. Why play in Greece 2004 when you have already played in 2000? The desire and allure of playing for their country is gone. Allen Iverson gets more of my respect now because at least he showed up.

Most players on the World Championship Canadian team were on the team during the 2002 Winter Olympics. Most have been in over 3 tournaments for Canada. Lemieux has been in this tourney since 1988. The Swedes, Fins, Czechs, Slovakia.....they all show up. Even the Americans do, many for their 3rd or 4th time, so I have respect for hockey players in general. Football/"soccer" players are similar.

I can't say the same thing about NBA players, and once the novelty wears off, I can't imagine MLB players acting with this much love if there was ever a "real" World series involving baseball countries. There's no love of US sports.

- Abstract from Canada

 

[homerjward]

well, the season of the most recent NBA lockout, San Antonio got the championship! asterisk that Phil Jackson!! maybe with this hockey dealie the Iguanas or the Rampage will become NHL teams? hockey is entertaining but pointless as far as im concerned. the best part is watching them fight and going to an arena where it's really cold. plus minor league hockey is cheap here . so, i propose a mandatory statute that all wrestling matches be staged on ice with large wooden/plastic/carbon fiber/whatever sticks. that would condense a hockey match to the parts that matter and lessen the likelihood of a strike

 

[zyuzin4]

I'm going to miss my San Jose Sharks for the time being.

 

[wdlove]

I can't say the same thing about NBA players, and once the novelty wears off, I can't imagine MLB players acting with this much love if there was ever a "real" World series involving baseball countries. There's no love of US sports.

- Abstract from Canada

It always seemed strange that it's called the World Series. If so then it should really involve the World. I wonder is they could successfully compete?