NHLPA redesigns website

[gojetsgo]

The NHLPA changed its website look a couple weeks ago. There is a nice feature on the site: Feedback.

Like most fans, I support the owners in the lockout. I think the players need to be told how unreasonable, greedy, and out of touch they really are.

I don't know if it will do anything, but I sent an email in the feedback area. I think that if more fans voice out their opinion, someone out there might just hear us out.

Maybe I'm naive.

Anyway, I encourage everyone else who feels the same about this lockout to take 2 minutes and email something nasty to the Millionaires' Association. Just say something meaningful and maybe our voice will be heard.

[CJR]

I think the players need to be told how unreasonable, greedy, and out of touch they really are.

By the owners, who are trying to put in a system that guarantees that they will make a profit every year, no matter how badly they run their business, because their expenses will be limited to a given percent of their income.

Not that the players are angels, but I see the owners lying this way and that and refusing to negotiate and I find it hard to support them. I can't believe how many people (and news outlets) unquestioningly believe what Bettman has to say.

[Brian in Boston]

The NHLPA changed its website look a couple weeks ago.

Yeah. Now it's based in Sweden... and Finland... and Russia...

[gojetsgo]

I think the players need to be told how unreasonable, greedy, and out of touch they really are.

By the owners, who are trying to put in a system that guarantees that they will make a profit every year, no matter how badly they run their business, because their expenses will be limited to a given percent of their income.

Not that the players are angels, but I see the owners lying this way and that and refusing to negotiate and I find it hard to support them. I can't believe how many people (and news outlets) unquestioningly believe what Bettman has to say.

By no means do I believe most of the things Bettman has to say. As far as I'm concerned, Bettman almost single-handedly ruined hockey. And they COULD be cooking the books to make things seem worse than they are, but there is no question that some teams are losing money. And whether the players are taking 70 percent of revenues or 50 percent right now, it's still a hell of alot.

I just think the players should take the cap and go back to making their millions. Most people agree with that.

[CJR]

I just think the players should take the cap and go back to making their millions. Most people agree with that.

Most people do agree with that, and even I wouldn't complain too loudly if the players did it 'cause I want the NHL back. I think it's a bad deal for the players, though, in comparison to what the owners get.

I'm sure that some teams lost money. Hell, my Red Wings lost money. They didn't lose money 'cause the system is broken, they lost it because they spent a lot money in an effort to win the Cup and didn't pull it off. They knew what they were doing beforehand and failed. Like the Rangers have for years, like the Stars and Blues have lately. Those teams lose money because their expenses are too high, but they knew that and they weren't trying to cry poor because of it.

The teams that everyone says are in trouble are the ones whose revenues are too low. The southern teams that don't draw enough fans, the Canadian teams that have to worry about the exchange rate. Putting a cap on player-related expenses doesn't fix their revenue problems, it just brings the expenses down so that they can continue living. It's a fix, but it's not addressing the right problem.

I still contend that contraction is the answer. There are roughly 700 NHLers right now. If you lose 4 teams, you're down to about 600. Suddenly the guy who was getting paid for being better than 100 other players is the worst player in the league and gets paid like it. The guy who was better than 200 is #100 now, etc. Supply and demand. The supply stays the same but the demand goes down, therefore prices (salaries) drop. You use the contraction process to eliminate teams with the worst revenue problems.

And to change gears a little bit, I'm tired of hearing about how people want the players to just accept the cap and deal with it. Why can't the owners just end the lockout and deal with it? The players aren't striking, the owners are just not allowing them to play. They'd be in Toronto and Ottawa and Montreal and Boston and Detroit and Denver and St. Louis instead of Bern and Stockholm and Moscow and Prague if the owners would let them play here instead of there. I don't understand how some people see the players as greedy but the owners not.

[gojetsgo]

Of course the owners are greedy. But they're businessmen. They are there to make money. And yes, they are stupid. But they are the ones that build arenas that cost hundreds of millions of dollars. They take the hit whether the team makes money or loses money. They are the ones that take the risk.

I think a salary cap will be good for small market teams like the Oilers. Sure, their payrolls are already around the proposed salary cap, but they can't compete because they can't afford good players. If teams like the Red WIngs, Blues, and Rangers didn't grab all the talent (and they wouldn't be able to if there was a cap), then every year every team would have a legitamite shot at the playoffs and the Stanley Cup. Just like the NFL, which is the best run league on the planet.

I agree with the contraction though. There are too many teams, and eliminating a bunch would solve more than just salaries. It would also increase the skill level of the game and bring up scoring. And it would increase overall profit, by getting hockey out of markets that don't give a damn. *Cough* Carolina.