NHL Sets Weekend Deadline

[Suigi]

Even I, the classic cynic, am starting to believe that the NHL of 2006 is going to look alarmingly different than the NHL of 2003 - assuming there is an NHL of 2006.  Trust me when I say these words do not come to me easily - I really feel this is going to be the NHL's fate.  I never thought I'd come to that line of thinking, but there it is.

Here here.

I wouldn't be surprised if contracts continue to skyrocket, especially if there isn't a cap.

And since replacement players are likely going to be used, I think the NHL general managers should get on the phone to all the people who signed up for Making The Cut.

[Brian in Boston]

Why does everyone feel a 28-game schedule would diminish the worth of the playoffs?

Because going from a regular season NHL schedule of 82 games to a "regular season" NHL schedule of 28 games is roughly the equivalent of the NFL going from a schedule of 16 regular season games to just 6 regular season contests. You're talking about reducing the regular season schedule to about a third of its normal length. It would be a travesty. A glorified exhibition tournament, undertaken solely so the NHL and its players could pat each other on the back and say, "Hey! Look at us! We 'salvaged' the season!"

Spare me.

[chriscj83]

Good grief.

I wonder when they'll realize that no one gives a damn any more.

Congrats, NHL! Kudos, NHLPA! You've successfully derailed the national attention of Canada.

GO TORONTO ROCK!

hey, im in North Dakota, and it sucks here too. i have nothing to do. there is NO WAY i'm watching NBA 'action'.

god i wish there was hockey. i would give up so much to have a season right now. if it was 20 games, i would watch every single game of every single team if possible. i've been deprived and i really dont want to wait til next fall or....the fall after i hope not..

[Mac the Knife]

Why does everyone feel a 28-game schedule would diminish the worth of the playoffs?

Because going from a regular season NHL schedule of 82 games to a "regular season" NHL schedule of 28 games is roughly the equivalent of the NFL going from a schedule of 16 regular season games to just 6 regular season contests. You're talking about reducing the regular season schedule to about a third of its normal length. It would be a travesty.

Not really. Hockey historically has been the sport with the reputation of "everyone makes the playoffs," stemming from the days in the early 80's when 16 of the league's then-21 teams (over 75%) made the playoffs. While today its 16 of 30, and right or not, the league still has the rep.

28 games or 82? The casual hockey fan doesn't care, and the die-hard would be happy to get whatever NHL hockey they could.

[officeglenn]

It also begs the question: If the regular season is only 28 games, then do the best eight teams from each conference actually make the playoffs? What if, say, Nashville gets on a hot streak and winds up winning the Central Division title while the Red Wings hit the skids for a spell and miss the playoffs? In an 82-game season, there are more than enough opportunities to balance out fluke hot and cold streaks and separate the wheat from the chaff. I don't think a 28-game season would provide an accurate representation of the relative strengths of the teams competing.

[Saintsfan]

My question still remaions. Whats worse for hockey, a year without the Cup or a shortened season and the possibilty of an unlikely team winning the Cup.

My opinion is that for the long term good of the game a Stanley Cup Series needs to be played, even if its off a 28 game season. The likeliest is that in the end 2 deserving teams will be in the Cup Series, and a completely blank season would send a bad message to sponsors and fans alike.

[NJTank]

I agree they need a playoff the season matters not but the Cup is everything.

[Discrim]

i'm not gonna state the obvious other than that the NHL needs to put Bettman in a box and send him back to the NBA. It's over, and the only hockey I'm gonna see this year will be UW and the Frozen Four (damn I wish they put the Ads on TV).

This lockout has served as a good tutorial for the NBA, which might have its own lockout. Or, basically, how NOT to go about it.

1-hold actual negotiations, not these shams the NHL and union passed off as meetings

2-actually get a read on the public opinion. the NHL and union failed miserably on this front, moreso the union.

3-have more than one plan. the league failed to accept any option other than an NFL-like hard cap, and the union has failed to realize that any cap may be better for all involved in the long term than a luxury tax would be.

4-learn from the model, the NFL-the NFL is where it is for a reason. It is arguably the best-run league out of the Big 4, with the NBA a distant second and then MLB is probably third. which leaves teh NHL.

[quantum]

The NHL needs to get a salary cap in place. As much as it sucks to go without pro hockey, this really needs to be hashed out. The NFL has their act together fiscally, and it's the model the other leagues need to aspire to.

[wheateater]

It also begs the question: If the regular season is only 28 games, then do the best eight teams from each conference actually make the playoffs? What if, say, Nashville gets on a hot streak and winds up winning the Central Division title while the Red Wings hit the skids for a spell and miss the playoffs? In an 82-game season, there are more than enough opportunities to balance out fluke hot and cold streaks and separate the wheat from the chaff. I don't think a 28-game season would provide an accurate representation of the relative strengths of the teams competing.

Even more reason to have a shortened season! My Kings have little-to-no chance of coming out near the top of the West because of monsters like Detroit, Colorado, Dallas, and St. Louis. With only 28 games, the "best" teams should be able to play as well as they would in an 82-gamer. If they don't, too fluffing bad. A 28-game season may be the NHL's only chance to get some good parity going instead of suffering through another decade of 4 teams sharing the Cup (Tampa's Cup win notwithstanding). And Mad Mac saying, "The casual hockey fan doesn't care, and the die-hard would be happy to get whatever NHL hockey they could" is the most accurate thing I've heard in awhile.

Now, according to The Score television network up here in Canada, NHL Executive VP Bill Daly told Steve Kouleas of The Score that the NHL would be prepared to negotiate a possible deal involving a SALARY CAP with NO LINKAGE between revenues and expenses. This is obviously meaningless bullplop at this stage, but I thought I'd just throw it out there to show that the NHL is really trying to come away from this debacle as the "good guy" in the eyes of the media (i.e.- PR) and the fans.

[wheateater]

This lockout has served as a good tutorial for the NBA, which might have its own lockout. Or, basically, how NOT to go about it.

Keep in mind that the CBA in MLB also runs out in 2 years if I'm not mistaken (at the end of the '06 campaign), which means the NHL is standing as an example of what might happen to b'ball and, uh, b'ball.

Wow. Maybe nuclear winter in 3 major sports. Hmm, can football really run year-round?

[Cartabago]

EDIT: Wrong thread u_u

[JamesCraven]

BREAKING NEWS

NHL Commissioner Gary Betman has scheduled a news conference in New York Tuesday (2/15) in which it is expected to announce the cancellation of the 2004-2005 NHL season.

[Saintsfan]

BREAKING NEWS

NHL Commissioner Gary Betman has scheduled a news conference in New York Tuesday (2/15) in which it is expected to announce the cancellation of the 2004-2005 NHL season.

you see you have underlined something there, so everyone is gonna think its a link. Way to raise your popularity.

but it really sucks that hockey is happy to cancel a year to make a point. no Stanley Cup for 2005? I know some old Lord somewhere who will be rolling in his grave.

[JamesCraven]

Well saintsfan, I may not get any votes in a popularity contest, but the use of the words "BREAKING NEWS" underlined does not need to be linked to something.

[DEAD!]

Well saintsfan, I may not get any votes in a popularity contest, but the use of the words "BREAKING NEWS" underlined does not need to be linked to something.

True and True

[DJSpeedy]

BREAKING NEWS

NHL Commissioner Gary Betman has scheduled a news conference in New York Tuesday (2/15) in which it is expected to announce the cancellation of the 2004-2005 NHL season.

Updated news...

National Hockey League Commissioner Gary Bettman will conduct a news conference at a New York area hotel on Wednesday, February 16, at 1 p.m. ET.

I think it is a forgone conclusion that the NHL season will be put on ice (pun intended).

Now this begs two questions:

1) For how long will this last? and;

2) Will the fanbase still be there when it does come back?

I think it's clear by now (at least to ME, anyway) that the players simply do not want a cap system put in place. Now if only the stupid OWNERS would grow a brain and realize this, the better off everyone will be...

[sacker12]

Now hearing that there is now a very, very strong chance that the NHL season will be cancelled, I now remember seeing how every morning on ESPN2's "Cold Pizza", they started the lockout update with a graphic similar to that of the nightly updates during the Iran hostage crisis, completely with a candle and "Day ***" of the scandal. I believe the graphic said "Hockey Held Hostage" or something similar to that. Oh well, at least I'm getting my fill of hockey right now watching the AHL All-Star game right now on "The Deuce". Also, I wouldn't be too surprised if hockey faces the "Baseball Strike '94" effect whenever play resumes.

[wheateater]

Also, I wouldn't be too surprised if hockey faces the "Baseball Strike '94" effect whenever play resumes.

That may not be the case because numerous hockey "pundits" have pointed out that hockey, unlike MLB and NBA, relies much more on the hardcore fan than the casual fan. Baseball and hoops have a huge base of casual fans who come and go and rotate with other casual fans, so to speak, and keep the level of attention on those sports quite steady. The NHL has very few casual fans; the great majority of fans are the die-hard, "eat, sleep & breathe" types (like myself) who will return to the game regardless. In centres like Detroit, Toronto, Philly, Dallas, Colorado, and any other places where the game is well-established and well-marketed, the lockout will never affect them. It will, instead, register a huge blow on the hot-and-cold markets that Tampa Bay, San Jose, and even Boston can be. It will obliterate any previously growing interest in Nashville and all those other unorthodox markets to prove that the NHL should've stopped gaining weight around the 94 lockout.

I think it is a forgone conclusion that the NHL season will be put on ice (pun intended).

Now this begs two questions:

1) For how long will this last? and;

2) Will the fanbase still be there when it does come back?

I think it's clear by now (at least to ME, anyway) that the players simply do not want a cap system put in place. Now if only the stupid OWNERS would grow a brain and realize this, the better off everyone will be...

1) There is no incentive for anybody to return to the table during the summer months. The players are never paid in the off-season, so June to September will be no different to them than any other summer.

2) See earlier (and lengthier) response.

Though the PA says now that it will never accept a cap, the growing pressure of their villainy portrayed by the media and reinforced by the fans will eventually cause them to break rank. Players will grow uneasy with Goodenow and will begin harping at him to get a deal done. When Bettman says the players will never get a better deal, he means it. The owners cannot back down now. They will be made a laughingstock and fans will be disappointed in them if they do (both for losing a season and for failing to get a cap or reasonable facsimile). The owners got themselves into this mess and they must get themselves out. The only way to do that is by implementing a cap, and anything less will be considered a failure by everyone. The players will never be scared of the term "lockout" again, because they know they can beat the league. The fans will never forgive the league for stealing the season. The advertisers will never think of the NHL as a good market to plug dollars into, and big TV contracts will therefore never come the league's way. The future of the NHL is at stake here and Bettman cannot and will not let the PA win, lest he lose his job and any thread of credibility he ever had.

....AAAANNNNDDDD I'm spent...

[CaolinaJoe]

Have any of the owners proposals ever made it to a full vote from the union. I'd just be curious to see what the outcome would be if the proposals ever got out of Goodenow and Lindens hands.