Your 2012 National Hockey Lockout Thread

[pmoehrin]

Just speaking as a casual fan the '04-'05 lockout killed alot of my interest in the NHL. I'm sure my experience is somewhat skewed because of how into basketball and college hockey I became both which overlap the NHL season. But pretty anyone I know who's a hockey fan, follows hockey first and foremost and in some cases no other sport. I think that culture of either hardcore fans or essentially not fans at all needs to change, or at least that's how I perceive the NHL to be now more then any other sport. Baseball would be the only other sport where that description may also apply.

But this lockout is the worst thing that can possibly happen if your trying to get that casual fan to start coming back and taking an interest in the game. And I think the NHL needs that badly right now. The way I see it they either need to come up with a much better revenue sharing system, or get very serious about restructuring the league. I think the increased revenue sharing model is the easier and probably more effective route to go, but I think the owners feel like none of the above is the best option, keep the system as is and just push all the costs of keeping this outdated model going onto the players.

I'm with pretty everyone else in thinking this is going to be a long lockout. The fact they are pushing this so hard tells me the owners probably cannot agree, and maybe can't even talk to each other about any major economic issue in the sport outside of player salary which is too high in their opinion, as is the stance of pretty every owner in pro sports.

I know there's nothing I've said that is anything new and hasn't already been said 100 times over already but that's just my two cents.

[ElwoodCuse]

The owners can be this stupid until like November until I start to get mad. Honestly, the season could start with the Winter Classic and we wouldn't really miss anything of substance.

[The_Admiral]

The way I see it they either need to come up with a much better revenue sharing system, or get very serious about restructuring the league. I think the increased revenue sharing model is the easier and probably more effective route to go, but I think the owners feel like no of the above is the best option, keep the system as is and just push all the costs of keeping this outdated model going onto the players.

Saying "revenue sharing should be better" is easy, but no one is able to tell me where the shared revenue would come from. Genius Negotiator Gary Bettman locked the league into a ten-year deal at $200MM/year, so even if the league were to grow exponentially in that time, teams would still only get $6.6MM a year from NBC. So we go to local revenue. The Leafs already make a ton of it and already give a ton of it away to the Coyotes and friends. Do we tell them to give up more? I know Canadian business culture is all about fair play and not trying to crush people like bugs, but they're not going to go for that.

The crux of the biscuit is that linking leaguewide expenses to league-average revenues does not work as intended when the disparity between revenue generators is as wide as it is today. We can either change the way we calculate the numbers, or find places to bring in bigger numbers, or both. And look, I know "BRIGN BACK THE NORDIQUES, JETS, AND WAHLERS" is like the absolute lowest common denominator of hockey-business internet discussion and has been for at least ten years now, but hey man, Occam's Razor. You can't cry poor while you leave money on the table like the league is doing now.

[Hathaway Browne]

Even though I wouldn't have seen any games over here (as we only get ESPN America) its still frustrating that the season is potentially in jeopardy. Bettman is lucky the owners like him, as I'd imagine he would have been out on his backside a long time ago for his track record.

[Magnus]

I know Canadian business culture is all about fair play and not trying to crush people like bugs...

Tell that to Bell Canada and Rogers...

[NEW.ERA]

It's funny. Darryl Sutter has been at the brunt of the last hockey played before the previous lockout and this one.

[njmeadowlanders]

I honestly wish it were possible for fans to go on strike in unison whenever they do return. Just have nobody show up, nobody watch on tv, and nobody buy merchandise.

It'd never in a million years happen but that's what both sides deserve.

And I can't wait for them to spray the ice with THANK YOU FANS!!!!!!!! again. Yeah, you're welcome, dicks. Pretty soon an NHL season will be rarer than a winter Olympics.

[rams80]

Everyone crack out NHL 13. That'll be the only hockey we'll get for the foreseeable future.

Bettman.

OMG! WTF IS THIS?!

[FrankCostanza]

I honestly wish it were possible for fans to go on strike in unison whenever they do return. Just have nobody show up, nobody watch on tv, and nobody buy merchandise.

It'd never in a million years happen but that's what both sides deserve.

I agree, the backlash that baseball received after their last work stoppage (1994-95 strike) is one reason why they haven't had one since. While the fans returned to the NHL right after the cancellation of the 2004-05 season, so the league and the union have no fear of yet another work stoppage. Bettman and Fehr makes one long for the days of Ziegler and Eagleson.

[Don]

I honestly wish it were possible for fans to go on strike in unison whenever they do return. Just have nobody show up, nobody watch on tv, and nobody buy merchandise.

It'd never in a million years happen but that's what both sides deserve.

I agree, the backlash that baseball received after their last work stoppage (1994-95 strike) is one reason why they haven't had one since. While the fans returned to the NHL right after the cancellation of the 2004-05 season, so the league and the union have no fear of yet another work stoppage. Bettman and Fehr makes one long for the days of Ziegler and Eagleson.

Canadian fans keyed the recovery from 04-05. If they stay away this time it will show the league that they just cant do this every 7 years. I think they expect Americans to stay away this time.

[Kramerica Industries]

It's funny. Darryl Sutter has been at the brunt of the last hockey played before the previous lockout and this one.

And John Tortorella was damn close to that as well.

I'm still mildly annoyed at the Devils for ruining that parallel.

[The_Admiral]

Canadian fans keyed the recovery from 04-05. If they stay away this time it will show the league that they just cant do this every 7 years. I think they expect Americans to stay away this time.

The unintended consequences of Canada supporting the NHL more than ever before were revenues linked to unsustainable expenses. IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT FOR LIKING HOCKEY TOO MUCH, CANADA, MOVE THE LEAFS TO TULSA SO THIS CAN'T HAPPEN AGAIN

[GFB]

I had a dream last night that 16 teams seceded from the NHL to start their own successful and commercially viable league. Yeah, I know... my dreams are :censored:ed up beyond belief.

I wish I could have that dream. My only dreams about hockey involve me finding out that Gary Bettman is an agent of Satan.

Do you remember which 16 teams in your dream were in this new League?

Haha, unfortunately I don't know if my dream was ever in that much detail, but I'd guess it was the Original 6 + Most Canadian Teams + Some successful US franchises like Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, etc...

[NEW.ERA]

Well i'm boycotting the Flames. 1 guy out of a douchey 19,289 crowd. Oh well, people will still flock to games up here, I know the game has taken a serious blow to my care for it.

[Eye]

I had to ask myself, "Fans came back immediately after the 2004-05 lockout!?" then I remembered that in Canada and I guess a few American markets they did. Gotta downsize; niche sports/leagues cannot support this many teams. Never happening, obviously.

[Maz]

The NHL does well the give every team a chance to someday be a competitor as long as they have a competent front office. Unfortunately, that also means teams that suck in cities that don't necessarily support hockey will someday make the playoffs, and the bandwagon fans will jump in and give their money. Look at Phoenix and Florida this year. In theory, those fanbases will stay involved and that team will continue to make money. Therefore, Bettman holds on for dear life to his expansion teams in hopes this will happen. It'd probably be easier to convince him to move teams to more profitable cities in hockey rich areas that'll come out to the rink no matter what.

[The_Admiral]

Maz, you're generally a good poster and all, but I think you're drunk. I lost you like three times there. Please proofread and re-submit.

[capn89]

[sportstar1212]

Well i'm boycotting the Flames. 1 guy out of a douchey 19,289 crowd. Oh well, people will still flock to games up here, I know the game has taken a serious blow to my care for it.

I'm seriously considering boycotting the NHL. At least until Bettman gets the sack.

[Lights Out]

At this point, I'm thinking there won't even be an NHL to boycott. This is lockout #3 after all.