Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Common Interests Whats goin on with the NHL?

Back to 6 teams? That will happen when the Blackhawks bring back Stan Mikita, the Habs bring back Ken Dryden. (NY and Boston could fight over who gets Phil Esposito).

But down to about 12 to 18 teams, now yer talkin'.

I don't understand why Hockey players think their salary should even come remotely close to the other sports. They can only get 4-10 games per year on national television.

Unfortunately for the NHL, it's not the teams down south that are struggling. Ottawa has been one of the most successful teams on the ice, but they have been on the verge of bakruptcy since their inception.

So RT, you want Rocket Richard instead of Dryden for the Habs?

Yes, its just sad. I played hockey for about 16 years, had to quit to get an education, but I have a brother who plays for Denver University, now those are some fun games. If you want a good time, go watch some college or junior hockey, some of the best border battles and rivalries around, and none of the players are corrupted by money. THey play out of a love for the game. You cant find that in sports very much anymore.
But I do believe that the NHL may be dead, Gary Bettman chose to ignore the problems that existed in the league and he will go down in history as the man that killed the NHL. I'm not saying the players are acting like saints either but the fact that neither side is even willing to talk about the issues is just ridiculous!

Maybe it will force the first world league.

Thats an intersting thought. I would go and watch that for sure. It would give players without much exposure a chance to show their stuff.

Here I thought that i would miss hockey, but the truth is, I watch making the Cut on CBC and that's enough to sate me for the time being.

As per the usual, the truth is somewhere in between. The players offered some token concessions, and the owners are holding fast.

The owners are partly to blame for giving players $10 million per season. Bobby Holik for $9 mil per? For 40 points in a good year? Give me a break.

But the players, by continuing to insist on a market system when the most successful sports (NFL, NBA) have a salary cap, is simply an indefensible stance.

I support a maximum/minimum system. It rewards good businesspeople with the ability to make a profit, while it ensures that no one will pull a Donald Sterling/Harold Ballard and refuse to spend enoughh to field a competitive team. I also want to see a system similar to the NBA, where there is a max amount a player can make based on his league tenure.

I want hard limits on entry-level players -- no Thornton-like bonuses.

And while I would like to see contraction, I am against it as it is good for the game as a whole to have teams in most of those cities. It will hurt Canadian dominance of the game, and we won't see the good for a few years, but it will happen.

In the end, everyone gets rich, and we get hockey.