Lost In Translation

Yesterday in a news conference, Gary Bettmen made it official and cancelled the NHL season.

My thoughts...

- This is about money, plain and simple. It's the workers against the managament. This is the same as the work disruptions found with the auto unions, teachers, etc... The only difference is that it happens to involve hockey.
- The owners collectively own the league and if they want to make systematic changes due to lower revenue streams rolling in, it is their right. When they make changes, it is from a business perpsective, every owner in every business has the right to run their business their own way. It's that simple and this is no different. From what they have been saying, I believe that they are bang on with what they propose. Tying revenues to costs is not only smart but responsible, there needs to be linkage. I would also like to see some sort of revenue sharing process in place, too.
- The players don't give a rat's buttocks about the overall league health, and nor should they. They are hockey players who got a very sweet deal years ago when the revenues were healthier. Now, reality has struck and the players don't like it. The owners want to pull back the high costs of salaries and the players hate it. They should. You and I would do the same, if we were in their shoes. The players don't care what happens 5, 10, 15 years down the road. They care about themselves and their current salaries. The owners are looking long term. The players look short term. Both are correct in their positions.
- What is sad is the 2 concessions that were made in the last 48 hours. The players agreed to a cap (albeit a very high cap) and the owners relinquished their linkage to revenue position. This was significant in many ways because now they were no longer philosophically on different pages, it then became a number crunching exercise. What is sad to think is that if they had both made these concessions back in September, even December, training camps would have been opening up this month.

Other observations...

- The more I hear the players trying to justify their positions, the more I'm convinced that (a) they really don't want to understand as they are protecting what they have, (b) they are NOT business people, and (c) They have much passion, which helps them on the ice but clouds judgment off it.
- Players are bashing Bettmen left and right - which is ironic as it has been under Bettman's reign where the salaries and have just exploded, much to the chagrin of the older retired players. Now that there's no more money for these players, they bark at Bettmen. A Reality check is needed here asap.
- Bettman takes his marching orders from the owners. Players seem to have it in their head that Bettman is responsible. Again, another example on how passionate players are NOT cool headed busniess people.
- The more I hear Chelios talk, the more I think he needs some serious couch time with a therapist.
- Most, if not all, of my friends are happy that there's no season. They think the league of sick and the players are spoiled rotten. They ask, why is there hockey in Nashville, Altanta and Pheonix ... when there is not enough hockey talent to go around? They want many teams to fold. They would also like to see, once play is resumed, the players salaries back down to normal. I agree with all this.
- When they cancelled the World Series back in '94, that was the beginning of the end of the Montreal Expos. That year, the Expos were, arguably, the best team in baseball and they shut 'em down. The fans NEVER came back. I wonder what the damage to hockey will be.
- Yesterday, on the day they shut down the NHL (sounds like Buddy Holly song), I was at an arena watching the North York Rangers play the Vaughn Vipers in a Provincial Jr A playoff game. There was much passion in the building and we all loved what we saw. There is still tons of great hockey around, just not NHL. BTW - Rangers won 3-2 and are now leading the series 3-zip. Go Rangers!