Can the NHL season be saved?
Canadian Press
2/6/2005
Fans accept the NHL season is toast. The players seem to think so too. This week may be the owners' turn.
Unless the NHL Players' Association deems itself ready to swallow "linkage", which is a salary cap linked to league revenue, or the NHL is ready to drop it as its No. 1 demand - both unlikely at this stage - it's time for commissioner Gary Bettman to axe what is left of the season and let everyone move on with their lives.
And with the NFL season ending Sunday, the void in the sports calendar just got a lot bigger.
Sources on both sides confirmed Sunday that there has been no communication since Friday's talks ended in New York.
Another source close to the talks said the union will not pick up the phone, so expect the NHL to do just that on Monday. It wants another kick at the can before it's too late.
While rumours persist that the NHL will soon cancel the season, a cynic might conclude those rumours are being purposely spread to make the union feel like the end is near so as to pressure the players into finally accepting a salary cap.
What if the league has no intention of officially cancelling the season until late this month? How many "critical" weeks will we have had by then?
"I don't know what their motives are," Blue Jackets player representative Todd Marchant said Sunday from Columbus. "Why have they not set a drop-dead date?"
"I've prepared myself either way. I'm ready to play but I'm also ready to accept not having hockey this year."
Marchant's biggest concern now is the 2005-06 season.
"Regardless of what happens this year, I think everybody - players, fans and owners - would like to start on time next season," said Marchant. "(NHL executive vice-president) Bill Daly said the lines of communication would remain open, they'll continue to meet, so maybe a breakthrough will come down the line.
"Either way, I'd like to see both sides keep working at it regardless of how late it is in the year."
Last week's "last-minute" talks once again provided no solution.
But the spin coming out of those talks could not have been more different from each side.
The union's reaction was dire with NHLPA executive director Bob Goodenow reportedly telling his players through their website over the weekend that the season was over.
League sources, however, insist both sides have indeed made some progress, much more than the NHLPA is willing to admit.
But how does this end? One NHL player, who requested anonymity, said he likes the "tax within a cap" solution.
He figures a payroll tax with teeth at $35 million, more teeth at $45 million, and then a hard salary cap at $50 million would perhaps satisfy the needs of owners.
"There's a deal to be done here where both sides can save face," the player said. "Enough's enough, let's get it done."
Either way, it's getting late in the game to play hockey unless you don't care when a shortened season would end.
If the players are willing to play hockey in July, then there's still lots of time to hammer out a deal and play hockey this year.
"They don't have to get the playoffs in by the end of June," 42-year-old defenceman Chris Chelios told the Detroit News.
"There's nothing going on except baseball. The arenas are empty. As long as the fans and vendors get their fix, that's good enough for me. We'll do whatever they tell us."
The league would surely love to put their rejected proposal to a full membership vote of the players. But that doesn't seem to be an option right now.
"To be brutally honest, there's nothing to vote on. Their offer is simply unacceptable," New Jersey Devils forward John Madden told the New York Post.
It's unacceptable because it links player costs to revenues, revenues that may go down when the game resumes because of the damage suffered from the lockout.
"Linkage is tough because we just don't believe their numbers," said Marchant. "How can you negotiate a system with a link between revenues and salaries when you just don't respect their financial numbers?"
Cheers,
Aquaman
Canadian Press
2/6/2005
Fans accept the NHL season is toast. The players seem to think so too. This week may be the owners' turn.
Unless the NHL Players' Association deems itself ready to swallow "linkage", which is a salary cap linked to league revenue, or the NHL is ready to drop it as its No. 1 demand - both unlikely at this stage - it's time for commissioner Gary Bettman to axe what is left of the season and let everyone move on with their lives.
And with the NFL season ending Sunday, the void in the sports calendar just got a lot bigger.
Sources on both sides confirmed Sunday that there has been no communication since Friday's talks ended in New York.
Another source close to the talks said the union will not pick up the phone, so expect the NHL to do just that on Monday. It wants another kick at the can before it's too late.
While rumours persist that the NHL will soon cancel the season, a cynic might conclude those rumours are being purposely spread to make the union feel like the end is near so as to pressure the players into finally accepting a salary cap.
What if the league has no intention of officially cancelling the season until late this month? How many "critical" weeks will we have had by then?
"I don't know what their motives are," Blue Jackets player representative Todd Marchant said Sunday from Columbus. "Why have they not set a drop-dead date?"
"I've prepared myself either way. I'm ready to play but I'm also ready to accept not having hockey this year."
Marchant's biggest concern now is the 2005-06 season.
"Regardless of what happens this year, I think everybody - players, fans and owners - would like to start on time next season," said Marchant. "(NHL executive vice-president) Bill Daly said the lines of communication would remain open, they'll continue to meet, so maybe a breakthrough will come down the line.
"Either way, I'd like to see both sides keep working at it regardless of how late it is in the year."
Last week's "last-minute" talks once again provided no solution.
But the spin coming out of those talks could not have been more different from each side.
The union's reaction was dire with NHLPA executive director Bob Goodenow reportedly telling his players through their website over the weekend that the season was over.
League sources, however, insist both sides have indeed made some progress, much more than the NHLPA is willing to admit.
But how does this end? One NHL player, who requested anonymity, said he likes the "tax within a cap" solution.
He figures a payroll tax with teeth at $35 million, more teeth at $45 million, and then a hard salary cap at $50 million would perhaps satisfy the needs of owners.
"There's a deal to be done here where both sides can save face," the player said. "Enough's enough, let's get it done."
Either way, it's getting late in the game to play hockey unless you don't care when a shortened season would end.
If the players are willing to play hockey in July, then there's still lots of time to hammer out a deal and play hockey this year.
"They don't have to get the playoffs in by the end of June," 42-year-old defenceman Chris Chelios told the Detroit News.
"There's nothing going on except baseball. The arenas are empty. As long as the fans and vendors get their fix, that's good enough for me. We'll do whatever they tell us."
The league would surely love to put their rejected proposal to a full membership vote of the players. But that doesn't seem to be an option right now.
"To be brutally honest, there's nothing to vote on. Their offer is simply unacceptable," New Jersey Devils forward John Madden told the New York Post.
It's unacceptable because it links player costs to revenues, revenues that may go down when the game resumes because of the damage suffered from the lockout.
"Linkage is tough because we just don't believe their numbers," said Marchant. "How can you negotiate a system with a link between revenues and salaries when you just don't respect their financial numbers?"
Cheers,
Aquaman
