NHL lockout over soon ?

Snafu

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sport news told that referees are informed to get ready for season to start in january. haven't found any 100% info on it, so don't get too excited.

Several NHL players playing in Europe have left their teams, including John "0+0" Madden who played in IFK Helsinki. His reasoning to leave the team was that NHL will start in january.

Other movers include Marty Turco, Brian McCabe and Mark Savard ( 13games 9+19=28points, nice )


Let's wait and see, and hope that season WILL start .
 

saint

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i don't even care at this point, with college bball and fball i forgot all about the nhl. sad
 

hogman14

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The pay cut was in fact 24% and declined by the owners. The blame has to go back on the owners now, as no other labor union in the history of the United States has ever offered to give money back! Imainge Fehr doing that in baseball? No further meetings have been scheduled. I understand many have lost the interest in hockey, and I must admit that I'm not the most patient/forgiving persons when it comes to an issue such as this, but once football is over, it's gonna be a boring couple months, at least until baseball gets back in business. Baseball wins if hockey doesn't play, as many will be looking for something other than NBA...that's no knock on the NBA, but I don't think people will have the patience for what i see as a rather undisciplined league.
 

Snafu

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looks like it really is over for this season.... i just don't get it why they didn't start negotiating like a year or two ago ?

Brett Hull in SNL

The Phoenix Coyotes star turned up on the "Weekend Update" segment of Saturday Night Live and was asked, as a Canadian, what he thought about the recent landmark ruling by Canada's Supreme Court that gay marriage was constitutional.

"That's what happens in Canada when there's no hockey," Hull said. "Guys have more time to hang out, talk about their feelings, next thing you know they're in love with each other.

"I've got nothing against it," he added, "but I'd rather be playing hockey."
 

saint

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hogman14 said:
The pay cut was in fact 24% and declined by the owners. The blame has to go back on the owners now, as no other labor union in the history of the United States has ever offered to give money back! Imainge Fehr doing that in baseball? No further meetings have been scheduled. I understand many have lost the interest in hockey, and I must admit that I'm not the most patient/forgiving persons when it comes to an issue such as this, but once football is over, it's gonna be a boring couple months, at least until baseball gets back in business. Baseball wins if hockey doesn't play, as many will be looking for something other than NBA...that's no knock on the NBA, but I don't think people will have the patience for what i see as a rather undisciplined league.

The owners didn't argue about the relevance of the pay cuts. The problem is that it would solve nothing in the long term. That is what is important to the game of hockey. The player's salaries need to be tied to the revenue, which is what would work with a salary cap. As a big hockey fan I think a salary cap is great for the NHL. Look at how competitive the NFL is and how small market teams can compete for championships. That in my mind is the best thing for the NHL right now and I agree with the owner's sticking by their guns. In the last strike they took the short-term outcome and look where it got everyone.
 

hogman14

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ok. All this understood, I see the owners side here. My main concern is, do they pretty much bleed the big money contracts out, a la this season via lockout, or do they force players to renegotiate new contracts? Honestly, I have read a little about this here and there, but am certainly eager to learn both sides of the issue. The NHL also overexpanded, and football knows that they are at their max amount of teams, I think. Further expansion would water down the sport. I understand what you are saying in regards to small market teams being able to contend (football), but what about teams headed for Salary Cap Hell? Indy/Washington come to mind off the top of my head, and then you simply see the release of good players in order to dump $$$. Ty Law will most likely be waived at the end of this season if he does not renegotiate with the Patriots. It prevents teams from simply buying players, but it also brings mediocrity, I argue.
 

saint

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Those are good questions and most that I ask as well. If they do adopt a cap, how do they renegotiate contracts? Or do they leave them and grandfather them in. Exactly...what's a team like the Rangers going to do, they certainly would not be able to honor all of their contracts they always have payrolls in the top 3 in the league. As far as expansion I'm not sure if the salary cap would come with the extinction of some teams, but I agree Gary B is partly to blame for this mess because he put up a team in every nook and cranny he could which diluted talent etc etc.
 

saint

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Wednesday, December 15, 2004


Associated Press
TORONTO -- NHL veterans Chris Pronger and Jim McKenzie think this lockout is far worse than the one that wiped out half a season 10 years ago.



They don't think they'll be playing again until 2006.
"I think you're looking at, at the very earliest, January '06 for the start of a season,'' said McKenzie, a forward with the Nashville Predators.

Pronger is just as pessimistic.

"I think Jimmy hit it on the head. Probably December of '05 and going into January '06 we're going to be in the same position we are in now, trying to come to a resolution,'' Pronger said Wednesday.

On Tuesday, the season moved a step closer to being lost when the league rejected the players' association proposal and made a counteroffer that was turned down by the union.

No new meetings have been scheduled, making it quite possible the NHL will become the first North American sports league to cancel a full season because of a labor dispute.

The major roadblock between the sides remains a possible salary cap. The NHL wants a cap to achieve what it calls cost certainty. The players' association says it will never accept that.

There might be a month left to salvage the season, but the sides could be too far apart when it comes to a cap. The last NHL lockout ended with a deal on Jan. 11, 1995, allowing for a 48-game season.

"It's very disheartening. The majority of the players that I've talked to are worried about the fact that if there is no season, how is the league going to be able recover?'' said Pronger, a St. Louis Blues defenseman. "I hear Gary talk and say 'Oh, we'll be able to recover.' He doesn't know.''

The union rejected NHL commissioner Gary Bettman's salary cap proposal on Tuesday, ending the meeting that came on the 90th day of the lockout.

The league proposal contained a cap, which, based on last year's economics, would see team player payrolls range between a minimum of $34.6 million and maximum of $38.6 million.

The league also revamped the union's 24 percent rollback offer by significantly reducing the salaries of the richest players and leaving others untouched. Players making less than $800,000 would not have their salary decreased. Those making $5 million or more would have 35 percent taken away from their existing contracts.

McKenzie's $700,000 salary wouldn't be affected, but Pronger, the league's MVP in 2000, would see his $10 million salary reduced to $6.5 million.


"If it weren't so disappointing it would be comical,'' McKenzie said. "Basically, the league has taken our 24 percent rollback, put it in their pocket and said 'Thank you' as it though it were some kind of tip, and then said 'Now we'll negotiate and we'll go back to getting this cap.'''

McKenzie thinks the league is trying to divide the union by trying to woo the 349 players who make $800,000 or less.

"I'm surprised they didn't try it sooner. They're like 'Don't worry about it. You're going to get your money,''' McKenzie said. "In the end we're all going to end up losing on this anyway. The first thing I thought of, because I played in New Jersey, is Scott Stevens, Scott Niedermayer and Marty Brodeur, it's kind of like saying 'Hey, thanks for winning that Cup and getting my name on it. I'm going to throw you under the bus now.'''

McKenzie acknowledged he was tempted to accept a salary cap 10 years ago, but says he wouldn't have made the money he's made had the union caved.

"I would not be where I am now if 10 years ago the guys had given in. Ten years ago for me was tempting. I was sitting there with a young family. They weren't in school so you got up everyday and they are staring back at you. I was 22, 23 and didn't have a lot saved,'' the journeyman enforcer said. "There was the shock of being locked out and never thinking it would happen, and there was a real chance that the season would have been canceled. We're fortunate that it wasn't.''
 

saint

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The area in bold above is the entire problem in my opinion. The people that the salary cap would hurt the most are the guys at the top of the league as far as income. Those are the very same guys who hold all of the power in the player's union. I'm sorry Chris Pronger you're going to have to live off of ONLY 6.5 million dollars this year instead of 10 million. Those ingrateful fvcks. I hope the lockout lasts 3 years so they can see what it's like to make zero instead of their millions.
 

thepoolguy

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Players make a VERY pubic offer. What do you expect? Did you think the owners would say "hey this is great, we accept your deal " Same with the counter offer.
These guys need to get behind closed doors where they can bang out a deal, which includes damage control on both of their images.
Neither side will EVER accept the others' PUBLIC offer.
 

hogman14

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Just to play devil's advocate though...Pronger is going to sell seats, McKenzie isn't. They buy Pronger's jersey, not McKenzie's. It's the same reason Peyton Manning gets paid more than Kelly Holcomb. These big $$ players smelled $$, and went for it. What you say about the Rangers is a very good ?, as they seem to drunkenly spend every season for guys who end up being busts. Certainly not fair to wipe their contracts off the board, as most of the reason they are playing for that team is $$$.

I dunno...been watching a lot of college hockey over here..
 
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