Just two minutes? I’m surprised it doesn’t happen more often, then.
It’s been hard for me already, living in Maryland now - impossible to watch the Canadiens play unless they’re visiting the Capitals or make it to the playoffs and get their games on TV. The Capitals are good and all, but they’re not my team and this isn’t a hockey town and I miss the energy. I thought I’d try to catch more Caps games this year and develop some feeling for them, but that’s a bust.
I miss the sound of hockey on TV.
In Canada, the world junior tournament is televised and has a huge following. This year, beginning next week, the whole country will be watching the juniors.
Go Canada! At least we’ll get a hockey fix over the holidays.
The Hurricanes have had an open skate for season ticket holders and have also opened the arena a couple times so people could watch the Checkers (AHL affiliate in Charlotte) play on the Jumbotron. The Checkers will be playing at PNC Arena in Raleigh in January and I’ve already bought tickets for that … might be the only hockey we see this year. :mad:
We have an AHL affiliate in town but I thought the tickets were too pricy. I thought I could watch NHL games on TV for free. Time to think again. Hey Santa!
I’ve been playing a lot of NHL on my PS3. I got drafted by Colorado after being the best player in Canadian junior hockey for a season and helping to win the Memorial Cup. That was pretty awesome.
The NHL can seriously go fuck itself, this is preposterous. If it comes back this season I frankly won’t be watching much of it; I know everyone says that but at this point I know it’s true, because it will be a bogus short season and because, to be honest, they’ve busted up the rhythm of the season. I expect it will be cancelled in any case, but even if it is not I cannot get myself worked up over a 48-game schedule, unless they had the guts to cut the playoffs by a round, which they don’t.
And to be honest I find it really hard to maintain my interest in a league that cancels seasons. Part of the appeal of professional spots, to me, is its permanence and periodic nature; that there is a season every year, a champion crowned every year, year after year since before I was born and going on throughout the rest of my life, I presume. The cool thing about the LA Kings winning the Stanley Cup in 2012 is that some other team won the Stanley Cup in 2011, and 2010, and should win it in 2013. The flow of champions, of success and failure, from year to year is an integral part of the interest in any given ONE season. The Kings’ Cup win is far more interesting in the context of NHL history, and the history of the Kings franchise, than it would be just as being part of the 2011-2012 season. The reason the Stanley Cup is awesome is because they hand it out exactly once every year, so you can lick your wounds about not winning it this year and hope against hope maybe your team will win it next year, or the year after, but you know they will hand it to someone, and sometime in the spring you will find out who.
One season cancelled is one thing. Baseball survived it and hockey could to. But if they’re just going to do this every few years, I gotta be honest, as much as I love hockey, I have other things to do. I can watch the world juniors, and you’ve always got the Olympics, and come April baseball is back. If Toronto ever gets an NBA team we’ll have something to watch in winter; heck, they could put them in the Air Canada Centre, too! Breaking up the flow of the league’s history is immensely damaging because the flow and history are part of what makes it what it is.
RickJay you are right… it is getting to be quite a joke that every couple of year they do this. But in Montreal we don’t have much, no baseball, no basketball and we do have football but the season is sooooo freakin’ short!
Then again on Tuesday when I posted I really really missed it.
Can somebody please explain to me what the players would possibly gain if there is union decertification?
It’s nice for those of you with other options, but for some of us, the NHL is the only hockey we have. Yeah, there are AHL affiliates here, but they aren’t broadcast on TV. And I can’t afford to go to a game.
Getting rid of Donald Fehr?
My admittedly very-layman understanding is that if they are not a union, then by definition the owners immediately are in a position of engaging in collusion and anti-trust activities. Things like salary caps, drafts, and other labour-limiting rules are legal because the league and union have signed a contract saying so. But if no union exists, those things are illegal. So the union can decertify and then immediately launch an antitrust lawsuit.
Of course, the reverse is equally true; by decertifying, the union loses the legal protections a union has. The NHL could, in theory, just fire them all and hire 600 new players. But the NHLPA would be assuming, almost certainly correctly, that the NHL can’t practically fire Sidney Crosbey and hire Jim The Beer League Centre and expect the product to sell as well, so the NHLPA’s probably safe to decertify, just as the NBA union was. Conversely, you’ll never hear of a normal union doing that because they’re far more in need of the protection of labour law.
Aww, thanks zoid! 
The Blackhawks are actually my second-favorite team, the ECHL team here in town is my #1. At least I still have them to watch. Right now we’re seeing some higher-caliber players in the ECHL who would normally be in the AHL.
I guess I just don’t understand labour relations. If the NHLPA decertifies, the NHL said they would seek to have all contracts declared void. That makes sense to some degree, but it is really firing everyone.
How would the league salary cap be in violation of anti-trust laws? If the league says its members may only spend so much salaries as a condition of membership in the league?
Because you have 30 businesses colluding to hold prices down. That’s illegal. Doesn’t matter if they call it a “league.”
Labour law is weird, and it’s especially weird when applied to pro sports, but imagine if, say, all the banks in Canada decided to cap salaries artificially, saying “we need to cut salaries by 30%,” and then banded together in a Canadian Banking Labour Cost Alliance to hold salaries down and ensure nobody cheated. How fast would that be in court, ya think?
OK, I didn’t read every response on this post but here’s my 2 cents +1 for inflation. I too miss it. Especially my team the Sabres and my favorite team to have a hate/love relationship with, the Maple Leafs.
However, I want to make a political statement. Let me preface my remakes with the fact that maybe the players deserve more or maybe they don’t. I’m not judging that aspect of it. My big complaint with this and all major sport jocks is why do they expect to get the majority of the profits without the financial risks? Now wait, don’t jump all over me. Sure they have a lot at risk with life and limb. But that’s their choice when they entered the sport to make their fame and fortune. Nobody held a gun to their heads (except maybe over zealous parents). The owners took all the risk to loose everything. I don’t see the owners asking the players to put to play on the team to show their commitment to the sport or team. And as far as I can see the players make a hell of a lot more money than most of the paying fans do. Plus they have a pretty nice pension to fall back on. And much of that is including a lack of education that many of them decide they don't need because of the big fat pay check the owners are willing to pay for their talent. And education expense that most of the fans must bear but the jocks don't. I for one do not resent the owners position or reluctance to share more and more of their profits. But I do agree that perhaps a more equitable sharing might be in-order. But the long and short of it is, if I was to finance a sports team and I was paying a livable wage to the players, then to hell with giving them my profits just because they think they deserve it. Maybe if the player association started inputting major into the franchises (a portion of ownership) then I would feel different. Just say’n
That’s pretty much my feeling too. I have entered the “You didn’t break up with me, I broke up with you, go fuck yourself” part of the relationship.
The disappointing part is that for some inexplicable reason the Big ten network isn’t showing much college hockey, and equally inexplicably, UM sucks this year 
First of all, let’s make sure we’re clear in our definitions; they want about half the REVENUE, not half the profit. Money paid to the players is by definition not profit.
Secondly, there’s nothing terribly unusual about that. In many if not most if not almost ALL service industries, which is what the NHL essentially is - aside from merchandise, they are selling a service - the better part of revenue goes to the labour. My company pays out 60-65% of its revenue in salaries and benefits. If the NHL doesn’t pay out half its revenues to salaries and benefits that would actually be very unusual.
Anyway, perhaps you are unaware, but the argument is not over the players wanting a greater percentage of the revenue. They long ago conceded that they would take less.
I don’t get it. So the player took a risk (not just to life and limb, but it’s a significant financial risk; most players who pursue an NHL career will never make any significant amount of money, but put themselves years behind in pursuing other careers) but that’s okay becaue nobody put a gun to their head, right?
But the owners are taking a risk, and that’s bad? Wait, nobody put a gun to THEIR head, did they? Nobody forced Eugene Melnyk to buy the Senators, he took that risk of his own accord. What’s the difference?
OK, your “deleted” comments points taken. I’ll assume you’re correct and I’ll acquiesce to some degree but not completely. 
The service industry vs hard product is a gray area as far as I’m concerned. And profits are just taken out of revenues. Increase revenues and don’t increase profits is not a sound business strategy.
Now as to the section of your reply that I left in…
You are absolutely correct no one forced him to lay out a very large sum (perhaps a major potion) of his financial wealth. The difference is that he did not demand that players play or that fans pay. He said, “hey I’ll take a chance. If you the players are willing to play for this amount of and the public is willing to pay this amount of for the privilege to see the game then fine. If not then I just took a major dumping and no one to blame but myself. But on the other hand, if you all like it and I make money on it, then why can’t I keep that money for myself?” And we both know all the owners will be forced to share the “profits” or revenues in some kind of manor.
Buffalo Sabres owner Terry Pegula bought the franchise out of pure love of the game. And what has it got him? No season and a black eye for being an owner and not giving more of his fortune to jocks who can’t or won’t perform. And to note, Terry Pegula has given a lot more to the city of Buffalo and Southern Ontario than we have given back. I wonder what might be said if all the owners said, “Hey it’s just not worth the hassle, lets fold the league and call it quits.” Something like Hostess did. It’s not going to hurt them as much as its going to hurt the fans and players. Hey, times are tough, the average fan is taking a major hit when it comes to discretionary money spending. Maybe the jocks in the sports world need to look at who is supporting their habit.
PS…I realize the players are no longer asking for bigger payouts pe se. But I’m lumping it all together since in the end that what it amounts to.
BTW…I’m enjoying our discussion and thanks for keeping it civil. 
I know this thread is a little old, but I miss hockey, too. Miss watching the games in the evenings. I was just wishing there was some sports that I enjoy watching on TV tonight. Might have to pop in the DVD of the World Series I got for Christmas and just watch that.
Well the Spengler Cup, and the World Junior tournament games are thankfully being broadcast in Canada, not sure about the US; you might have a women’s bowling tournament or something to show. You might need to get up at 4:30 AM, PVR them, or watch them on same day rebroadcasts, but it’s all great hockey at least.