By now, hockey fans have had to accept that their sport has been put on ice for the time being—pardon the pun. Last Saturday at midnight, the NHL locked out its players for the third time since 1994. On Wednesday, the NHL announced the cancellation of the preseason schedule to Sept. 30.
The NHL released a statement Sept. 16 saying negotiations will continue until a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) is reached.
“The League, the Clubs, and the Players all have a stake in resolving our bargaining issues appropriately and getting the puck dropped as soon as possible. We owe it to each other, to the game, and most of all, to the fans,” the statement said.
In any case, some of the NHL’s marquee players have started making their way to the European leagues. Some of the youngest players will go back to junior hockey, while others will go to the American Hockey League. Another group will try to stay in shape while monitoring negotiations closely.
Financial Challenges
The problems in the NHL have been brewing for some time. The last CBA created some problems while solving others.
According to Forbes data for the 30 NHL teams, only 12 managed to have a positive operating profit last season. Strangely, the Toronto Maple Leafs are by far the league’s most profitable franchise, yet they are the only team that failed to reach the playoffs since the last lockout in 2004-05.
But the message is clear: Costs have to come down or certain franchises will have to relocate or be eliminated so that the league, as a whole, can be healthy.
Player contracts went through a new phase of folly this past summer, with Ryan Suter and Zach Parise both signing 13-year $98 million deals for the Minnesota Wild, while Shea Weber became the NHL’s highest-paid player with a 14-year $110 million contract from the Nashville Predators who matched the Philadelphia Flyers’ offer sheet.
The owners are supposed to be trying to bring down the percentage of revenues paid for player wages and limit the length of contracts.
And even as the “lockout deadline” approached, players were being signed—Milan Lucic’s three-year $18 million extension with the Boston Bruins.
