Apathy, greed cause lengthy NHL lockout

January 31, 2005 —

There is an old proverb that ponders the question, "If a tree falls in the woods, and no one is around, does it still make a sound?"

A twenty-first century rendition of this ancient saying could be, "If the National Hockey League doesn't play for half a season, does anyone really care?"

You may have not realized this, but the NHL season should be underway right now. Except it's not. What we have instead is an epic battle of millionaires fighting billionaires over who has the right to gouge the most money from thousandaires (translation: us). And no matter what the NHL player's union or the owners may think, this is going to turn out to be a zero sum affair for all involved.

The fundamental reason that the only hockey on TV right now is the Central Collegiate Hockey Association on Fox Sports Net is because of greed. Players do not want to eliminate their highly cushy lifestyles (and guaranteed contracts) to kowtow to the owners. Owners are equally greedy, interested only in their bottom lines, and failing to understand that they are essentially asking players to take major (up to 50 percent) pay cuts, solely to increase their own profits. Neither side is willing to retreat from their fixed positions. Under no circumstances will the locked out players be allowed to play again unless they accept a salary cap, say the owners. Under no circumstances will the players accept a salary cap, say the players.

One would think that negative publicity dramatizing the entire scenario would force both the owners and players to clean up their acts and get on the same page (Hey, it worked for baseball on the steroids issue). But, in the U.S. at least, instead of antipathy toward the entire issue, there has been resounding apathy. The bastion of sports, SportsCenter on ESPN, has had no problems diverting its attention from hockey to other sports, notably football and basketball.

It's not like it's the oppressed proletariat versus the domineering bourgeois in the NHL. Forbes Magazine estimated that in 2003, only ten out of the 30 NHL teams even turned a profit. The teams with the largest payroll (including the Detroit Red Wings) fared the worst in terms of profit, with Detroit losing over $13 million in 2003 alone. With a business climate as frosty as that, it's no wonder that the owners feel like they need to make some changes to the entire system.

The major reason that owners are losing so much money is because of overexpansion within the NHL. During the past 12 years, six new teams have entered the league, and several others have relocated, many to nontraditional hockey regions (i.e. the South). This has forced the entire league to delegate resources to areas not entirely conducive to hockey. With ice often resembling that of a snow cone, the game has never really taken off at most places south of the Mason-Dixon Line, with Dallas being an exception.

Why should the players care about all of this? A long work stoppage in the NHL would likely cause some of the teams on shaky financial ground to fold. But why would it be a big deal if some of the teams actually folded, at least for the players? Say that four of the thirty teams actually go out of existence because of a lengthy work stoppage. There would then be over 13 percent fewer roster spots to go around between the players.

There are really no easy solutions to this entire situation. But like any conflict, both sides are going to have to give a little to get what they want. Players are going to have to accept some sort of a salary cap before the owners even let them play again, even if it's a pseudo-salary cap like the one currently in Major League Baseball that penalizes big spending teams to try to level the playing field. Conversely, owners are going to have to pay higher salaries than they would like (although smaller than they are paying now), and ensure that the fiscal solvency of the league is maintained.

Hopefully things are solved soon, lest hockey be destined to the professional sports junkyard, next to boxing, track, and tennis.