The National Hockey League announced today that they are cancelling the remainder of the preseason games due to the current lockout situation with owners and players. The preseason was scheduled to run through October 8th, just three days before the start of the regular season. That doesn't bode well for fans who are hoping to see their favorite teams hit the ice on opening night.
The lockout, which has been in place for twelve days, isn't showing any signs of ending soon. Negotiations are set to resume this week between the players association and the league, although the major issues including the collective bargaining agreement are not going to be on the table.
In 2004, the NHL experienced a lockout which lasted over 10 months and forced cancellation of the entire 2004-2005 season. That was the first time that the Stanley Cup was not awarded to the league champions and it marked the first time that a professional sports league cancelled an entire season. The 2004 lockout made a lot of fans angry and some haven't returned to support the professional game.
The team owners and players really need to start with serious negotiations if they are to avoid another missed season. As a sport that ranks last among the major sports in America, this is something that they can't afford. I understand that the owners need to be profitable and the players need to be compensated, but there is a middle ground that must be met in order to avoid something far more damaging to the sport and their livelihoods.
I was really excited this past summer when the Minnesota Wild signed the two biggest free agents on the market. I think every Wild fan was really looking forward to this season and now we have to sit and wait for the NHL and the players to sort things out, again. If another season is missed because of a lockout, I don't think that I will bother following the league anymore. I find it hard to believe that the league could survive after missing another season and another Stanley Cup.
I don't follow hockey, at all. So obviously, I wasn't aware of the preseason of the NHL, but I do have something to say about sports in general. What is with the shutouts and strikes all over the board? Last year it was the NBA, then it was the newly repaired NFL referee strike and now the NHL. I just don't understand why they can't all deal with their issues better. I don't know if it's all money related, but I can guess that it is, but they need to understand that it's bigger than the money, they have fans to answer to. And I'm pretty sure the fans are getting sick of this nonsense.
ReplyDeleteI am not a hockey fan, but I am a big sports fan, so it is sad to see the NHL having another lockout that could threaten the season. I was starting to get into hockey more this past season when the LA Kings had their great run to win the Stanley Cup. I was also wondering if the great season they had last year might bring more fans to the sport, but this lockout will not help in bringing more fans. I have a cousin that is a huge Wild fan, and he was extremely excited about their big signings and was going to bring me to a game this year, but it is looking like that might not happen.
ReplyDeleteThis is totally stupid of the NHL, the owners and the players, after the 2004 lockout it took a huge hit to the NHL's fan base, but after an entertaining few years which was helped by great post season play and an unlikely stanley cup champ in the L.A kings the NHL has done a good job at reviving the sport once again, another thing that helped was the great matchup between the U.S and Canada in mens hockey olympics, which led to many people following more NHL after those entertaining games. All this really won't matter if the league doesn't resolve their issue, as I feel another lockout will really have a negative effect on the NHL and the whole sport especially in the U.S
ReplyDelete