Is The Lockout Just a Joke For the NHL?

Throughout this entire lockout there has been speculation that the NHL had a secret date in their heads as to when this lockout will end and when they will work out a new CBA. It's becoming more and more apparent that the NHL does indeed have a drop dead date and is sticking to it. In a earlier post I hinted at the fact the NHL had a date in mind and wouldn't negotiate before then, only problem I thought that date was in December. That date according to Bill Daly is sometime in mid-January;

"It is fair to say it is sometime in mid-January," ~ Bill Daly on Sportsnet 590

Daly also went on to say that commissioner Gary Bettman would not ice a season with fewer that 48 games for the "integrity of the game". So that gives the NHL and NHLPA roughly 3 weeks to hammer out a new CBA, not a ton of time but if the NHL is serious about having a deal done my mid-January it's possible. The earliest fans would see NHL hockey is January 15th as the NHL has now cancelled all games up until that point, not a lot of room for optimism.

After Daly's appearance on the Fan 590, he decided he wasn't done talking and joined Hockey Night in Canada radio and gave a surprising answer when asked if fans will get to see a NHL season;

"Yes!" ~ Bill Daly

Daly was a very busy man on Wednesday, declaring that there is a "drop dead date" (which everyone kind of knew) and that there will be an NHL season, the question then becomes what season? People don't like Bettman as a result Daly being his "right hand man" takes a lot of flack in the public and the media, but no matter which way you look at it those are 2 very strong messages sent directly from the league.

Everyone knows that at some point you have to cancel the entire season, somewhere, in someones head there's a point of no return, it's the only logical option in a negotiation like this. Have Bettman and the owners always known about the date and wanted to delay to the last possible second? It's possible. But at the same time Donald Fehr and the players also know there is a magical date, heck they've even come out and mention that there is a magical date in interviews. The NHLPA much like the NHL knows exactly how much they can ask for and for how long. Up until now the two sides have been throwing lobs at each other to see if the other side will hit one and get some traction, they know that what they're currently offering isn't going to be hit but they're trying to see what else they can get thrown into the deal.

If the NHL truly wants to get a deal done and in place for January 15th (drop dead date) look for them to throw the NHLPA a pitch right down the middle thatthey just can't refuse. The reason the two sides are waiting till the very last possible minute is because thats when the best deal will be made. When their backs are up against the wall they begin to panic, each side will be willing to throw something extra into the pot to make a deal because they know they don't have much time left to negotiate. A deal accepted in January is likely to be much better than any deal accepted in November. Right now it's the bottom of the 9th with 2 outs in a tie game, can one team get the hit it takes to crack this thing open?

Now let's talk about Daly saying "yes" to an NHL season. Before you start jumping up and down and

planning your next trip to the arena, let's take a step back. Maybe Daly is right, the NHL really isn't willing to cancel the season and there will be a deal

completed allowing hockey to resume for this season,

if so thats fantastic. But there's a few more reasons he said yes during the interview. First off, he was given an ultimatum and wasn't allowed to give a answer other than yes or no, obviously he's not going to say no and crush the fading hope of the fans. The NHL wants the fans to believe it's Fehr's fault there is no



season, so they're obviously not going to roll over and dig their own grave. The second reason he said yes is to help the NHL's case in the PR battle. By saying yes it opens the doors and provides evidence that the NHL is fully committed to getting a deal done and dropping the puck on an NHL season. It paints the allusion that they were fully committed to getting a deal done and playing hockey and in case that doesn't happen their butts are covered now. Which paints them a better picture for the fans. As I said It's all about the PR battle.

Now it's fully possible that there are owners who are telling Bettman they are unwilling to lose an entire season to these silly childish ploys because they simply can't survive. If the owners are truly getting upset with Bettman like what has been rumoured then one would have to think the plan all along was not to cancel the entire season, Bettman may be run out of town if that happens.

Virtually we are no closer to seeing NHL hockey back. Right now the best only option is a season that begins on January 15th and would see each team play 49 games. If that does indeed happen, look for more significance on divisional and conference play as there simply wont be enough time for long road trips. The next few weeks will be crucial to deciding the fate of the NHL. The only thing we know for sure is in order to see hockey the two sides must resume talking.

Latest CBA Talks Bring Optimism

If you follow me on twitter or have read some of my latest articles, you know that I have always been fairly optimistic about these CBA negotiations. Even when the NHL "cancelled" the Winter Classic and fans instantly fled to twitter to share their despair about the season, I was still holding hope that we would see hockey. Finally this weekend the NHL gave me a reason to legitimately be optimistic about seeing some hockey this season. If you saw my article yesterday, I explained my optimism. Although it sounds weird, I'm perfectly happy with the silence coming from the two sides as it means we're inching closer to getting a deal done and some NHL hockey back.

Don't fret hockey fans, there is reason to be optimistic about seeing some NHL hockey in the near future and that optimism comes from silence. The two sides met for a marathon meeting on Saturday that lasted until the wee hours of Sunday and then had a 7 hour meeting on Tuesday and are again expected to meet on Wednesday. The best news that has come from these meetings is the fact there hasn't been any news or rumours leaked to the media, immediately following the meetings.

3 Reasons I'm optimistic that we'll see hockey by December.

1. Media Games Have Finished

With a debacle as big as the CBA negotiations there's always a third side in the matter, the fans. Through the media the two sides have been firing missiles at each other in an attempt to win fan support, just in case the lockout lasts the full season. But the mind games with the fans are just maddening; through the wild circus I've gone from full support for the players, to the owners side to just get a stinkin' deal done! Judging from twitter most fans are now on board with the later side and just want to see some hockey, who cares who's responsible? It's come to the point that if there is a full season lockout, both sides are likely to shoulder the blame from the fans for the loss as both are equally responsible for this avoidable lockout.

Now that the two sides are negotiating strictly between themselves, and aren't posting their proposals online, they can finally begin to seriously talk about the issues. They've put down their guns and have decided that firing shots at each other isn't going to solve anything, about time! Now that the media is getting little to no information about the meetings, its a sign that both sides are making a serious attempt to come to terms on a new CBA and don't want the media to ruin these discussions. The less information leaked the better the negotiations are going. Although we may not enjoy the silent treatment we're receiving, it's key to ending this lockout and getting the game we all love back. The less we hear the better things are going.

2. Bill Daly Stepping Up

There hasn't been much of anything guaranteed or made known to the fans during this lockout. We've been told both sides want to get a deal done and we've seen player after player jump ship to go play overseas. But one thing that has been constant and portrayed to the fans, is the players hate and resentment towards Gary Bettman. The fact they dislike him so much is the driving force behind the NHLPA and has actually worked to unite the players. As dangerous as it may be this may be the most powerful and unanimous players association the NHL has ever come up against, the fact they have Donald Fehr heading things up sure as heck doesn't help matters.

With Bettman directly heading up the NHL and presenting ideas to the players, things haven't gone well and the players have been almost determined to turn down any deal Bettman presents unless it's clear cut the players are getting the better deal. Finally the NHL has seen the light and has taken Bettman out of the direct spotlight and have replaced him with Bill Daly. The marathon meeting on Saturday and the meeting on Tuesday were both headed up by Daly, instead of Bettman, and as a result there was much less hostility between the two sides. They actually sat down, managed to discuss the issues and have a negotiation. Imagine that. The key to calming the players down and getting them to agree on a new reasonable CBA is as little Bettman as possible, as long as Daly is running interference the two sides are able to talk and have no need to run crying to the media.

3. The Owners

The current owners involved in these discussions are not the same owners from the 2004-2005 lockout. What I mean by that, is that these owners are not ready and willing to sacrifice a whole season like they were willing too last time. For some their teams simply cant' afford to miss a whole season for any reason, let alone because Bettman refuses to lose. Teams like Phoenix and Florida have far too much at risk, to have a whole season go by without any NHL action. These owners know that a whole season without hockey isn't going to fly like it did last time as things are different this time around in the eyes of the public. Due to the fact the owners are not willing to sacrifice a whole season, they're not going to let Bettman get away with goofing off during these negotiations and as a result what we are seeing right now between the two sides is because of pressure from the owners on Bettman to get a deal done. If we see the NHL cave, you can thank the owners.

The last reason I'm optimistic about the two sides possibly getting a deal done is the silence. Think about, right before any large storm there is quite and the same thing took place right before both the NBA and NFL ended their respective lockouts. Right before deals were reached the media was fed very little information and then bam, the two sides had agreed on a deal. Hopefully the NHL will follow suit and this long painful silence will indeed be worth it, but judging on the past, the NHL seems to heading down the right path towards ending the lockout. This next two weeks are crucial to determining if a deal will be reached, so expect to hear very little from the either side down the stretch. If it's still quite near US Thanksgiving, there's a great chance we'll see hockey in December, as long as the next two weeks go smoothly there's a chance.

Now you know why I'm optimistic about the NHL, why are you optimistic or are still being skeptic?

Agenda During Latest CBA Talks

The good news right now for fans is the fact both the NHL and NHLPA are at least meeting and talking to each other. In 2004-2005 the two sides went for 3 months without speaking, the longest this time around has been roughly 2 weeks. The unfortunate news is the talks as of late have been focused on the "secondary issues" as neither side is willing to back down from their current proposal.

So what exactly is going on behind closed doors during these meetings? Thankfully my sources were able to pass on some important information from the last few meetings. Here's the just of how things went Monday when Bettman and Fehr got together with their posies.

9:00 a.m.- Let's be real they're not meeting as early as 9.

9:30 a.m.- Donald Fehr and 7 NHL players who have yet to leave for Europe arrive to the meeting a little early to discuss their strategy for today's meeting. Fehr opens with "Let me get this straight, if he's not willing to end the lockout and give the players more money by the end of today you'll be in Europe by tonight?" The Players respond will a resounding "Yes!" "Good what's Bettman going to do with no players?"

10:00 a.m.- Bill Daly shows up alone with a smug look on his face and a cup of coffee.


DF- "Where's Gary?!"
BD- "He's coming, had a rough sleep last night"
TP- "Is he finally feeling guilty about this whole lockout situation?"
BD- "No he couldn't figure out if he wants to cancel another 2 weeks or up it to 3 weeks." Followed by evil laughter.

10:30 a.m.- Gary Bettman finally arrives followed by 3 NHL owners with black eyes.


DF- "You're late Gary!"
GB- " Oh am I? I must have lost track of time. I was just discussing how the owners and I are unanimous about this lockout, isn't that right gentlemen?"
O- "Yes, we all agree."
DF- "Have you brought the files regarding how much revenue the league earned last season?"
GB- "You were serious about wanting to see that?"
DF- "GARY!"
GB- "I kid, I kid. I know I keep telling the public and the TV stations we made tons of money, but we actually lost money. Unless the players are willing to take a significant cut we refuse to continue CBA talks."
Sidney Crosby- "That's it Gary I've had enough of your crap, I'm heading to Europe. I hear the KHL is looking for superstars"
GB- "But Sid you can't go, you're my main money maker! Alright Fehr, have your side prepare a new proposal and submit it to the owners"
DF- "Sure thing, we'll have it to you in 2 weeks"
SC- "Make sure you include the clause that no one is aloud to hit me!"

11:30 a.m. After Bettman reiterates the fact the owners refuse to backdown from their current proposal and the NHLPA may submit another proposal as long as it is reasonable to what the NHL has submitted.

GB- "Well that's enough talking for the morning, why don't we break for an early lunch?"
DF- "But we haven't negotiated anything. We have a season to salvage Gary!"
GB- "Oh there's lots of time for negotiating. Besides no one really tunes into the NHL till late December anyways."
DF- "But Gary what about Canadian hockey...
GB- "Canadian hockey fans?"
BD- "Time to break for lunch"

Bettman jumps up from his seat and heads towards the door followed by the 3 owners and Daly, the quickly vanish out of the building. The players and Fehr remain in the boardroom as the players begin to call their agents to look for teams overseas.

DF- "So are you guys finally ready to accept a smaller piece of the pie?" "Or how about accepting the leagues last offer, it seemed pretty fair"
Dustin Byfuglien- "Did someone say pie?!"
TP- "Go away Byf. Remember Don, you work for us. Whatever we want you said you would be committed to getting. We want a bigger share of the pie and longer contracts.
DF- "Fine, fine I'll make up a new proposal. But this isn't going to get us back playing anytime soon."
TP- "There's the KHL and other markets in Europe, we're not worried."

1:00 p.m. Gary and Bill both return from lunch without the any owners.

DF- " Where's the owners Gary?"
GB- "The owners only need to be present if we're "negotiating" a new CBA. Since the players refuse to accept our offer we're not negotiating today. Now on to the topic for today: Player safety, NHL rules and players commitment to pre-season.
TP- "Wait what do you mean we're not negotiating today? We could sign deals in Europe tonight, how are you going to play without us?"
GB- "Oh I'm glad you brought that up. If the players refuse to come to terms with the fact we the owners will win these negotiations and are still holding out by the end of November, the NHL is fully committed to moving forward with replacement players."
TP- " You're going to attempt to replace us? With who?"
GB- "I don't have to attempt to replace you, I will. There are several AHL players who would love their shot to play in the NHL, and how about all the European players jobs you guys are taking? I'm sure they need a place to play.
TP- "Good luck getting the fans out!"
GB- "The fans are dumb enough to come out and support the AHL players as long as they're wearing NHL jersey's"

2:00 p.m. Gary swiftly changes the talks play safety

GB- "With the rise of concussions, we need to address player safety. Let's bring in Brendan Shanahan"
BS- "The game is so fast it's getting harder and harder to tell if a hit was clean or not"
GB- " If it's a big time player or a rich team's player, it's a clean hit. If it's someone no one has heard of before it's dirty"
SC- " Anyone who hit's me should get an automatic 20 games!"
GB- "Calm down Sid, just send Matt Cooke after them."
GB- "Any thoughts Don?"
DF- "Make the equipment smaller?"
GB- "Naw that won't fix anything, guess there really isn't an answer to this problem"

3:00 p.m. The two sides talk about more secondary issues like medical care, drug testing and player grievances.

GB- "Well that should do it for today's meeting, any last thoughts Don?"

The players quickly surround Fehr and discuss things in a little huddle. After 10 minutes they break the huddle.

TP- "Tell him Don!"
DF- "I suggest we get rid of the Salary cap..."
GB- " Hahahahahahahahahaha. Wait you were serious? You do realize we sacrificed the whole 2004-2005 season in order to get a salary cap right?"

4:30- Bettman decides the meetings for the day are complete and leaves the room with Bill.

There you have it folks, an inside look at the NHL CBA talks. Will we see an end to this madness soon?

 

Tis the season for............................... Concussions

Hey everyone, hope you're all enjoying this Christmas season, only 8 more days till the big day! So before we start just head over to the right side of my blog and answer my poll real quick. Alright so let's dive right in.
This blog is about concussions, well not just concussions, more like players in the NHL that currently or have had a concussion so far this season. (There are a lot) Since we learned in my last blog there is no such thing as "Concussion like symptoms" I will be including players who were not officially diagnosed with concussion but just "Concussion like" symptoms. There are currently 25 players out with concussions, and they are high profile players.
In the month of December alone the NHL has lost; The best player, the two best forwards, one of the best defenceman, one of the leading goal scorers and one of the brightest young players.

Well let's start off with the most obvious one; Sidney Crosby. Not going to go fully in-depth here with Crosby, because everyone knows his story and there is already enough talk about him. Anyways Crosby was concussed last January and missed 10 months, only to come back and basically be out again with concussion issues. I'm not going to fully come out and say that Crosby has a concussion, as he may be suffering from severe Post Concussion Syndrome. Crosby's latest setback came in a game against the Bruins, when he was elbowed in the head/face by David Krejci. Either way Crosby is sitting out again and there is talk that Crosby's career may be cut short due to repeated concussions, something that is not good for the Pens or the NHL. Basically the more I hear and the more I look into it, Crosby came back to early from his previous concussion, he should have waited a full year at least before returning! If the Penguins own up and say Crosby has officially sustained another concussion, he will be out at least a full year.

Earlier this week, we were informed that Flyers captain Chris Pronger will miss the remainder of the season due to severe post concussion syndrome. Pronger was injured on October 24th, missed 6 games then returned November 19 but has not played since. Not only is Pronger done for the season, there is also concern that his career may be over. This is a huge blow to the Flyers who are without their captain and best defenceman, not to mention a guy that can log 26 mins of ice time a night! But for the Flyers their concussion woes don't end there; they also announced that NHL leading scorer Claude Giroux was out with a concussion after receiving a knee to the back of the head from teammate Wayne Simmonds. Giroux currently leads the NHL with 36 points, but has been shut down by the Flyers for a little while, after his symptoms stayed persistent, there is no timetable for Giroux's return.

Next up, or out as the case may be, is Milan Michalek. The Senators leading scorer will also be missing time after he collided with teammate Erik Karlsson in a game on Tuesday night. The two players didn't see each other and collided full speed. The hit sent Michalek flying and left both players a little banged up. He has been diagnosed with a concussion and the Sens have absolutely no idea when he will be back. Michalek  had the league lead in goals and is currently tied for the lead with 19.

Canes young superstar Jeff Skinner is also missing time with a concussion. Skinner's concussion is a result of a hit from Edmonton's Andy Sutton. Skinner currently leads the Canes in scoring and is coming off an amazing rookie campaign. But like the Flyers, the Canes have 2 top notch players out with concussions; Joni Pitkanen the team's top scoring D man is also missing time with a concussion.

These players are just the latest in a list that includes- Mike Richards, Marc Staal, Marc Savard, Kris Letang, Zbynek Michalek, Brayden Schenn and Nathan Gerbe  This list doesn't inclide goalies Ryan Miller and James Reimer who were out with concussions a little earlier but have since returned to action. Although it sounds horrible these guys are actually top notch players that help to contribute for their teams every night, not just 4th liners who rarely step on the ice. Whether the NHL wants to admit it or not, the league has a problem! "It seems like someone is going down every single night now," retired NHL standout Jeremy Roenick said. "It's frustrating to watch. You don't like having your top guys out." It literally does seem like every night a different top tier player is getting injured. Now concussions were around before this season and players used to play through them however doctors didn't know much about concussions back then! We know more about them today but still not enough. At least we now know not to let players players that are suffering from concussions.

Even though there is a major problem in the league and people are calling for change, there is not much the NHL can do! A good majority of the players out with concussions got theirs from accidental contact or from their own teammates! The NHL has already implemented rule changes to penalize players who deliver head shots to an opposing player. The only official problem is that Brandan Shanahan has not been consistent enough with his suspensions and fines; the players, officials and coaches and frankly Shanahan and the rest of the NHL are all confused as to what's a dirty hit and what's not. The refs are the biggest problem, they get embarrassed when their judgement of the ice is different than Shanahan's; for example if a player elbows a player and the refs let it go, but Shanahan decides to suspend the player, the refs look bad. So now the refs are over compensating with penalties, all a player has to do is fall near the boards and the opposing team is going to the box. But other than changing the core fundamentals of the game we all love to watch and play, there isn't much the NHL can or is willing to do.

Here is what the NHL CAN do; change the equipment the players are wearing; for goodness sake a huge problem is the equipments, players are wearing elbow pads and shoulder pads with hardened plastic cups on the outside. These plastic cups are doing more harm than good, the impact being delivered by an elbow with the plastic cups is extremely sever and ultimately leading to more concussions. The game of hockey has turned into a gladiator sport; we have 6 feet tall players that weigh 200 pounds flying around the ice at an insane speed. The young players like Jeff Skinner don't stand a chance against some of the older stronger players; it's only a matter of time before they get injured; Taylor Hall although he hasn't been concussed yet, he's received injuries because he is just so much smaller than the older guys. Take Tyler Seguin of the Bruins, he's playing great right now, but last season when he first broke into the league he wasn't, and it's because he was scared! He didn't want to get hit and be hurt by the older bigger and stronger players. The way the players in juniors and minor leagues are preparing to play in ridiculous, they are being taught to hit first, and be fluent skaters, for most of these players scoring goals is the second thing they think about on the ice; everyone wants to lay the big hit to get attention. Another thing the NHL can do is widen the rinks to the Olympic ice size. I personally like this idea, maybe not widen it to full Olympic size but widen it a bit. The NHL will be a little hesitant of this option as it means less money for them as there will be fewer seats to sell for games. But widening the ice is something that will likely cut down the amount of concussions and head shots. Think about it, 10 players that are 6 feet tall and weigh 200 pounds, are bound to run into each other on the tiny ice surface they play on.

But here is something I personally find very alarming; deputy commissioner Bill Daly's take on this whole situation; "For people to suggest that the last seven to 10 days and the experience we've had and some of the names that are out should somehow materially alter our approach to this issue is ridiculous, We've probably had periods of time where we've had as many concussions, but they weren't … as high-profile players," he said. "The last thing anybody wants to do is overreact to a very short snapshot in time."
"I don't believe it's a crisis, I don't believe it's an epidemic," said Daly. "There's nothing we can do that doesn't change the game fundamentally that's going to eliminate concussions in our game. Bottom line is they're a fact of life in a contact sport — not just ours — and they continue to be a fact of life.
"As long as we understand the nature of these injuries and we're approaching it responsibly, which I would suggest we are, there's not a whole lot more we can do about it."
Mr. Daly doesn't seem to be concerned about star players being concussed and possibly having career ending injuries, but I can assure you Mr. Bettman is very concerned, if Crosby and Pronger are both gone what does that mean for the game? Lots of money and lots of fans leaving is what it means. The NHL will be set back several years (2006) when the NHL was struggling. Maybe more people are paying more attention because star players are out now (Crosby, Miller, Skinner) but those are the players fans are paying money to watch play, if the star players aren't playing likely fans won't be attending games. The Penguins were nearly bankrupt before they got Crosby from the draft. So the fact that Daly doesn't think this is a big deal and everyone is over reacting is a load of bull! The NHL has a problem and whether they like it or not; how long before one of the Sedins or Ovechkin, or Toews goes down with a concussion, and who knows when or if Crosby will be back.

One thing is for sure concussions will never be fully out of the game, they just can't, it's a contact sport people are going to get hurt, but the rate people are being concussed is what needs to change. Parents aren't going to sign their child up for a sport in which they can damage their brain and jeopardize their long term health. Pretty soon parents may not even let their children watch hockey. This is a major problem in the NHL too many star players are going down with concussions, something has to give, the players have become fearless, but at what price?