11-15-2004, 08:18 PM
I agree some contraction is a good thing - three teams in the east and at least one in the west - but if it occurs as a result of player greediness preventing hockey from surviving, rather than allowing market forces to dictate survival and demise, it's a bad thing. These are the people who bring the game to us.
I think everybody would be against the Hip if they decided they wanted to double or triple their income every five years and as a result concert tickets skyrocketed from $40 and $50 to $150...that's what the best seats at hockey games cost, sometimes more. Even though we admire the band, we would draw a line when their financial demands began taking away from their artistic credibility. Likewise, it's hard for me to even respect the best players in the league as people who love the game and have worked so hard to make it, when they are making such unreasonable salary demands.
The NHLPA is a funnel cloud of egos swirling round, wreaking havoc in its path.
I think everybody would be against the Hip if they decided they wanted to double or triple their income every five years and as a result concert tickets skyrocketed from $40 and $50 to $150...that's what the best seats at hockey games cost, sometimes more. Even though we admire the band, we would draw a line when their financial demands began taking away from their artistic credibility. Likewise, it's hard for me to even respect the best players in the league as people who love the game and have worked so hard to make it, when they are making such unreasonable salary demands.
The NHLPA is a funnel cloud of egos swirling round, wreaking havoc in its path.