Welcome back everyone! Boy, is there big news in hockey.
According to ESPN.com, the Commissioner of the National Hockey League, Gary Bettman, said that replacement players are a possibility if an agreement is not settled soon. Already there has been a cancellation in all preseason games, and there is a threat that this upcoming season will be totally washed out.
Many fans are outraged that the Commissioner is even considering getting replacement players. Look at what happened to the NFL. They had the no-name referees for three weeks and look what occurred. If the decision comes down to replacement players and not having a season at all, then I say not have a season. Why put players in if the general public never heard of them?
This whole lockout stuff is getting to be ridiculous. It wasn't too long ago that there was a NHL lockout. According to Bleacher's Report, there have been four "league-wide" stoppages since 1992. That's an average of one in every five years! The last lockout gave a result of a whole season being suspended.
Players either need to come down to the real world or they will be replaced! The Commissioner will not give up and he has cancelled a season before. I don't think that the players are worried about not playing for the NHL as much as the Commissioner is. After all, players have the ability to play overseas in countries like Russia and Switzerland (two big countries known for producing great hockey players).
By using replacement players, its the league who will be losing revenue. Fans will boycott their teams and then it will be the teams who will get angry. Owners will lose so much money that they would not have enough to pay their employees. They would also have trouble paying for the places in which their teams play in.
I understand that the country is going through a recession and that people are strapped for money, but players make enough money for themselves and their families. Fans will pay top dollar to see their favorite athletes in person even if that means paying with all the money they have. I know I am an example of that, who will pay ridiculous money for playoff tickets, just to see the Yankees play.
Players need to realize that they do not have to have everything in the world just because they are popular. If players want to argue over something, they should argue over insurance for all the hits they take in games and not worry how they will pay for their multi-million dollar homes and fancy cars.
So to end this nasty break-up between the players and the commissioner, both sides need to come down to reality and see that their not hurting themselves, but that they are hurting the fans who pay top dollar to attend games. There has to be a midway point in which the two parties agree to, but only time will tell, right?
Do you think the right decision is to have replacement players? If they do have replacement players to save a season, then the game of hockey will be a wash. Less people will have an interest in the sport, and many small organizations like the Police Athletic League and Boys and Girls Club will lose money. Remember, the only people who will lose if the season is locked out will be the fans. Players will still be paid and play in other countries for other leagues.
Fans will be forced to watch games from the KHL (Kontinental Hockey League), where many of the players are set to play this upcoming season. The KHL is a Russian Hockey League. An affiliation/program who will lose a lot of money is Sports Network on television. The Sports Network depends on the NHL and Major League Baseball for revenue, and without a season, the Sports Network will lose millions of dollars.
So that's it for this week's blog and I hope you come back for next weeks. Next week I will be talking about the PLAYOFFS in baseball! Wow, its already October, pretty soon November will be here. Until then!
Sporty Nikki
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