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What would it take for Bettman to finally be fired?


brenbowa

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Your whole post is based on predictions of the future that are not even remotely realistic.

The players get replaced all the time. The NHL would have all the world class talent replaced through the draft within 5 years .

The NHLPA has no league to run, no revenue to generate, and thus no players to sign up.

If the NHLPA players dont like it, they can go play elsewhere. I know for a fact many will start to break ranks within a year and return to the NHL and new players union.

All these Kyle Welwoods and Taylor Pyatts have no use for Fehr or bickering over the high end revenue. In fact, 90% of the players have no stake in the negotiations at all. Their salaries would never be affected .

You guys have a PHANTOM view that the NHLPA has power. That the NHL needs the union or would be somehow destroyed. That the players that currently play right now are the be all end all and it will never change.

That new players will gladly SIT OUT rather than be drafted and play in the NHL.

You are DELUDED.

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This sounds like the world according to Archie Bunker.

A league full of meatheads.

I know for a fact, that I know for a fact.

You guys... who? are? you? guys?

The NHL doesn't need the union - is not the point.

It's just not going to be able to get rid of it. Reality.

"Fire" the union. Realism? Delusion.

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You forgot to mention the part where the Owner are the ones who own everything. The NHLPA owns nothing.

The NHLPA has no rights to anything and you keep trying to make it seem like its some kind of power struggle between two equal entities.

The NHL can lock out the NHLPA permanently, hire replacement players and then regain the best talent through the draft within 5 years.

The NHLPA will be dead a year of the league allowing the replacement players to form another union.

One day you kids are going to have to realize how the real world works. You cant just go work for someone then DEMAND to have equal power with the owners.

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Worse comes to worse and you might be surprised how many 'Archie Bunkers' come to the fore if this dispute goes into next fall. If DB is writing off the union to cavalierly then your defence of the union can be questioned as well. Decertifying a union has been done before with members who make far less than NHL players. Go into next fall with no agreement and see how many players jump. Time has no forgiveness and some players will be looking at a 2nd season of lost income. The right or wrong of it makes less sense in that light.

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It only takes eight owners to veto any deal. I think it's obvious right now that there's a group of small-market teams in America that don't make money or make very little under the current system, that definitely don't make money until after the new year because of college football, and those are the people Bettman is representing right now (he has no choice, it's in his job description, but still...)

I don't think Bettman can survive another cancelled season. MLSE, the Habs, Comcast and Dolan and all those bigshots are losing millions. The sponsors are losing millions and NBCSN, who tied everything to the NHL continuing to grow in popularity, are taking a massive haircut and may never recover. The owners are fools to take on Fehr like this, he's not the typical NHLPA incompetent ignoramus, he's a real heavy hitter and I still don't feel like the owners understand who and what they're up against here. I think that the union should make one of their goals here to take down Bettman, it's well past time he was sent packing. We need someone who understands the game in that position.

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It only takes eight owners to veto any deal. I think it's obvious right now that there's a group of small-market teams in America that don't make money or make very little under the current system, that definitely don't make money until after the new year because of college football, and those are the people Bettman is representing right now (he has no choice, it's in his job description, but still...)

I don't think Bettman can survive another cancelled season. MLSE, the Habs, Comcast and Dolan and all those bigshots are losing millions. The sponsors are losing millions and NBCSN, who tied everything to the NHL continuing to grow in popularity, are taking a massive haircut and may never recover. The owners are fools to take on Fehr like this, he's not the typical NHLPA incompetent ignoramus, he's a real heavy hitter and I still don't feel like the owners understand who and what they're up against here. I think that the union should make one of their goals here to take down Bettman, it's well past time he was sent packing. We need someone who understands the game in that position.

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One day son, it is you that will have to understand that the owners may own "everything" as you put it but the value of the teams are because of the players. If you take them away the value of these 300 hundred million dollar franchises will be nothing but a small fraction of that. I was never great at math but what is 100 percent of nothing. The NHL is a gate driven league, do you really believe that you will be able to charge 300 dollars per seat in Vancouver to rookies and replacement players? The NHL has repeatedly tried to bust the NHLPA especially in 2005 only to galvanize and strengthen it now. Also do you think the future players assuming they are NHL ready in the next 5 years which the majority of them won't be, do you think if the NHL treated its previous union there will be a rush to join the new NHL.

Okay lets play out you're scenario and the NHL locks out the players for 5 years. There will be an opportunity for a new league lets call it the WHA. The new owners will have the first dibs on the best talent available all the while the NHL waits and hires the best beer leaguers and junior and college dropouts to play for them. While the old NHLers will be making decent money with the new league and in Europe, the NHL teams will be going bankrupt and will be falling like dominos one at a time until there is nothing left. The NFL in 1987 tried replacement players and that failed miserably just like the replacement officials this year. That sounds like a great plan for perhaps you should mention that to Bettman for he has done everything else stupid so this is about the only one he hasn't tried yet.

I can understand if the players were getting greedy and DEMANDING everything but they are just asking to keep the contracts they signed in good faith. The owners and Bettman are doing the demanding and dictating which last I checked is not a good way to negotiate if you are not willing to compromise. I am pretty sure that most if not all of you out there working at a successful business making millions every year and your boss asks can you take a 20 percent pay cut because they mismanaged the company resources and spent millions on a couple of employees that didn't pan out. How would you feel, would you quietly accept this and carry on as if nothing has happened or would you stand up for yourself. If you would take the pay cut and take away your bargaining rights and you are okay with that than please give me your name and number for I would love to hire the suckers that are born every minute.

If a company is well run and bosses were fair to their employees than there wouldn't be a need for a union but this isn't a perfect world. You have a boss that everyone hates who doesn't understand the game and isn't rational when it comes to making decisions. Lets say you working at a saw mill or a trucking company would you shutdown your money making business unless you absolutely had to. There is no need to lockout the players for they can continue to negotiate while playing right now. Bettman says that he doesn't want to have a strike in the middle of the season like in 1992 so you can make the PA sign an agreement that there won't be one otherwise they would be sued back to the stone age, problem solved. If the other argument is that there is a fundamental problem that needs to be fixed with the CBA like Bettman claims than who's fault is that. The owners drew up the CBA making it idiot proof and the morons found a way to screw it up. For the last time the problem is not players salaries that is just Bettman spinning trying to avoid having to blame himself for his own incompetence. The problem is that there are too many teams in bad markets that Bettman miscalculated on being successful. The only way to save this is to fire the person who did this and move or contract the teams which are the biggest failures.

The season is on the verge of collapse and when it goes the NBC deal will go with it and so will Bettman's career.

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Well said. I agree with just about everything that you mentioned except for one thing. The 10 year contract with NBC will just be carried over until hockey starts up again. Though I guess it is possible if there is little to no interest and the ratings are poor they can change the programming at any time just ask Conan Obrien. I also believe the sponsors are getting antsy and will start pulling their money out if there is no deal soon.

What surprises me most is how many Gary Bettman apologists there are out there. Its almost like the NHL is paying people to troll the boards and defend his policies. But if you look at the facts objectively for anyone who tries to defend Gary Bettman really doesn't have a leg to stand on so either people have lost their rationality or maybe people are as dumb as Gary Bettman thinks the fans are and will support and return no matter how much damage he has done to the game. It will be interesting to see if the owners will truly want to save the season with these mediators or it is just for show until they can get their true objective which is trying to bust the NHLPA.

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I blame the union and the NHLPA not the NHL. Hell I make 35k a year if I could play hockey and make 250k a year i would be happy and most of these guys make alot more then that so I really dont know why they bitch so much about money. When your kid playing hockey you learn to play for fun and do your best, but as adults they are sending the wrong message that hockey is about greed, when it really should be about enjoying what you do and playing for fun and to win the ultimate prize. Talk about people getting their priorities wrong.

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As much as I hate Bettman he didn't cause the lockout. Bettman represents the owners, he just does what they want. If you want a real villain look at Jeremy Jacobs, the Bruins owner. Of course there is plenty of greed from many people on both sides, but of the owners, from what I've heard Jacobs is the biggest bully.

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As much as I hate Bettman he didn't cause the lockout. Bettman represents the owners, he just does what they want. If you want a real villain look at Jeremy Jacobs, the Bruins owner. Of course there is plenty of greed from many people on both sides, but of the owners, from what I've heard Jacobs is the biggest bully.

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I think many people question the 'deathlock' that some fans, such as yourself, seem to think that Bettman has over the direction of negociations and even the development plans of the NHL. IMO he is the front man for ownership and is paid to take the flack for the direction that is set by ownership. I have little doubt that if he did not represent the concensus of ownership opinion he would be gone. He is an easy target for those who want a simple solution to this lockout. Many fans and players think that Bettman answers to them or the hockey grail when the reality is he answers to ownership. Does it really make any dif if Bettman is infront of the cameras or Bill Daley?

This dispute will be settled when it is in the economic interest of ownership to settle. Firing Bettman might give fans and players some hope but that is appearances only. That said Bettman might leave as part of a settlement if ownership backs off established demands. I would view that as Bettman being sacrificed rather than ownership caving to demands that he leave.

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I blame the union and the NHLPA not the NHL. Hell I make 35k a year if I could play hockey and make 250k a year i would be happy and most of these guys make alot more then that so I really dont know why they bitch so much about money. When your kid playing hockey you learn to play for fun and do your best, but as adults they are sending the wrong message that hockey is about greed, when it really should be about enjoying what you do and playing for fun and to win the ultimate prize. Talk about people getting their priorities wrong.

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I think Bettman is a little more than a mere puppet for NHL ownership. How many puppets can issue a gag-order against their employers with the threat of hefty fines if they step out of line? Also this insanity of him only needing 8 of 30 owners on his side when it comes to deciding on a new CBA, who's idea was that?

Bettman has clearly been given too much power in his position, how I dont know? I wonder though if he only needed the support of 8 owners to get that contract extension.of his?

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Take comfort in that thought process but I highly doubt that is the case. It is natural that the NHL owners would have the discipline to ensure 30 owners were not chirping their feelings to the media while negociating a new CBA. You seem to think that Bettman is some swami who has 30 owners buffaloed into obeying his direction. Again I highly doubt that to be the case. If the Forbes valuation of the 30 NHL teams is accurate you are suggesting $9 billion +/- of owner equity is being solely controlled and directed by Bettman. That doesn't happen in the real world. Accept the fact that the lack of a new CBA is more directly a result of ownership's demands than those of Mr. Bettman who is their employee.

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I think Bettman is a little more than a mere puppet for NHL ownership. How many puppets can issue a gag-order against their employers with the threat of hefty fines if they step out of line? Also this insanity of him only needing 8 of 30 owners on his side when it comes to deciding on a new CBA, who's idea was that?

Bettman has clearly been given too much power in his position, how I dont know? I wonder though if he only needed the support of 8 owners to get that contract extension.of his?

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