*Official* CBA Negotiations and Lockout Thread

[Drive-By Body Pierce]

NHLPA head Donad Fehr came on the TEAM1040 Friday afternoon to talk about the ongoing labour dispute between the NHL and players.

Fehr seems frustrated with the League owners, insisting the PA is available to get back to the bargaining table any time .

Donald Fehr w/ Sekeres and Price

Preseason games through to the end of September have already been cancelled with many more games expected to be axed very soon.

[SamJamIam]

I think the problem is that the players don't have enough business sense to understand the real problems with the NHL. Yes revenues have been going up, but so have expenses, which includes players salaries.

So just because revenue is growing, does not mean that profit is growing. They can't just expect that their salaries will continue to keep rising year after year. Things need to be slowed down, because the league isn't growing as fast as players salaries are increasing right now. Something has to give.

Don't kid yourselves if you think that the players are not being the greedier ones here.

[UFCanuck]

Bettman should take the same roll back in his salary as the players.

[Dragonfruits]

its happening i am selling my jersies my burrows third went for 75 dollars and still left are my kesler home 100 and blank orca navy for 40 guess i can't sell t-shirts so those go to value village donation

and i am very close to canceling my sports channels although i am enjoying watching the nfl and cfl and even college football

[Drybone]

The CBA expired. The owners want a new agreement. They have said so for an entire year. The union wanted a different deal. Even with no deal they want to just carry on with the same one until a new deal.

Owners hate the cba and want a new deal. The old one is expired and they cant have it back. Either negotiate a new one or you cant play in the NHL.

The owners OWN the NHL . They OWN the rights to the Stanley Cup.

The union OWNS nothing. They have the current talent. That is all they own.

The NHL are the only ones who can give out the Stanley Cup. The players can TRY to start up their own form of 'WHA' in an attempt to be owners and players at the same time thus have any 'CBA' they want.

Good luck. They manpower, skill and financial backing it takes to build arenas , get political consensus , market the game , scout new talent , develop minor league teams blah blah blah is WAY beyond the scope of the NHPLA.

The only reason why the WHA worked is because the owners were trying to lowball so badly that major stars signed for literally 3 to 5 times as much in a new league , and even in this once in a lifetime situation, it only lasted 7 years.

The owners have LOCKED OUT the players, inviting them to go ahead and start their own league. Even if Atlanta , Phoenix and several other NHL teams are losing money Im sure the NHLPA can somehow start its own VIABLE league right?

Meanwhile the NHL should simply fire the players if they want to play hardball and simply sign new guys to the teams. Within 2 or 3 years the NHL draft will start to replace the current stars with new ones. Just like the normal way of life for NHL players. Its a 6 years average career.

You guys wanna whine from the players point of view? What LEVERAGE do they have?

None.

If I was the owners I fire their asses unless they accept 50% and 5 year maximum contracts.

[SamJamIam]

Which replacement player NHL 13 does EA want to put on their cover? Which advertiser wants their logo on the shirt of a nobody? Owners can't fire Sidney Crosby and all the marketing that's been poured into making him an icon. No players, no advertising, no fan interest, no ticket sales. Not enough to matter anyways.

You also don't seem to get that the owners are not a united front. They are a bickering mess. Many don't want a lockout at all, so only certain GMs would fire players, and they'd be left with crap teams.

[Salmonberries]

Except your comparison is imaginary. The difference with NHL hockey is it is happening for real.

Besides that, sure the European teams are happy to sign NHL players, but how do you think the displaced players feel about it? It's not like the NHLers going overseas need the money. These are all extremely high paid players that are going over there.

[canuckelhead70]

that is mighty big of the players to tell then owners to chip in another 100M to revenue sharing. Players tell owners to put in another 66% into team revenue sharing but the players will not except a 7% cut in revenue splitting.

some people post that the playes are the product and they are partners and should not be viewed as employees. If that is the case should the owners then get 43% of all the players endorsements then? If it wasn't for the owners giving these joe's a job, they would not be able brand themselves for endorsements. Why is it a crime for the owners to make money outside of hockey (other businesses) but it is ok for the players to make money off the ice but they are using the owners team to make that money?

[Scoobydooby]

The CBA expired. The owners want a new agreement. They have said so for an entire year. The union wanted a different deal. Even with no deal they want to just carry on with the same one until a new deal.

Owners hate the cba and want a new deal. The old one is expired and they cant have it back. Either negotiate a new one or you cant play in the NHL.

The owners OWN the NHL . They OWN the rights to the Stanley Cup.

The union OWNS nothing. They have the current talent. That is all they own.

The NHL are the only ones who can give out the Stanley Cup. The players can TRY to start up their own form of 'WHA' in an attempt to be owners and players at the same time thus have any 'CBA' they want.

Good luck. They manpower, skill and financial backing it takes to build arenas , get political consensus , market the game , scout new talent , develop minor league teams blah blah blah is WAY beyond the scope of the NHPLA.

The only reason why the WHA worked is because the owners were trying to lowball so badly that major stars signed for literally 3 to 5 times as much in a new league , and even in this once in a lifetime situation, it only lasted 7 years.

The owners have LOCKED OUT the players, inviting them to go ahead and start their own league. Even if Atlanta , Phoenix and several other NHL teams are losing money Im sure the NHLPA can somehow start its own VIABLE league right?

Meanwhile the NHL should simply fire the players if they want to play hardball and simply sign new guys to the teams. Within 2 or 3 years the NHL draft will start to replace the current stars with new ones. Just like the normal way of life for NHL players. Its a 6 years average career.

You guys wanna whine from the players point of view? What LEVERAGE do they have?

None.

If I was the owners I fire their asses unless they accept 50% and 5 year maximum contracts.

[Boudrias]

It would appear that if the players position is that ownership should cover the subidizing of those teams that are struggling then that increased 'sharing' has to come from TO, NYR, Habs and possibly Vancouver. Those are the only teams making over $20 M profit. I am assuming that current subsidies are already accounted for in their P&L statements.

Again I make the point of the Laffers biggest shareholder, the Ontario Teachers Retirement Fund, asking themselves why they would do that? Their purpose is to invest money to pay teacher pensions in Ontario.

[-Vintage Canuck-]

@Guggti: Nash scores! Assisted by Tim Ramholt and Big Joe. 1-0 Davos.

[Garrison]

@Guggti: Nash scores! Assisted by Tim Ramholt and Big Joe. 1-0 Davos.

[WiDeN]

uhhh...?

you actually think that firing all the players and bringing in othet players would be an option for the nhl?

It would be if they were trying to royally screw themselves, otherwise this is idea is borderline retardation.

[D-Bo7]

@Guggti: Nash scores! Assisted by Tim Ramholt and Big Joe. 1-0 Davos.

[Scoobydooby]

Borderline?

It's something that a 12 year old might blurt out in passing ignorant thought.

It's unrealistic, and a terrible idea to begin with.

[duchene9]

[scooter23222]

What i dont understand is that if the players would play under this agreement while they negotiate why didnt they have the foresight to write into the last agreement.Honestly what have they been doing for the last year? Why wait until the season is gonna start before going to work on this agreement( I understand leverage but it really doesnt benefit anyone)?It reminds me of the person we all know who arrives to work one minute before its starts or waits at a greenlight while texting unaware of the people around them. This isnt a surprise. Must be nice to have millions of dollars in the bank to sit and pout.Many people cant even afford to lose a day of work without it screwing up a tight budget. What about all the little people who now are looking for work elsewhere.What about the people that now have to use tax payer subsidies to help them out.Who pays for that? Oh yeah Taxpayers even people who dont watch hockey.Its such a S@#t rolls downhill effect. Anyways Just wanted to rant.I want a season and i am sure i will watch again but i have lost a lot of respect for the GAME. Its Like having a bad girlfriend that you want to get rid of but the sex is just too good and keep going back for more.

[-Vintage Canuck-]

Canucks GM Mike Gillis tight-lipped about lockout, but confirms Tanev to Wolves:

For many in the hockey community who have been around a while, this lockout has very much the same feel and complexion as the last one, give or take several of the issues.

The players, owners, employees and the people in the adjoining businesses that are suffering the collateral damage of this difficult situation are all experiencing very much the same thoughts and emotions from 2004 when a stoppage with this same feel first started with everyone hoping it doesn’t go a full season like last time, or longer.

But that’s decidedly not the case for Vancouver Canucks general manager Mike Gills.

During the last go-round, Gills was one of the leading agents in the game with a group of outstanding players of all ages who relied on his counsel with respect to setting direction for their own careers on the ice in some ways as well as every conceivable way off it. As a businessman he had a reputation for running perhaps the most efficient agent operation in the game given the low overhead he maintained, augmented by a few carefully selected associates and close friends he’d encountered over the years who provided other services to his clients, including financial advise on an independent basis if they so wished.

So impressive was the whole package that he was one of the inner sanctum of agents who would sometimes be asked for their opinions, although to what degree those views affected what transpired isn’t known. Gillis didn’t say much publicly other than one well-watched and enjoyed appearance on TSN’s Off the Record show along with fellow agent at the time J. P. Barry and commissioner Gary Bettman’s right-hand man Bill Daly, which certainly uplifted the level of debate if only for a day. For the most part he kept his clients informed and off the back of the Association leadership and waited for the conflict to end so his clients and thus he himself could start getting paid again.

Fast forward to right now and at least Gillis feels he can do some things to get ready for a season everyone in the industry hopes happens. And he gets paid, too, perhaps not the full amount, although he says that hasn’t been determined yet. But as everyone knows, Detroit’s Jimmy Devellano more than most, there is a gag order on NHL personnel during these lockouts so nobody with any team says much of anything lest they incur a considerable fine from the league if it’s deemed to be the wrong comment. So Gillis was understandably reluctant to say too much.

“Last time I could talk about it but not do anything and now really there’s nothing much to say,” he says. “I didn’t really say anything last time either.

“We’re working on our cap issues right now carefully calculating a number of different scenarios that may occur after this is over and we’re trying to be as ready as we possibly can be when play starts again.

“I’m going to go to Chicago in early October to watch most of their training camp down there and keep as good a tab on our young players as we can.”

The Canucks will be assigning Chris Tanev to Chicago although you have to wonder whether it wouldn’t be a better idea to keep him up here working on his size and physical strength for a longer period of time, giving him that lift in strength that would serve him so well. After all, he’s dominated at that level already. Another player slated for Vancouver this year but going down now is Zack Kassian, but he’s still pretty green, Tanev having an exceptional head for the game not a lot of 22-year-old defencemen enjoy.

“Zack is still very young and hasn’t really played that much so he’s going as well,” said Gillis of the big forward with 74 pro games under his belt, including 33 at the AHL level where he had considerable success. He spent some time working out with the Sedins this spring and if he could copy their career improvement pattern in any way, Gillis would certainly have something to smile about.

http://www.theprovince.com/sports/Canucks+Mike+Gillis+tight+lipped+about+lockout+confirms+Tanev/7285981/story.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

[NightHawkSniper]

Time to break down this serious thread

[-Vintage Canuck-]

Steven Stamkos’ agent, Mark Guy, confirmed that Stamkos “has been contacted by many teams,” but is not close to making a decision. HC Lugano of the Swiss National League A League is one of the teams that is reportedly interested in Stamkos.

http://www.thefourthperiod.com/news/tbl120922.html