Everything's Ruined

I put a lot of stock in autumn. It allows me to wryly curse the few surviving mosquitoes that always seem to single me out. The lawn waves me away and takes care of itself for the rest of the year. Holidays and the chance of snow start revving up and honestly, I just really like wearing hoodies and coats. And then there’s hockey…

Or not.

Gary Bettman, the NHL Commissioner and Donald Fehr, head of the NHL Players Association have locked the players out. No hockey. Very simple. It’s not happening now, nor will it resume until both sides of the fight have come to an agreement about money. If the owners and Bettman can’t reduce player salary and take more of all Hockey Related Revenue (HRR), then all I have left for myself is a lack of mosquito bites and coat shopping.

Here’s the problem. The players were receiving 57% of all HRR after the LAST lockout that took up an entire season. Yep. Actually, under Bettman’s completely craptastic watch, the NHL has had FOUR stoppages in less than 20 years. So the owners want more and the players want what they’ve had since 2005. In my opinion, they’re both wrong. Most major sporting leagues fall somewhere in the 50/50 range with revenue (ticket sales, merchandise, etc.) and things seem pretty solid with the glaring exception of the NFL. That’s another topic altogether.

Here’s my real gripe with this standoff, other than the fact that I have 82 nights to fill with something other than the sport I love so dearly. Imagine, if you will, that you have two children and a spouse. You love them and you work everyday to afford the things you need to provide for them. Now imagine that you are employed by an arena, transportation entity, restaurant or other service associated with and dependent ON hockey. There are many ways to say it but I feel it’s best to just come on out with a hearty: You’re FUCKED.

Christmas is on its way. Two groups of people that all make at least 75K a year, and the vast majority much more than that, cannot agree on who gets the larger piece of the pie that you get your salary from. The people that work at the PNC Arena, for example, are there every night to serve the fans. From BBQ to NHL-branded hoodies and baby supplies; each of them does it for the money. Nobody works for free, but now with this lockout, the ones who need it most are the ones suffering the worst.

Here in Raleigh, the Carolina Hurricanes recently mailed out requests and bills for the upcoming season to season-ticket holders. Are you fucking kidding me? Billing the very people who create all of the HRR that you’re fighting over before a season that likely won’t even occur? Now I understand that money would be reimbursed if the season is cancelled, but why in the world would any of these season-ticket holders let the NHL sit on interest-gathering cash instead of keeping it for themselves? What makes the NHL think that any of us who are fans are going to pay money now for a product that simply doesn’t exist?

Prove to us, Gary Bettman and all of the owners of teams big and small, that you WANT to solve the problem. Instead of not even scheduling meetings, how about working day and night to fix your broken PRODUCT and release it into the market? Prove to us, players across the league, that you actually want to play the game and that you’re not just in it for the money. You play hockey for a living. That should be enough until you retire and have to open a shitty car dealership or fall back on your real estate certification.

And if and when you do solve your greedy little problems, make it a point to thank each and every one of the people that work for you, directly or not, for putting up with your needless bullshit.

- Jay Winfrey