As reported last week and made official this afternoon, the NHL has formally cancelled the 2013 NHL Winter Classic between the Detroit Red Wings and the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The two teams will face off in the 2014 NHL Winter Classic, assuming that NHL hockey has returned by then.
Following the dour announcement was a shred of good news from Darren Dreger of TSN via twitter:
“NHL advised PA it will absorb share of ‘Make Whole’ provision. This is a considerable concession.”
For those not following at home, the NHL has been looking for additional salary rollbacks from the players to cut immediate player costs. The players have been requesting that their existing contracts be honored while agreeing to an eventual 50/50 split of hockey-related-revenue over the course of the next collective bargaining agreement.
Unstoppable force, meet immovable object.
The “Make Whole” provision included in the most recent proposal from the NHL was an attempt to provide a means by which the players make up the money previously owed to them over time.
The problem with this provision in its first draft was that the money distributed by it would have been taken out of the players’ share of the profits- that is, players would be paying players the money owed to them by the owners.
This did not fly with the NHLPA, as you can imagine. With the news that the NHL may come to an agreement on covering a percentage of this “Make Whole” provision, there is more grounds for the PA to realistically consider this offer. In essence, the players would still be taking a roll-back, but would make up a portion of their salaries from the owners over the next several years.
Hopefully this concession leads to more real progress before the rest of the season is lost.
BYE- BYE, 2012 Season! What f^#@ing disgrace & embarrassment! These greedy bastards, can’t get together & make a settlement?!? As soon aas Donald Fehr took over as the players rep, I knew it was all over! Dude almost destroyed the MLB!
Another dumb-ass lockout by a 4th Tier Sport who was just gaining in popularity in the last couple of seasons.. More Idiots and Amatuers I see …
unfortunately the owners don’t care! why? because their SMALL but passionate fan base will always come back. They know it and Betman has said it! two lock outs in the last couple of years and when they come back 18000 will fill wells fargo center– cheering and buying orange gear. they will get a ‘normal’ audience on tv for regular season and a slightly bigger one for the playoffs.
The NHL is irrelevant as a National Sport.. 75% of the Country could care less
Let them sit out and misss all Season.. The NHL is a bunch of foreignor’s that the average Fan can’t relate to anyways and Players come and go as do casual fans…There will alsways be die-hard fans,but that group continues to get smaller and smaller as there are many other things to do with your discretionary income and time…
And the die hard fans are geeky metrosexual types, screw them