Thread: The Official CBA Negotiations/Lockout Super Thread

Originally Posted by taz42

In this great time of sorrow, I think we should give a little thought and sympathy to the wives of all these great players. Noone seems to be thinking of how hard these poor wives must be taking this. Afterall, these gals are used to having time to themselves, shopping alone,spending days on themselves and children and just doing as they please.
Now, they're going to have these guys around and under foot 24-7. Alas ladies, it can't last forever.

Lolers!

Actually, I feel sorry for the guys more. Now that they are going to be home more, lol, their wives will make them take out the trash.

I hafta take out the trash too, but I am not a millionaire hockey player, so I have to do what I have to.

Originally Posted by taz42

In this great time of sorrow, I think we should give a little thought and sympathy to the wives of all these great players. Noone seems to be thinking of how hard these poor wives must be taking this. Afterall, these gals are used to having time to themselves, shopping alone,spending days on themselves and children and just doing as they please.
Now, they're going to have these guys around and under foot 24-7. Alas ladies, it can't last forever.

I have to hate you now BEV

Fehr IS nuts, but I don't think he's as dumb as Bettman or Goodenow who was a stooge, lol!

I don't see Fehr losing this. He won't win it to the point that he will get the cap to be removed, but no way, in my opinion, are we going to see the players getting less than what they did during the last CBA.

I think this will get dragged out really long. Hopefully, I am wrong. Either way, if Bettman loses his job over this, it might be worth missing hockey.

Originally Posted by pg1067

The first point is well-taken, but why is "horrible management" resulting in barely over 80% of home capacity (aside from the fact that the team has only qualified for the playoffs once in 11 seasons)?

What have the Blue Jackets done to give fans something to be excited about?

For better or worse, in a lot of things the Blue Jackets have done, management has come off looking incompetent. Never found the right players to complement Nash and now he's gone. Carter was a huge fiasco in Columbus. Some bonehead coaching/GM/drafting moves. As an expansion team you're not going to make the playoffs right away, so I wouldn't even count the first 3-5 years in their history and not making the playoffs in those seasons against them. But when you stretch that out to 9 years before you make the playoffs, you're going to be testing the patience of your fans. Of the recent expansion teams, in 9 years for example, the Ducks had won 1 playoff series, lost 2, and their 10th year they were in the Stanley Cup finals. The Panthers were in the Finals in their 3rd season. In their first 9 years Minnesota had a conference finals appearance and 2 other years where they qualified for the playoffs. Atlanta made the playoffs once, in their 7th season and the team was moved after 11 years.

They've picked in the top 10 every year and had some busts, some decent but not great players and Nash was really the only star player they have gotten from that top 10 drafting position every year. Nice players but not great would include Klesla (4th, 2000), Derrek Brassard (6th in 2006), Voracek (7th, 2007). I'd call Pascal Leclaire (8th in 2001), Zherdev (4th in 2003....everyone knows how great that draft was), Alexandre Picard (8th in 2004), Gilbert Brule (6th in 2005...another big miss) and Filatov (6th in 2008) misses or huge busts.

When you're trying to build the NHL in an expansion city and you don't have success at some point the fans are going to wonder if it's worth spending the money on tickets.

Originally Posted by Dana

I don't know. In theory a gradual rollback in percent of HHR makes sense and that very well may be where both sides end up. Asking for all of the giveback at once isn't something that I can see the PA agreeing to again. I still think the most interesting thing I've read in the whole thing is Fehr's comments that once the CBA expired over the weekend the NHLPA could reconsider their position on a Cap altogether.

Well Fehr made that comment after the NHL said that they would pull their offer off the table. What else was he going to say? I may be naive but I would doubt that the players would be willing to have the same fight as they did in 2005 to get rid of the cap. That is a losing battle. I think its important to remember that Fehr is the players' agent just as Bettman is the owners'. I think he uses the threat of the cap to pressure the owners, but in the end the players will accept a cap of some form especially given how well they have been doing under it. Its just a shame that there are obvious common sense solutions that both sides could agree on that would benefit them in both the short and long term.

Originally Posted by orpheus

Fehr IS nuts, but I don't think he's as dumb as Bettman or Goodenow who was a stooge, lol!

I don't see Fehr losing this. He won't win it to the point that he will get the cap to be removed, but no way, in my opinion, are we going to see the players getting less than what they did during the last CBA.

I think this will get dragged out really long. Hopefully, I am wrong. Either way, if Bettman loses his job over this, it might be worth missing hockey.

I don't see Fehr winning this. The best the players can hope for is some type of compromise that would provide a phased in reduction of their HRR % down to 50/50 and increased revenue sharing. If the negotiations started with that type of compromise on both sides I think the other issues like length of contracts, the age at which players can become UFA, arbitration rights, etc. could be sorted out.

Originally Posted by Dana

What have the Blue Jackets done to give fans something to be excited about?

Shoot a giant cannon off, indoors.

Originally Posted by Lappy!

Shoot a giant cannon off, indoors.

Good point. Also they have patriotic jerseys!

Originally Posted by Bogey

If either side is pointing fingers like some of you are, see you in 2014-15.

We are kind of ignoring the obvious. We all know that the monkey should get all the blame.