On Wednesday September 15, 2004 the National Hockey League owners declared a lockout on its players, due to differences on a new collective bargaining agreement. The differences occurred after the league wanted to implement a salary cap.
Day fifteen of the lockout is approaching. Players are leaving the league and games for the 2005 season are being cancelled. The 2002 National Hockey League MVP, Peter Forsberg, along with other players, has already left the league and signed contracts with other international teams. Owners and players do not seem to be reaching an agreement soon, and fans are becoming impatient. Owners hope to quell some of the fans’ aggravation. However, they are not willing to negotiate with the player’s union to end the lockout. While the lockout continues, the hockey fan must find somewhere else to take their entertainment dollar.
“Our fans have told us they cannot continue bearing the brunt of rising costs and to stop raising ticket prices,” said James R. Lites, President of the Dallas Stars.
Lites acknowledged that the need for a strong fan base was one of the most important things to hockey, but right now a better economic system is more important. The NHL has 30 different teams that each need to be “healthy and competitive” in their current market, said Lites. Lites, along with the other owners have sent personal press releases to all the fans encouraging them to be patient with hockey, and ensuring them that their patience will go rewarded. “It is important to [employ an economic system] that makes business sense for the ownership and financial sense for the fans.”
Recent independent studies by former United States Securities and Exchange Commision Chair Arthur Levitt documented losses of $230 million in the 2002-2003 NHL season.
“If someone came to us and said they will extend the current CBA for another five years, we'd turn around and sell the team. We can't continue to do this. This is ridiculous,” said Los Angeles Kings president, Tim Leiweke, in an interview with NHL.com.
Leiweke expressed a drastic need for a new economic system in the NHL, but also continued fan support.
The fan base for the NHL is crucial right now. The league needs to keep fans assuaged and informed.
Between 70 and 85 percent of fans say that they support the owners argument in the lockout. However, not all the fans say they will be so quick to side with hockey after the lockout ends.
“I used to go to bat for hockey when other people would put it down,” says Sam Jones, an avid NHL fan since his youth, “but now, this whole thing has really tainted my view of hockey.” Jones’ eyes have also been opened to the numerous hockey leagues around the world. “I used to think that the best hockey in the world was played in the NHL, but now I realize that not only are there other hockey leagues out there, but some of their players are better than the NHL players.” This revelation occurred when Peter Forsberg announced that he signed a one-year contract with his old club, Modo, from Sweden. Right now, Jones does not know what to think about hockey, but he virulently suggests that he will not so avidly defend it in the future.
Hockey’s future is as ambiguous as it ever has been. Between keeping fans’ loyalty and settling for a profitable economic system, days in the National Hockey League are grim.
Owners aren’t moving, the union isn’t budging, and fans are stuck in the middle. Hockey is looking at a major marketing task during and after the lockout. With its already waning popularity, the lockout could have come at a better time. For now, the fans’ must take their entertainment dollar somewhere else, but owners must insure that they do not stay there. In the all mighty quest to make a dollar, everyone might end up losing. Certainly hockey’s future stands on the edge of a knife.
"To hear anyone, players or Union, saying that we don't have a problem here, they are blindfolded and they're going to kill the sport. We have a major problem” said Leiweke. The NHL has two options. “We either fix it or we’re out.”
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