Article: 10 ways to avoid an NHL ice age

[Resolute]

11. Stop pretending that poor national TV ratings means a whole lot at this point. The game has been f'ked with more than enough. Stop inventing ways to piss off traditional fans that don't add any new fans.

 

[Resolute]

2. I say the next CBA, make a deal that states the schedule is cut from 82 games to 70, but do it over an extended period of time - slice two games off every other year. Shift the schedule ahead by 2/3 days each time this happens. Once you get down to 70 games, the season will start on Oct. 24ish, and finish in late May. Starts later, ends earlier - we satisfy both sides.

Good luck convincing the NHLPA to accept a 15% paycut.

10. 24-26 teams is probably what most people would like to see, but there's no way in hell these owners will pony up 150-200m * 4 teams = 600-800m for contraction.

Beyond that, people simply won't get what they think they will get by contracting the NHL. When offense drops even lower, the league will have to invent new ways to artificially prop up scoring in a futile attempt at increasing TV ratings.