NHL considering cancelling 2005 draft?

[craig1]

With the exception of hardcore hockey fans, nobody in the US has any idea who Sidney Crosby is. "Marketing" him outside of the city that he lands in is moot. More fans will know who was drafted in the 6th round of the NFL draft for every team than will know who Crosby is.

Hockey is currently around the 6th most popular sport in the US to watch. It's behind Football, Baseball, Basketball, Golf.........and Poker (Yes, Poker is getting better ratings on ESPN than Hockey did. It's fighting to hold its current spot with Soccer and Bowling.


For those who insist that Crosby will be such an immediate and huge marketing success for the game, I have this thought: There is going to be unprecedented turnover in the league this year. Fans are going to have more new players on their teams than they usually get in 4 or 5 years combined. Fans are going to want to get to know their new teams. Crosby will get a little lost in the shuffle on both a local and national level with so much else to talk about.

 

[Taranis_24]

They only have 12 players per team. And maybe 7/8 get regular game time.

Increased to 14 w/ the new CBA.

 

[Resolute]

Fergy's request to have authorization to sign Crosby to play in the AHL gets commish's sign of approval and his Reebok deal could keep him in North America ..

He is speaking at a time when there is no agreement between his league, the NHL and the CHL that would keep junior aged players in junior. Should such an agreement be reinstituted - and it will - Crosby would be going back to the Q.

 

[blitzkriegs]

it's hard enough to market a hockey player, but russian ones are even tougher.

if you can't see why crosby is more appealing (marketing wise) than kovalchuk then there's no point.

His point is that Kovalchuk is already a budding star and has some NHL popularity. It just needs the springboard to go broader.

Again, Crosby who?

I can assure that the LA & NY markets will ask the same - both of which I am privy to.

If the kid plays well and establishes an NHL presence, then he will become a more recognized player/person. In the absence of that, don't get your hopes up that fans will rush arenas to see Crosby for 41 games. Dream on...

Nobody rushed to GWF/Staples to see Kobe until he BECAME Kobe. People rushed to GWF to see Gretzky because HE WAS Gretzky. Nobody rushed to MSG to see Patrick even with all his hype until he BECAME Patrick. People rushed to MSG because Messier WAS Messier.

Shall I continue....

 

[A Good Flying Bird*]

I disagree with raising the draft age over 18.
Any adult should be able to work in the NHL providing he has the skills

 

[Jaded-Fan]

I disagree with raising the draft age over 18.
Any adult should be able to work in the NHL providing he has the skills

Ann Arbor? Isn't that near Detroit? As I said, look who is against this. Sort of belies the argument that the big markets will be gutted with the new CBA and so they need an equal shot at a top pick doesn't it? I do not see the fans of the sad sack teams from 2003-4 complaining about this idea do you?

 

[HockeyCritter]

I disagree with raising the draft age over 18.
Any adult should be able to work in the NHL providing he has the skills.

Why?

 

[Atlas]

Raising the draft age to 19 will be the smartest thing the NHL has done in a long time. It would be excellent for the league in the long-term and it takes care of the lost year problem in the short-term. Great idea!

 

[Timmy]

I disagree with raising the draft age over 18.
Any adult should be able to work in the NHL providing he has the skills

Ummm, outside of Doogie Howser, should any adult be allowed to be accepted into the medical association as a doctor?

If the players and league agree that 19 is a better age due to the need for an extra years' development, then how does a person's desire to play before then supercede the collective will of the NHL and NHLPA?

 

[Resolute]

I disagree with raising the draft age over 18.
Any adult should be able to work in the NHL providing he has the skills

Why is one arbitrary number worse than another?

Why have any limits on draft age? If a team wants to put Tavares into their lineups next year, why not let them draft him at 14?

 

[Jack Canuck]

Are people still under the delusion that Crosby means something in the United States?

I live in Hawaii and suprizingly many people know who he is. He must have some meaning to U.S. fans.

 

[nyrmessier011]

This would be the absolut worst thing the NHL could ever do in a million years. If they do this, Bettman is officially (altho I think he already is) the worst commissioner/president is the history of sports not only in North America, but on planet Earth. This freaking league needs a story to bring fans to the game and this is that story. The league comes back with a new economic system making games affordable and every single fans team a fair and equal affordable chance to build a winning team, new rules to make the game more exciting and a 18 year old phenom kid who could be the next best hockey player on Earth, going to any team with an equal chance with a showcase lottery they could put on national TV. Without that last part, there is no appeal to come back to hockey. Average sports fans don't give a **** about rule changes...this league needs a story to run with, and they CAN NOT wait another year to have it.

 

[Kritter471]

I don't get what the big advantage is in raising the draft age to 19.

A.) What disadvantage does drafting at 18 have for the player? None, really, other than wrapping up his immediate future with a singular NHL team. Because the vast majority of players are drafted sans agent, they are still eligable for all the NCAA, Major Junior, Tier 2 Junior leagues they were eligible for previous to being drafted.

B.) What's the big advantage on the teams to getting to wait a year? There's still only going to be 1-2 spots at most on each NHL roster for new players at the beginning of each season, and more often than not, those spots will be filled with prospects with a season or two of expierience in the minors. Notable exceptions occur with very high draft picks (1-10, I'd guess, your Nash's, Kovulchuk's, Modano's, et al) and on teams with huge turnover or injury problems. And one more year of evaluation at a minor league level may be beneficial, or it may be misleading. A guy could have a great year at 19 just like he could at 18 and never live up to it again, or a guy could get injured or tank a season at 19 (just like he could at 18) and be brilliant the rest of his career.

Basketball is a totally different beast because a.) it closes off the players other potential development leagues (other than the NBDL, which is a joke) - players in the NBA draft are ineligable for the NCAAs. b.) the teams only have 1-3 picks a year with 1-2 spots open for new guys and no farm-system players to fill those slots. They are in much greater need of ready-to-play players.

 

[futurcorerock]

In terms of marketing the game, cancelling the draft is a horrible PR move by the NHL, speaking that one of the most widely talked about players in the world right now isn't even playing. Imagine having him sit out another year and go overseas.

In terms of solving the dispute over draft order... or short for "Who gets Crosby?"... a brilliant idea


Take your pick

 

[kdb209]

I would think there would be too many legal problems in just cancelling the draft.

The last thing the league needs is to be in court with some prospect who's pissed off with the cancellation of the draft.

There would be absolutely no legal problems with cancelling the draft or just upping the draft eligible age to 19 - as long as those terms are included in a negotiated CBA.

A player has no "right" to be drafted and play in a professional sports league - just ask Maurice Clarett.

Note that the NBA just agreed to increase it's draft age to 19 in it's new CBA. Don't expect any challenges (or at least sucessful ones) there either. And please no one bring up Spencer Haywood again - those age rules were imposed unilaterally by the league and were not the products of a CBA negotiation, so did not enjoy the non statutory labor exemption to Anti Trust law that a CBA has.

 

[blitzkriegs]

going to any team with an equal chance with a showcase lottery they could put on national TV. Without that last part, there is no appeal to come back to hockey. Average sports fans don't give a **** about rule changes...this league needs a story to run with, and they CAN NOT wait another year to have it.

All of a sudden the Crosby lottery becomes some sort of US national tv story? Please...this board seriously has some warped minds or desperate ones.

Taking your words, "average sports fans" - the ones you seem to think the NHL needs to appeal to, "don't give a **** about" sports drafts, especially the NHL draft.

The NFL draft, the king of all drafts, appeals to NFL fans and tons of them. Last I checked, the big story Eli Manning "i'm not gonna play for SD" wasn't a national tv hit on ESPN with average sports fans.

 

[kdb209]

Great it opens up the opportunity for Crosby to join the AHL and the Marlies and help grow the game ..

i don't believe anyone should be playing professional hockey in north america prior to them being eligible for the draft. i'd bet if they decide to cancel the draft, they'll put a clause in to block this occurance.

And how would they block this occurance. What legal authority does the NHL or NHLPA have to dictate what any other "competing" league does? They cannot tell the AHL and it's teams who they can and cannot sign. If the NHL and AHL even tried to collude and do something like this, there would be significant ground for legal challenge against the NHL on anti trust grounds. The only way this could legally be done is to re-open the AHL CBA - and I doubt that the AHL and definitely not the PHPA would be interested in doing that.

The league could try to impose a rule that a player who plays in the AHL before being draft eligible would be ineligible to play in the NHL, but rule would never stand up to anti-trust challenge.

 

[Winger98]

I'd also move the goal lines back to ten-feet from the end boards, reinstated tag-uo offsides, and make the netural zone larger.

I like your ideas and find them very interesting. Do you have a newsletter to which I could subscribe?

 

[Big McLargehuge]

Make the draft age 19 (now and forever) ...... problem solved.

You have my support.

 

[usiel]

Are people still under the delusion that Crosby means something in the United States?

dude, you are absolutely correct. If there is a reality that crosby not getting drafted would significantly hurt the NHL then lets fold the frikin thing cause they are hosed, heh.

There will be a crazy free agency period as well as all the rules/equipment changes grab all the fans attentions. Plus there will be a honeymoon of sorts with hardcore hockey fans also on its return.

And those aforementioned hardcorp fans will have heard of crosby I'm pretty sure...but it will be the young stars the NHL already has that should and will be the for front of hopefully there much better marketing campaign.

 

[19nazzy]

Increased to 14 w/ the new CBA.

Hmmm that's kind of stupid. I guess it just stops teams from having to make up injuries for some of their guys who rarely play.

 

[AdmiralPred]

When I first heard this idea [19 yr old draft age] I was in the nay camp. After some thought, this would seem to be more plausable in the NHL than the NBA. If not for the term of the next CBA at least for this draft. Cancel the draft for 2005, play out a season and iron out the mass player movement, let some of the elders have a last hurrah and hang 'em up and open the draft in 2006 with 19 year-olds.

Although, the 19 year-old draft age will have a ripple effect throughout the sport in NA down to Junior and NCAA, even though the NCAA finally allowed its players to retain their eligability if drafted while in college. At worst players stay in junior or college for an extra season. Most guys continue playing junior and college after they're picked anyway. Furthermore, many guys aren't begining their NCAA careers until they are 19 spending their first year after senior year (HS) in the USHL or equivelent.

 

[mooseOAK*]

A year in the AHL will do him good ..

Until some big lunkhead down there with no hope of making the NHL clobbers him to make a name for himself....

 

[Master Shake*]

Make the draft age 19 (now and forever) ...... problem solved.

Yes. This is the best solution.

 

[blitzkriegs]

Until some big lunkhead down there with no hope of making the NHL clobbers him to make a name for himself....

Really? that was all the buzz about Gomez playing in the ECHL and his eventual injury.

Seems that my memory had a lapse because I CAN'T remember the name of the guy that hit Gomez. Apparently, he has made that "name for himself."