the thing that i like about spike tv is that the nhl would be THE #1 thing on the network...spike will lose wwe in oct/nov which will leave reruns of csi and startrek as their main shows.
so rather than being #9 or 10 on the list at espn and getting no attention, if they are #1 on spike and therefore spike puts the majority of time, effort and $$ into the game that can only be good for the nhl.
however i'm not sure how many cable providers across the nation carry spike. is it large enough nation-wide to get the job done?
tnt (another one i've heard) has the nba so you'd be #2 at best there.
spike might not be perfect but right now it might be the best option.
another thing that the league MUST do is launch the nhl network in the us...there is no reason why they can't get direct tv and different digital cable companies to pick that up.