LadyStanley
Registered User
http://www.latimes.com/sports/ducks/la-sp-nhl-preview-elliott-20141005-column.html
Here's hoping "normal" means increased revenue and growing the sport of hockey as well as the NHL.
With the NHL enjoying prosperity on many fronts, the 2014-15 season will begin Wednesday amid a rare sense of stability.
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The NHL has bounced back impressively from the 2012-13 lockout. League revenues last season hit about $3.7 billion and the salary cap this season was set at a new high, $69 million. There are — and always will be — a few ownership issues. ...
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The NHL is enjoying a boom, boosted by the advance of teams from Chicago, Boston, New York and Los Angeles to the Stanley Cup Final the past few seasons. For the moment, league executives seem content to leave well enough alone, though expansion seems inevitable within the next five years. The NHL also learned less is more, preserving the special-event feel of outdoor games by cutting their number from six last season to two.
"The league is coming off what many consider and have characterized as its best season ever, both on the ice and off," Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said. "We are in a good place right now. But the really exciting part is that we all believe it can get even better. The game is growing, and it will continue to grow. Hockey has never been more visible, more popular and more relevant, particularly in this country."
Here's hoping "normal" means increased revenue and growing the sport of hockey as well as the NHL.
