The Messenger said:
Its only a drop in the Ocean to the players
NHL Athletes are proud and dedicated and talented and stubborn all rolled up into one ..
When they see other Pro Athletes in other sports making Big $$ they to feel they deserve to be recognized for the sacrifice they make to themselves to entertain the fans..
Other then possibly Football, the chance for injury due to the Sport makes Hockey either first of second on the list.. That in turn leads to a shorter Career as a result.
A Baseball player can play for years and years to earn his living while a Pro Hockey player's window is small in comparison, and as a result they feel they should be compensated for that..
The owners should not treat them like they are disposable and easily replaceable and just pieces of meat that allow them to line their pockets either.
While I agree they threw away this year Salary ..They also are fighting for not just their money but for the future Hockey players just like the league is for survival.
When a soldier goes to war and gives his life for his country that serves by his sacrifice he hopes a better life for others to come after him. He is not fighting for himself but a greater cause and belief.
I am sure the NHLers of today see this battle the same way. You have heard mention of it, players referencing the sacrifice made by the players in the 1994-95 work stoppage and what the players gave up & did for them today.
If they want their children or friends children to have an opportunity to play the game they love in the Future and make a decent living at it then this fight does have meaning and NO HARD CAP stance and position understandable from their perspective..
Canada will always be fine as its our national sport ..However for the long term future of growing the game in the USA there has to be a Financial reward at the end of the Rainbow for the young kids just starting out.
If the other BIG 3 sports in the States Football, Basketball and Baseball all offer considerably more Financial reward and long term employment, then what would motivate parents to enrol and kids to choose Hockey rather then one of the others, considering it would already be going against the norm and popularity vote ??
This is just one Battle ..the War is actually much bigger and the events and outcomes of this far more long term impacting.
Once a Hard Cap & Linkage is in place in the NHL .. It will NEVER EVER be removed again in a future CBA negotiations, nor through the courts.
This generation of Hockey Players does not want to leave that legacy behind as the ones who gave in, lost, or did not fight the good fight and took the easy way out and money on the Table today.
They will soldier on and fight till the very end and if a Hard Cap is the end result they are going to make the Courts decide the fate of the NHL future just like it did to the NFL ... and the millions $$$ they are sacrificing for that, pales in comparison to the amount that will be lost by the next generations to come if they give up without a fight
So you're saying the only appreciation the players recognize is cash?
Yeah, thats the way I see it too.
By and large they're a bunch of greedy cattle being led around by the nose by Goodenow it still seems.
And since i'd get banned for saying what I really think, just read into this statement a wee bit and you'll decode the real meaning:
I think you are the absolute smartest poster on these boards.
