Pittsburgh & Phoenix players making noise

[EricBowser]

officially per TSN's Bob McKenzie, click on their video link at TSN to view.

I have no doubt, Mark Recchi along with Lemieux and Gretzky have been working the phones since Wednesday to get a deal done, more so after the terrible negotiation tactic by the NHLPA to not negotiate on Friday.

look for a possible leak tonight or tomorrow about the NHL-NHLPA meeting in NY or Toronto, maybe by late night Sunday, we'll have an NHL and NHLPA press release for a Monday presser, let's hope.

Click to read more...

 

[Twine Seeking Missle]

officially per TSN's Bob McKenzie, click on their video link at TSN to view.

I have no doubt, Mark Recchi along with Lemieux and Gretzky have been working the phones since Wednesday to get a deal done, more so after the terrible negotiation tactic by the NHLPA to not negotiate on Friday.

look for a possible leak tonight or tomorrow about the NHL-NHLPA meeting in NY or Toronto, maybe by late night Sunday, we'll have an NHL and NHLPA press release for a Monday presser, let's hope.

Yea a press conference officially cancelling the season.

 

[Hemooli]

Yea a press conference officially cancelling the season.

 

[Habsfan 32]

Yea a press conference officially cancelling the season.

I hope thats not going to be the case.

 

[Levitate]

meh, players from teams that are going under complaining...

pittsburg and phoenix might be lucky to survive all of this anyways

 

[leaflover]

Owners are calling Bettman and players are calling Goodenow.
Both to get a deal done.Apparently us fans aren't alone in thinking this has gone on long enough.

 

[Hemooli]

meh, players from teams that are going under complaining...

pittsburg and phoenix might be lucky to survive all of this anyways

I doubt it.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/05043/456684.stm

Specifically:

"Despite that hit, Sawyer was adamant that the franchise's future is not in jeopardy because of the lockout and that the Penguins have the wherewithal to keep operations on hold for as long as it takes to get a satisfactory CBA in place.

"We're well-prepared to stay the course," he said. "We have, really, no alternative. We're well-financed. We just hope we get back on the ice soon. But we can't do it unless we have the right deal."

 

[Levitate]

thinking more of afterwards with reduced revenues and all...pens still gotta pay salaries (even if they were linked at 53% or whatever) and then all the operating costs...that's the danger for all the teams that were "just getting by". a hard cap or revenue link doesn't do you much good if the revenue just isn't there. it doesn't help reduce your operating costs at all...

 

[A Good Flying Bird*]

meh, players from teams that are going under complaining...

pittsburg and phoenix might be lucky to survive all of this anyways

Exactly. About 80 percent of the players on those teams have ZERO business playing in the NHL anyway and they will be victims of contraction and complaining about locked out NHLers taking their jobs during the next CBA negotiation.

 

[cojac87]

officially per TSN's Bob McKenzie, click on their video link at TSN to view.

I have no doubt, Mark Recchi along with Lemieux and Gretzky have been working the phones since Wednesday to get a deal done, more so after the terrible negotiation tactic by the NHLPA to not negotiate on Friday.

look for a possible leak tonight or tomorrow about the NHL-NHLPA meeting in NY or Toronto, maybe by late night Sunday, we'll have an NHL and NHLPA press release for a Monday presser, let's hope.

plus in phx u got former super agent mike barnett to talk some sense into the players

 

[A Good Flying Bird*]

thinking more of afterwards with reduced revenues and all...pens still gotta pay salaries (even if they were linked at 53% or whatever) and then all the operating costs...that's the danger for all the teams that were "just getting by". a hard cap or revenue link doesn't do you much good if the revenue just isn't there. it doesn't help reduce your operating costs at all...

That's why a soft cap/luxury tax is the better answer.
If NHL owners can take the huge expansion fees, they can also pay a little to help out the struggling franchises.

 

[EricBowser]

let me clear this up for one last final time.

Pittsburgh IS NOT in financial crisis at this time. They have plenty of capital to pay their bills this season without possibly even using their $10 million fund.

The Penguins have been been around -$5 million to small profit in the last three years, so they aren't that bad.

On top of this, the debt owed has almost been paid off and I believe it is gone after this year.

The only negative to the Penguins, they need a new arena to survive long-term because eventually ownership's working capital will be gone and it needs the revenues.

 

[Levitate]

until pittsburg can afford to be competative, i'd consider them in trouble

if they can make just enough to pay the bills, but not be able to keep players or acquire players to make their team better, what good does that do? how long do they accept the status quo of mediocrity?

 

[kenabnrmal]

Exactly. About 80 percent of the players on those teams have ZERO business playing in the NHL anyway and they will be victims of contraction and complaining about locked out NHLers taking their jobs during the next CBA negotiation.

Doan
Hull
Nedved
Comrie
Mike Johnson
Saprykin
Ricci
Chimera
Sjostrom
Morris
Mara
Gauthier
Hulse
Tanabe
O'Donnell
Ference
Boucher
Brent Johnson
Cleary
Nazarov
Savage
Devereaux
Kolanos
Rupp

Which are the 80% that don't belong in the league exactly (I put the easy choices near the bottom for you). Of that list, thats roughly 19 guys who have no business in the NHL. Care to revise that statement?

 

[Levitate]

more than a few ranger fans would argue that nedved doesn't belong in the league

 

[EricBowser]

um, excuse me have you not read the website here or just ignore the large media hacks who dislike Lemieux and will take their shots at any chance.

Considering I live in Pittsburgh, fan of the team, work at a bank, and have connections to the team, I think I may know a thing or two about the Pens financial health.

The Penguins are rebuilding because they couldn't afford to pay the salaries of players during a time period in which they have to pay more of their revenues towards paying off the debt.

This season, Pittsburgh was expected to have a payroll in the $27-32 million range before any revenue-sharing or CBA changes and teams can build a young contender with such a model, it is hard but it can be done.

Pittsburgh is running the team as a business and believes to only sign players to contracts that can be productive, not overpayments, which guys like Straka and Kovalev would have been at the time of their trades with the team's direction for a young team.

Now Lemieux and Recchi will be here, the young players gained invaluable experience last season and as Craig Patrick has planned for the last three years, the new CBA will allow him to sign or acquire some top notch talent due to his payroll being wide open for such moves.

Long-term, yes the Penguins need a solid CBA because that is about fair revenue-sharing to keep all 30 teams strong and balanced competition.

The Penguins will get their new arena, within the year, they will be filing for a casino slots license in the city of Pittsburgh, which many think they have a great shot to get since Lemieux isn't about to lend his name to a business without it being a top notch organization run by quality and experienced individuals.

When the league reopens, teams like Toronto will feel more pain than Pittsburgh because Craig Patrick, Ken Sawyer, and Mario Lemieux had a plan to build this team into the future with sound business and hockey decisions.

You can take that to the bank.

 

[two out of three*]

Doan
Hull
Nedved
Comrie
Mike Johnson
Saprykin
Ricci
Chimera
Sjostrom
Morris
Mara
Gauthier
Hulse
Tanabe
O'Donnell
Ference
Boucher
Brent Johnson
Cleary
Nazarov
Savage
Devereaux
Kolanos
Rupp

Which are the 80% that don't belong in the league exactly (I put the easy choices near the bottom for you). Of that list, thats roughly 19 guys who have no business in the NHL. Care to revise that statement?

Yeah.. I completely disagreed with his statement. Even if they aren't NHLers, they are still in the NHL and still count. If hes Pro-PA, and the PA rejected that NHL moving rollback proposal saying they are equal, his statement is just plain stupid.

 

[cojac87]

um, excuse me have you not read the website here or just ignore the large media hacks who dislike Lemieux and will take their shots at any chance.

Considering I live in Pittsburgh, fan of the team, work at a bank, and have connections to the team, I think I may know a thing or two about the Pens financial health.

The Penguins are rebuilding because they couldn't afford to pay the salaries of players during a time period in which they have to pay more of their revenues towards paying off the debt.

This season, Pittsburgh was expected to have a payroll in the $27-32 million range before any revenue-sharing or CBA changes and teams can build a young contender with such a model, it is hard but it can be done.

Pittsburgh is running the team as a business and believes to only sign players to contracts that can be productive, not overpayments, which guys like Straka and Kovalev would have been at the time of their trades with the team's direction for a young team.

Now Lemieux and Recchi will be here, the young players gained invaluable experience last season and as Craig Patrick has planned for the last three years, the new CBA will allow him to sign or acquire some top notch talent due to his payroll being wide open for such moves.

Long-term, yes the Penguins need a solid CBA because that is about fair revenue-sharing to keep all 30 teams strong and balanced competition.

The Penguins will get their new arena, within the year, they will be filing for a casino slots license in the city of Pittsburgh, which many think they have a great shot to get since Lemieux isn't about to lend his name to a business without it being a top notch organization run by quality and experienced individuals.

When the league reopens, teams like Toronto will feel more pain than Pittsburgh because Craig Patrick, Ken Sawyer, and Mario Lemieux had a plan to build this team into the future with sound business and hockey decisions.

You can take that to the bank.

That is a fact and well put. The Pens stated pre-paring for this after they unloaded Jagr and his major contract.

 

[Reilly311]

until pittsburg can afford to be competative, i'd consider them in trouble

they only lost $3 million with the leagues worst team and the leagues worst attendence.

edit: in the leagues worst arena

 

[Gamma82]

Article on TSN.ca http://tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?id=114691

"The notion that the NHL can solve its problems with a salary cap is ludicrous," Noll said. "It will increase profits for the best teams, but it doesn't make the small-market teams viable. The disparity of revenues across the league is greater than in any other sport and there's no salary solution to that problem. Some teams have 25 times (the local TV revenue) of other teams. The only solution is to get rid of the small-market teams or subsidize them.
"Even if salaries were zero dollars per year, I question if some small-market teams would have enough revenue to cover costs. Blowing up the league is the likely outcome because the big-market teams don't see revenue sharing as being in their best interest," Noll said.

 

[A Good Flying Bird*]

Article on TSN.ca http://tsn.ca/nhl/news_story.asp?id=114691

"The notion that the NHL can solve its problems with a salary cap is ludicrous," Noll said. "It will increase profits for the best teams, but it doesn't make the small-market teams viable. The disparity of revenues across the league is greater than in any other sport and there's no salary solution to that problem. Some teams have 25 times (the local TV revenue) of other teams. The only solution is to get rid of the small-market teams or subsidize them.
"Even if salaries were zero dollars per year, I question if some small-market teams would have enough revenue to cover costs. Blowing up the league is the likely outcome because the big-market teams don't see revenue sharing as being in their best interest," Noll said.

If there is any truth at all to this, than, Jezus, what are we to make of the Bettman era?

 

[NewBreed19]

I'am so sick of hearing about Phoenix in finacial ruins. Fact is they have just built a beautiful new areana, and have good ownership. The reason they haven't done well previous to this, is because they were playin in the AWA. They were playing in an areana built for basketball and had no part of adverising revenue,parking, suites,and everything else that comes with having their own areana. Since moving into the new areana, they still lost money but were able to avoid a 7 digit loss. They need time now to establish themselves in their new home and build a team. Iwatched all their games televised on center ice and they have fan support. It will grow once they put a better team on the ice. I live two hours from Winnipeg(Brandon,Mb.) and have followed this frachise since the eary 80's in the days of Dale Hawerchuk!! I can tell you that they have much better ownership and a way better Areana and are in a much better place with deeper pockets then they were in Winnipeg. People who are saying they belong back in Winnipeg are living in a fantasy world. The coyotes are much better as a frachise now then before!!

 

[OilerFan4Life]

I'am so sick of hearing about Phoenix in finacial ruins. Fact is they have just built a beautiful new areana, and have good ownership. The reason they haven't done well previous to this, is because they were playin in the AWA. They were playing in an areana built for basketball and had no part of adverising revenue,parking, suites,and everything else that comes with having their own areana. Since moving into the new areana, they still lost money but were able to avoid a 7 digit loss. They need time now to establish themselves in their new home and build a team. Iwatched all their games televised on center ice and they have fan support. It will grow once they put a better team on the ice. I live two hours from Winnipeg(Brandon,Mb.) and have followed this frachise since the eary 80's in the days of Dale Hawerchuk!! I can tell you that they have much better ownership and a way better Areana and are in a much better place with deeper pockets then they were in Winnipeg. People who are saying they belong back in Winnipeg are living in a fantasy world. The coyotes are much better as a frachise now then before!!

I dont really have anything against Phoenix, but if they are in fact in "trouble" then they only have genious Barnett to blame.

1) Trading Briere for Gratton because "hes too small"

1a) Acquiring Comrie a "small" forward? WTF...Why not have just kept Briere??

2) Signing Brian "OOps I thought the season ends on Halloween" Savage

3) Trading Jeff Carter for Daymond Langkow....ie...Trading a guy that could be the best offensive player from the 2003 Draft class for Gauthier and Saprykin...

 

[kenabnrmal]

I'am so sick of hearing about Phoenix in finacial ruins. Fact is they have just built a beautiful new areana, and have good ownership. The reason they haven't done well previous to this, is because they were playin in the AWA. They were playing in an areana built for basketball and had no part of adverising revenue,parking, suites,and everything else that comes with having their own areana. Since moving into the new areana, they still lost money but were able to avoid a 7 digit loss. They need time now to establish themselves in their new home and build a team. Iwatched all their games televised on center ice and they have fan support. It will grow once they put a better team on the ice. I live two hours from Winnipeg(Brandon,Mb.) and have followed this frachise since the eary 80's in the days of Dale Hawerchuk!! I can tell you that they have much better ownership and a way better Areana and are in a much better place with deeper pockets then they were in Winnipeg. People who are saying they belong back in Winnipeg are living in a fantasy world. The coyotes are much better as a frachise now then before!!

VO, is that you????

nevermind

 

[Reilly311]

I dont really have anything against Phoenix, but if they are in fact in "trouble" then they only have genious Barnett to blame.

1) Trading Briere for Gratton because "hes too small"

1a) Acquiring Comrie a "small" forward? WTF...Why not have just kept Briere??

2) Signing Brian "OOps I thought the season ends on Halloween" Savage

3) Trading Jeff Carter for Daymond Langkow....ie...Trading a guy that could be the best offensive player from the 2003 Draft class for Gauthier and Saprykin...

What's this? An oiler fan talking about another teams bad trades?


If Phoenix was in such financial difficulty, they wouldnt' have signed all those free agents. IMO, they ripped Philly off in the Comrie deal.