The NHL encourages tanking.
Or at least, the type of tanking we saw this year.
Why?
Because of the cyclical nature of the game.
Bad teams send their upcoming FA's to good teams. Bad teams get prospects and picks. Good teams become super teams, allowing super-team vs. super-team combat in the playoffs, a la the NBA.
If good teams don't have high picks or cheap prospects contributing, they likely won't have anyone to replace their aging core, or the money to do so. Likewise, if bad teams have a lot of picks, they will likely have a surge as cheap, young, good players buoy their team. In 3 years, they go from nothing to contender.
Then you have the same process, but in reverse. The bad teams are now super teams, and are encouraged to raid the once good, now bad teams for their spare parts. Creating more super teams, and awesome playoff hockey.
Why the change?
First, the salary cap has had the intended effect of parity. Bad teams have to have some good players to reach the floor. But this means less entertaining hockey. This is the way the NHL is trying to fix it-super-teams in the playoffs. In addition, it means that even teams who sell everything not nailed down still have something in terms of veteran talent, meaning that most teams, with luck and lots and lots of high draft picks, can complete a turn around.
Second, NHL drafting has exploded in effectiveness, with a top-10 pick highly likely to turn into an effective player. Go look at drafts from 1996-2006. They all freaking suck (btw, this is why the NHL is now changing it's draft lottery...because they can afford to. Two picks is no longer the difference between Alexander Ovechkin and Cam Barker).
Edmonton is terrible, but the NHL wants teams like the Sabres, Arizona, or Carolina. They are primed to explode with their mix of veteran players and young talent in 2-3 years. Likewise, Chicago has been forced to distribute their talent; Sharks and Bruins are fading fast while the Isles and Sens are on the rise; only Detroit seems to be able to buck this trend. And will their young players be able to step up when Zetterberg and Datsyuk retire/decline? Probably not, or I hope so.
Tanking isn't going anywhere. The NHL encourages it. Get used to it.
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For that matter, I'll also tell you why people care so much about tanking.
What does the NHL sell? Is it hockey? The chance to watch the world's best at their sport?
No.
Is it a night of entertainment with the family, and friends, and the good old family friend Molson? No.
It's emotion. They are selling you an emotional connection. The adrenaline rush when your team scores a goal. The cursing when they lose. The jubilation of a Game 4 win at the very last second, mocking the so-called GOAT goaltender as he throws a hissy fit over "interference", as the refs have to drag one last guy from the opposing locker room to take a faceoff that is completely pointless. The chest pains when your team scores 2 goals in a minute to take the lead in game 7, in one of the greatest combacks in NHL playoff history. I'm telling you this from memory as a 16 year old, and when some other fan posts angrily to refute my above opinions, it will only prove what I am saying.
The NHL-all of professional sports- is offering an emotional connection with a sports team. You feel the highs, and the lows. You can say "We need" instead of "The Hurricanes need" on a message board. This is how they convince you to drop an obscene amount of money to watch grown men play a kids game. Advertisers have realized this emotional connection, and payed top dollar for it, since the Roman Empire, when gladiators would have paid sponsors (seriously, look it up, it's really cool, and it was so unbelievable that they decided to not have Russell Crowe re-enact it).
Go and see the vitrol (lol, behind damage is blocked) in the dozen "Edmonton wins the draft lottery....again" threads. See how many people felt as though the NHL directly cheated THEM, not their team.
Then you have something that seems to damage this emotional connection. They don't really care. They're trying to lose. Why should I pay money for these losers? Why am I emotionally connected to a bunch of losers? This isn't right, this isn't what I paid for!
So you have a bunch of people angry about tanking, because it directly harms their investment. Their perception of the relationship between them, and their hockey team. It's not real. It's an illusion.
This is also why there is no tanking...or why the NHL is cracking down on it. They don't want to give off that perception. It's bad for business. So they are remodeling it. Now it's: watch your team lose, and in 2-3 years, you will be rewarded! In the meantime, watch the young stars of tomorrow! This is why they're going for a lottery. A draft lottery doesn't really solve tanking. Bad teams are still going to strip it all down. Which is what the NHL wants.
Really, if the NHL actually had a problem with tanking, you know what they would do? Names out of a hat. But they won't. Because this belief that YOU (via your team) has been cheated is solidifying what the NHL wants. An emotional connection.
It's all a conspiracy. The NHL doesn't want you to think that your team is tanking; but that other teams are tanking, and are ripping off YOU! Given the Sabres fans who have effectively defended their craptastic team this entire season, I'd say they've done a good job in crafting that perception.
