Once you get locked out, can you get back in?

Now, being Canadian I endure a lot of hockey talk on every major sport network in Canada. Although, I'm a basketball guy I love hockey, but the constant overdrive of every little thing that mostly doesn't matter is comparable to the amount girls gossip about each other. But, what I want to bring to the surface surrounds the pending NHL lockout and what affect it will have on the hockey world and it's fans. Before you read any further if you think your going to get a rundown on why Gary Bettman is an idiot (which he is) and/or what the owners and players are arguing on a day to day basis, I suggest you go to tsn.ca or nhl.com where they will provide you with some information, but a lot of fluff padded nicely on top.

Out of the big four professional sports leagues in North America it is commonly known that the NHL is last in a lot of money making categories that are needed to be profitable. Although, the NHL dominates in Canada, the U.S is where the money is at and that is why the NFL, NBA, and MLB zero in on it and are as relentless as those creepy guys at the bar that stalk some poor girl, and you know those guys just have the worst game, and usually smell like crap too. But, getting back to the point of the article, the NHL have made solid ground since it's previous lockout in 2004. Just to give you an example, in 2011 individual team values hit an all time high, increasing on average by 5% (notice I didn't say "Canadian team values"). Yes, we all know what has happened in Phoenix, we know teams like Dallas and New Jersey aren't filling the seats. That being said, this past season (2011-2012) 21 out of 30 teams in the NHL filled 96% or higher of the capacity in their arena on average over 41 home games.

The point I am trying to get across is that the NHL has momentum within the space of professional sports in North America, but will they ever get past the NBA or the MLB, the answer to that is probably not. The fact of the matter is that you have the skill level of hockey players the best it has ever been at (that's good), you have them at least seriously attempting addressing head shots and concussions (good PR for the non traditional fan), and you have a team in the Los Angeles Kings that was an 8 seed and won the Stanley Cup in a non traditional hockey market, while making the city go nuts over a sport they have often forgot about (that's very very good).

So here's what your looking at Gary Bettman, the owners, and the players. Although, I understand it's not this simple, you can put on a nice suit and get your ass to the negotiation table to figure this out so you can keep that momentum building, and improve your league on a variety of levels including making money (which is what your fighting about). Or, you can let a lockout happen and lose all that momentum (which I promise you will), and then sink back to the bottom of the barrel in terms of making any money. Oh by the way, that city Lose Angeles which won the cup, and got the city so excited, well they will also go back down to the bottom due to the fact the Los Angeles Lakers got a couple good players over the offseason, and when it comes market share, their momentum in that city will shrink to a Phoenix Coyotes type share.

When it comes down to it, the NHL has to treat it like a college kid writing an essay the night before it's due, it may not turn out perfect but they always get it done and hand it in somewhat on time. Plus, when I sit down to watch sports in the winter please don't make me watch curling because you're still locked out, because I won't watch it, I'd rather stare at the wall.

Written By:

Garrett Daly