NHL review says league in 'catastrophic' condition

The Globe And Mail ^ | February 13, 2004 | PAUL WALDIE

[SamAdams76]

"I wouldn't invest in [the NHL]. I wouldn't bank it, I would say 'stay as far away from it as you possibly can. It's a lousy business'," Levitt said in an interview. "There is no rational business reason to own a National Hockey League franchise."

A scathing indictment of the game I used to love. Apparently ruined by a combination of a greedy players union and boring, neutral-trap zone play that results in a zillion low-scoring games, and a whole mess of tie - made only slightly more tolerable by a too-short five minute OT.

Still, I have my fond memories of the "Big, Bad Bruins" of the 1970s along with other great teams like the Philadelphia Flyers, the Montreal Canadians and the Detroit Red Wings. When I was ten years old, my father took me to a Bruins-Red Wings game where I saw Bobby Orr, Phil Esposito, Gordie Howe, Red Berenson, Alex Delvecchio and a bunch of other greats on the ice at the same time. Today, I'm hard pressed to name a half-dozen current NFL players.

[ambrose]

Used to be a big time Kings fan. Have lost interest.

Way too much expansion...

The league also needs another dynamic standout star like a Wayne Gretzky..

[Mr. Buzzcut]

Kudos to Gary Bettman et al for bringing us to this point.

Best game with the worst "leadership".

[Jack Black]

How are the sunbelt teams doing? The NHL lost something when Aneheim got a team. I do have to say Dallas seems like a hockey town. But it just grates, somehow. Maybe a few of these guys leaving the league and some canadian or northern US cities (where ice occurs naturally) would get us back to basics. That might not be all bad.

[buccaneer81]

The league also needs another dynamic standout star like a Wayne Gretzky

I can think of two on the same team: Rick Nash and Nicolai Zherdev.

[commish]

Well lets see what the Players Union has to say about this report when the Buffalo Sabres, Atlanta Thrashers, Columbus Whatever the hell a bluejacket is, etc etc all fold and the NHL is back down to 15-20 teams and HALF THE UNION IS OUT OF WORK!

[buccaneer81]

Columbus Whatever the hell a bluejacket is,

UMM...we were one of the eleven teams that made money last year. We've made money every year since the franchise began. The McConnell family is local ownership committed to the city and the fans. Nationwide Arena was voted number ONE for the fan experience out of 121 professional sports venues in North America. We have Rick Nash and Nicolai Zherdev. We had a 58 game sell-out streak. We are currently number TWO in NHL attendance.

Anything else you'd like to say??

[commish]

Yeah - What the hell is a Bluejacket?????

Sorry if I tweaked your hair trigger -- I was just pointing out that half the teams in this league are going to fold in the next 5 years under the current system. For all I know Atlanta may be making money too. I do however know that the Sabres are bankrupt and have been being supported by the NHL for the last 2 seasons.

[Loyal Buckeye]

Yeah, you tell 'em. And don't forget the part about our 2002 National Champion Football Buckeyes, the first and only Division I team to go 14 - 0, a major accomplishment that might not be repeated in the history of college football.

But then again, they probably do not know what a Buckeye is either . ;-)

[DManA]

You think Dallas is more of a hockey town then the Twin Cities - from whence their Stars scurried?

Picking up franchises and moving them around like checkers pieces doesn't do much to enhance fan loyalty.

[3catsanadog]

The Pittsburgh Penguins are tired of playing in the old Civic Arena (called Mellon Arena now). They want a new arena to play in. Our Honorable Mayor Tom Murphy will probably give it to them after getting a vote from citizens (doesn't matter what the vote outcome is - Murphy does what he wants).

[RWR8189]

I'm sure old man Wertz is making money in Chicago.

I've played hockey all my life, my kids play hockey, and I love the game, its just utterly pathetic how deluded the NHL has become.

[uncbob]

I wish all 4 major sports would go bankrupt and have to start from scratch

Nothing but a bunch of overpaid arrogant adults playing kids games for Millions

[July 4th]

Dany Heatley was on the way, but pissed it all in a stupid accident.

[Blue Jays]

Good Evening All-

Originally posted by SamAdams76: "...Today, I'm hard pressed to name a half-dozen current NFL players..."

#34 Akins, Chris
#63 Andruzzi, Joe
#68 Ashworth, Tom
#48 Banta-Cain, Tully
#84 Baxter, Fred
#12 Brady, Tom
#83 Branch, Deion
#80 Brown, Troy
#60 Brown, Wilbert
#54 Bruschi, Tedy
#31 Centers, Larry

SamAdams76, I was going to bust your chops a bit by listing the entire New England Patriots roster alphabetically, but just a little bit of teasing was fun! ;-)

~ Blue Jays ~

[demnomo]

Do they still call that guy "Dollar Bill" Wertz? I remember visiting Chicago about seven years ago. Some guy in front of the arena was selling a newsletter called "The Blue Line." My hubby bought one as a souvenir. It was hilarious. It sure made fun of the ownership.

[1rudeboy]

Folks don't really call him "Dollar Bill" anymore. Far worse.

[ValenB4]

They're still weenies, 17 points behind the 8th playoff team. As if anyone will ever care or take them seriously. They're a generic team that takes up space. An afterthought. Go Flyers!

[gcruse]

I do have to say Dallas seems like a hockey town. But it just grates, somehow.

Heh.  I imagine the same thing was said when indoor hockey rinks were built.  It takes
weather out of the game.  But, once you do that, there's no reason for Dallas to grate
any more than the next town.  You're all sitting comfortably inside a rink. 

Hell, if it  wasn't for refrigerated air, the whole sunbelt would be uninhabitable.  The fact that this is
not the case, doesn't grate on anyone.  Well, except maybe those hating all the relocated Yankees.

[ServesURight]

Way too many teams IMO.

Great post, Sam...