Hockey, unlike football, has never pulled the television ratings to get a big contract. For the NFL, the ratings are high enough to guarantee big money, and the stadiums hold significantly more people.
I agree that the current model is not working for them, but that doesn't mean that every system except a salary cap will not work. The salary cap is the most socialistic model ever discussed in sports.
As I said, the players have proposed some innovative ideas that would place some serious limits on spending (unlike MLB limits that don't deter George Steinbrenner). Moreover, the players were willing to take a 25% pay cut across the board, and then were going to agree to spending limits on top of that.
There is still a lot of money to be made in hockey. It does not approach anywhere near the level football does, but that does not mean it cannot function w/o a salary cap. The television contract is not as big, but they do take in more money in ticket revenue. (although stadium capacity is 1/3, they have 41 v. 8 home games per year + comparable ticket prices)