After 119 days of bickering, tense negotiations, and childish behaviour, hockey is back. Folks, the NHL lockout is over.
Across North America, the dressing room cupboards are no longer bare. Team practices and training are well underway, with many Canadians flocking to the arena to soak it all in. In Ottawa alone, more than 2,500 fans packed the stands of Scotiabank Place Jan. 13 to see the Senators practice.
With the promise once again of seeing the puck drop, we seem to have forgotten the insanity that was the lockout.
For four months, billionaires argued with millionaires at the fans’ expense. Lawsuits were threatened, unions attempted to disband, and greed took centre ice.
As the bickering and whining exploded in New York, local businesses worried about their bottom lines. Sports bars were deserted, apparel shops avoided.
As the lockout dragged on, many of the players found ways to keep playing. They signed contracts with various teams, either internationally or via the American Hockey League.
Meanwhile we, the hockey fans, were left sitting on our couches, miserably watching the same TSN highlight reel over and over and over again.
Back in New York, tensions were so high between the players and the owners they couldn’t even manage to sit in the same room together. Insults were tossed from one side to the other. Pensions, more control over profit, and changes to salary caps were demanded.
Let’s stop here for a minute. Why on earth does an NHL hockey player need a pension? If the union was really that concerned with the player’s ability to create a nest egg, they should have offered them access to a financial consultant, but I digress.
As for the fans, well we were both forgotten and ignored.
Then, with the stroke of a pen, it was all over. Smart phones across the country buzzed with news alerts. Overjoyed fans took to Twitter, jerseys were dusted off, and all was instantaneously forgiven. Just like that.
I have to wonder, are we really that desperate for sports entertainment that we are willing to accept what was one of the most insincere apologies I have ever heard, from a man who disregarded fans for four months straight?
I’m not, and I’m not alone.
The culture that surrounds the NHL and its version of hockey is so far away from the original spirit of the game it is almost toxic.
It is no longer about friendship, pickup games at the rink, or spending a Saturday, with a beer in hand, cheering on our favourite teams. These were the glory days, where hockey was more about the love of the game, than it was about money.
This is the hockey we idolize, treasure, and desire. Sadly, it cannot be found in this new collective bargaining agreement.
By flocking back to the NHL, we are simply allowing this culture of entitlement to continue unchallenged, where salaries are astronomical, tickets are overpriced, and the contents of our wallets are valued more than our devotion to the game.
Canadians love hockey. It’s time the NHL did too.
