the nhl needs to change

if it wasn't clear before, the lack of a hockey season next year might finally wake up the nhl to realise that things can't go on as they have before. the league- high salaries, bad rules, poor organization and problematic coaching and all- needs a massive reformation and i hope that the league uses its sabbatical to make the reforms necessary to improve what was and could be a fantastic game for both spectator and player.

the problems are many and the solutions not easy. perhaps the simplest is the current play-off seeding formula. guaranteeing division leaders top billing in the playoff seeding was meant to be a means for expansion teams to aspire to even mediocre success. it was supposed to grant home-ice advantage and higher seeding to teams who might not have been their on its own merits. what it's actually done is penalise star divisions and allow the potential for absolute folly in the playoffs. take one look at the southeast division. minus tampa bay, all four teams are in the bottom of the conference with no prospects for the post-season. remind me again why we want to bestow top seeding to one of these teams? does it take a year where all 5 teams in the southeast division don't make the playoffs and a spot is granted to them from on high before the nhl sees the inherant dislogic in their seeding formula?

the other problems are more intense and far more difficult to solve. there is first the salary issues. it reminds me of my time lobbying the government on post-secondary education issues. the council of ontario universities once put forward an ultimatum that none of them would accept more students unless they got full funding for each of them. the government never caved because they knew that some of the universities would. this is the same fake ultimatum put forward by team owners- "we won't offer ridiculous salaries to preserve some form of unofficial salary cap". Bullshit! I cry, as each owner attempts to outdo one another in rewarding their over-rewarded players. this leads to the complete misunderstanding of economics that the players' union currently holds. simply put: the nhl needs a salary cap, it needs a firm line from owners and it needs players who understand that, regardless of their talent, the game has a bottom line.

probably the most tricky issue in the nhl is restoring the game to one that fans want to watch and one where the policy on violence is clear. some of this is easier said than done- smaller goal equipment, new blue-line rules will go some way, but the game is likely to require more significant reform. however, most significantly, the game has to change is approach. the todd bertuzzi affair has created a significant movement to blame individual players for their violent behaviour. however, i think this misses out on the fault that lies with the league, with the coaches and with the style of play. ken dryden's piece in the globe lays this out very well- that the move to bigger, stronger players and shorter shifts has increased the aggressive nature of the game. combine this with a league that publicly condemns violence but tacitly approves if not encourages it and you have a recipe for disaster.

what the nhl needs is a clear idea of what they want out of the game. if they think that violence gets asses in seats- then so be it. say that and be done with it and let's not shreik in horror when another todd bertuzzi incident occurs. if the league really is serious about making the style of play more aggressive and less violent then be serious about it- ending 'finishing the check', actually penalise aggression and allow for true offence (and more goals) to come about. what the league doesn't need is new public platitudes- on salary caps, cracking down on violence or a desire for more goals- with no real action.

i hope the nhl uses their year off to come with a game that both says and does what it actually believes is good for the game- it's too good to lose.

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