It Is time for the moderate and progressive wings of the NHL Board of Governors to reclaim their league from the extremists who have managed to set the collective bargaining agenda.
It is time for the Governors who have been cowed most notably by owners’ commissioner Gary Bettman and Boston’s Jeremy Jacobs to gain control before this runaway train of an insane lockout goes over the cliff, taking the 2012-13 season and the NHL’s credibility with it.
All of a sudden, it is getting late early. All of a sudden, what seemed unthinkable over the summer and even up to a week ago, appears not only possible, but probable: The season — another season — is going to be canceled.
What kind of league operates this way? What kind of industry routinely shuts its doors upon expiration of each labor agreement? What manner of leader rules by gag orders, veto power and ultimatum?
There is a deal to be had here. Everyone in the industry recognizes it, and essentially everyone in the industry, including those on both sides of the aisle, recognizes the deal starts with the league guaranteeing all existing contracts with a capped rate of escrow of approximately 5 percent.
Once that fundamental issue of fairness is addressed, the rest may not be easy, but should fall into place. But if, and only if, Bettman’s objective is to strike a fair deal rather than score a TKO over Don Fehr and gain a decision over NBA commissioner David Stern, his one-time mentor.
A well-placed source reports Bettman has told people he believes the NBA and Stern caved in to save the 2011-12 season by giving the players between 49 and 51 percent of basketball revenue as part of the agreement that ended the lockout last December, and Bettman is resolute in his stance against giving more than 48 percent to the union over the life of the next NHL agreement.
Even in retrospect, Bettman apparently is unable to recognize the value of LeBron James’ championship season if it came at the cost of a single decimal point.
It is this extreme stance that has created a sense of fear throughout the industry that 2012-13 might go the way of 2004-05, even without the cultural and philosophical divide that existed the last time.
“There is no logical reason this shouldn’t be resolved within a matter of weeks,” one moderate on the players’ side in favor of an ultimate 50-50 split told me Friday. “But there is no such thing as logic where Gary is concerned.”
The consensus on the owners’ side, despite Bettman’s theatrical claim of unity at his Sept. 13 press conference and as related to me late in the week, is that there is no financial need to hammer the players into submission; that a long-term agreement under which the split incrementally evolves to approximately 50-50 based on triggers and incentives is acceptable to a substantial number of teams.
Despite Bettman’s lack of faith in the NHL’s ability to continue to increase revenue at a meaningful level — a position contrary, by the way, to the one he espoused at a $200-a-plate breakfast seminar at the Entry Draft in L.A. two years ago, according to one observer — there is opportunity for continued significant growth.
The league’s contract with CBC expires at the end of 2013-14. The international market remains untapped. And the prospect of franchise shifts from weak markets into stronger ones in Ontario and Seattle is realistic.
There is a deal to be made here. But it takes two. It takes ingenuity. It takes commitment. It takes a commissioner who believes there is greater value in playing than in not playing.
It takes owners who are willing to speak out against the extremists who have hijacked the agenda.
* The tragic story of Derek Boogaard continues to unfold 16 months after the death of the 28-year-old athlete with TMZ’s report on Friday that his parents have filed suit against the NHLPA for the $4.8 million he had remaining on his contract with the Rangers, plus $5 million in punitive damages.
The NHL Standard Player’s Contract is not guaranteed upon death. TMZ reports the lawsuit alleges the Players’ Association had agreed to file a grievance against the Rangers for payment in full before failing to meet the deadline for doing so.
Despite recent reports to the contrary, Slap Shots has been told the NHL never has suggested to the union it contemplates penalizing teams in the new CBA for previously registered front-loaded, long-term contracts.
* The Brad Richards Foundation will hold a Wines of the World fundraising event Oct. 2 at the Hotel Chantelle on Ludlow Street.
The Rangers alternate captain and friends will be at the exclusive event, with proceeds benefiting Richards’ Foundation, whose mission is to “provide exceptional experiences and treatment for children and families enduring chronic and life threatening illness.”
Information on the event is available at brichards19.com.