NHL Lockout

Claiming there was no other choice, National Hockey League Commissioner Gary Bettman announced last Wednesday that the NHL board of governors unanimously backed locking out more than 600 players since no agreement was forthcoming between team owners and the NHL Player's Association. The lockout coincides with the expiration of the current collective bargaining agreement and, according to Bettman, will continue until the player's union "acknowledges that the problems are as real as our governors' resolve to fix them [sic]. We will be here, ready to make a fair and meaningful agreement." With the deadlock, the owners, players, and fans are reluctantly anticipating the cancellation of the entire 2004-2005 season.

Reading through the comments and discussions about the issues that separate the two parties, one must conclude that neither side is open to conceding on anything. So, the players walk away and the owners lock them out. Interestingly, a quick survey of public opinion about the lockout indicates that a majority think the players are to blame for the current situation by asking for too much. It appears the public has little sympathy for a union that represents a group of players who make an average of $1.8 million a year.

From an economic standpoint, life without the NHL will reach far outside the world of the players and owners. Although not easily quantifiable, net income will dip in sports bars and restaurants that cater to hockey fans, in souvenir shops seeing fewer customers, and in department and specialty stores and eBay where the sale of trademarked clothing and athletic equipment is anticipated to plummet.

Probably most noticeable will be the impact on the sports media. The CBC, TSN, and Rogers Sportsnet are struggling to put together schedules of sports entertainment to fill the vacuum. This is a real challenge since nobody can remember when there wasn't an NHL season. Current estimates of cutbacks by the media are in the dozens of employees and expected to rise as the full effect of the lack of NHL programming becomes known. Not included in any estimates is the impact on the many freelance reporters and pundits who regularly contribute to hockey broadcasts.

One potentially significant future result of the lockout is the expected negative impact on smaller and newer NHL franchises, specifically those teams located in places like Florida, Tennessee, and Carolina where hockey is not a traditional sport. These franchises may not be able to easily recover their lost fan base and, if not, the NHL may see negative repercussions from the lockout for years to come.

In summary, it appears that there will be no NHL season for 2004-2005 and the result, in the near and distant future, will be estimated economic losses in the hundreds of million of dollars to the U.S. and Canada.