Martin Luther King Jr. once said “We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.” While I’m quite certain he wasn’t talking about the NHL lockout, his words certainly ring true today. All of a sudden, shortly after 12 p.m. EST, Twitter pretty much set itself on fire with the news of the NHL making an offer to the NHL Players’ Association. I made a noise of shock that was not unlike that of a cat who just got his tail stepped on. I had to forage for some details.
The gist of the plan is such: basically a 50/50 revenue split between the owners and the players. Not even close to the 57 percent the players were receiving under the old CBA, but still a step up from the 47% they were previously offering. Commissioner Gary Bettman didn’t go into a lot of other specifics; though apparently the NHL wants to impose a maximum 5 year contract length (no more backloading contracts, Ilya Kovalchuk!). The length of the offered agreement would be six years.
My first reaction to this is that it is an absolutely brilliant public relations move by the NHL. It seemingly came out of the blue, and while it’s a deal that definitely favors the owners, the simple fact that they put an offer on the table is enough to show fans that they care, and enough to put the NHLPA in a very difficult spot. The players claim they “just want to play.” Now they can put their money where there mouths are by signing on the dotted line. Bettman says that his goal is to get an 82 game season in, and if the players accept this, it’ll be a real possibility
What is the likely outcome of this? My guess is that the NHLPA will reject this deal, while simultaneously proposing a new deal of their own, probably within the next 48 hours. Both sides know that if a full season is at all possible, a deal has to be done within the next seven-10 days. The owners have finally shown a willingness to work, but rest assured that the NHLPA will put that to the test.
All in all though, you can fall asleep tonight knowing that there will be hope for us yet, and a peaceful common ground may be just over the horizon. An NHLPA decline will be only a finite disappointment on the backdrop of infinite hope.
Photo Credits: ESPN.com
