NHL and Union Reportedly Reach Deal on $45 million Cap
by Chris Thompson

Friday, February 18, 2005

Gretzky and Lemieux Helped Keep the Momentum Going Despite the Announcement that the Season was Over.

In one of the most bazaar twists in sporting history, the NHL and NHLPA have reportedly agreed in principal to a $45 million salary cap that would allow the NHL to return for a shortened 2004-05 season. The Hockey News is reporting that players wishing to remain anonymous to keep from messing u pthe deal have indicated the deal was reached Friday and details will be worked out between the two sides Saturday in a face-to-face meeting in New York.

This is a dramatic change from Wednesday, when the league announced that the labor situation was forcing them to cancel the 2004-05 season, becoming the first pro sports league in North America to cancel a season due to a labor dispute. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman stressed in his press conference Wednesday that despite the union's change-of-heart regarding a salary cap, the two sides were still very far apart.

At one point during the press conference, a reporter bluntly asked the commissioner what he would say if the union called up that day and offered to settle for $45. Bettman responded that he wasn't sure if that figure would work, but that nothing would make him happier than to have to suffer the embarrassment of announcing the season was being "uncancelled." Well...sign that journalist up for a Pulitzer....he was prophetic.

Rumors circulating Thursday indicated that former NHL greats Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky, now in ownership positions, were helping bridge the final gap to a deal despite the season having already been cancelled. This is particularly interesting considering the two were two of the greatest players to play under the old CBA. So while they benefited greatly from it, they also had different experiences to draw upon. Lemieux is owner of the Penguins, who have battled through bankruptcy. So he knows the realities of the owners' position and can relate it to the players, who still respect him from his playing days and are more likely to believe him when he talks about the league's fiscal difficulties than other owners.

Gretzky, meanwhile, started his career in Canada. He experienced the explosion of salaries in the league that he helped grow. He experienced life on a poor Canadian team in Edmonton, and he experienced life on an overpaid underachieving team in New York. He's experienced all ends of the spectrum and undoubtedly was a valuable voice of reason to members of the players' union who wanted to keep breaking the bank. As Guy Lafleur said Wednesday after the season was cancelled, "The players have been winning the lottery every year for ten years, it's time to suck it up now."

It is unclear just how long a season would be played if a deal is indeed reached. Plans were in place for a 28 game season earlier this week, so one would assume that plan would be implemented, but a shift of even a few days could cause scheduling conflicts in NHL cities where teams have been booking other events over NHL dates.

WildOnIce.net will have continuing coverage of Saturday's developments.

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