Is the NHL Out of Control?

As we proceed through yet another off-season of free agent moves, I can’t help but ask the question: has this league gone nuts? We aren’t talking about simply adding an extra veteran to the lineup to sure up some depth anymore; rather owners and GM’s of some teams are trying to outright purchase a trip to the playoffs.

It has been five long years since the New York Rangers have earned a spot in the second season, and being in the largest market in North America doesn’t help people to forget this sad fact. Hockey is in demand and watched closely in the Big Apple. There is an urgent need to win and to do so immediately. However, results do not appear over night.

Each and every off-season begins and ends with the “Ranger watch”. What high priced free agents and grossly overpaid veterans are going to be wearing the traditional blue sweaters at the start of the up-coming season? More often than not, hockey fans around the globe are shocked at the shopping spree that takes place. Could the Rangers brass actually out-shock the hockey world again this year? Yes, they already did. Bobby Holik will be receiving nine million dollars over the next five seasons. Bobby Holik. As good a player as he is, no one could have ever expected a 45 million dollar purse over five years.

Are the blue shirts the only club with questionable payment plans? No, take a look at the Red Wings roster. Mike Illitch seems to have a penchant for buying future hall-of-famers before they sign out. Why not buy a Stanley Cup with these guys before they retire? Capitalism at its best. Think back to the Red Wings troubles during most of the 70’s and 80’s. Lousy teams and last place finishes were in style in the “Motor City”. Fortunately for Red Wing fans, Illitch has always been willing to spend enormous amounts of money for a quick fix remedy to a problem that can’t always be solved through financials.

Think back to the mid 80’s to see what I’m getting at here. Detroit decided that in order to climb out of the basement, they needed to sign college stars to ridiculous contracts. Guys that hadn’t played a single game of professional hockey were being offered more money than most NHL vets. Did this work for Illitch? With the exception of one Adam Oates, the signings were a complete bomb and further proof that throwing away money to potential stars can’t always cure bad hockey teams. The key word here is potential. Adam Oates had potential. Illitch ended up trading him before he ever reached his. A little extra proof that owner’s with deep pockets often have shallow minds that aren’t necessarily good for the organization.

Let us compare these situations with those in Boston and Chicago. These two franchises have always been publicly criticized for their unwillingness to hand over the money anytime a star player asks for it. Is this fair? Judging from the chaos that the league is experiencing now, I do not think that it is. After all, someone needs to think with a level head. If every general manager in the league had the same mindset as Glen Sather and Ken Holland, and Pierre Lacroix, the league would have long since crumbled.

Having said this, one can come across the assumption that the owners and general mangers are solely to blame for the league’s shortcomings; however, this is not entirely the case. The attitudes of some of the greed driven players have corrupted this league to no end, while the powers that be have simply gone along with everything and pretended that all was well. When looking at both sides of the equation, we see that both parties are to blame. The downfall started with greedy players and agents, but the decision makers didn’t curtail the evil that is now dominating this once proud game.

The blame can also be put on corrupt player agents such as Allan Eagleson who brought this “me first” mindset into the forefront of the players association. Bob Goodenow has done no better and perhaps even worse. If the fans of the NHL are to suffer through another player strike, I believe with good reason that Goodenow and the player’s union will be the leading culprits. This doesn’t, however, let the owners off the hook because they allowed things to come to this.