Many things can cause a gaping void in someone’s life: The freshman 15, the loss of a girlfriend or boyfriend or an inability to achieve academically.
None of those however was as big of a loss for me as the loss of my beloved New York Rangers and the National Hockey League last season.
Plagued by an inability to compromise and an outdated collective bargaining agreement which only guaranteed monies lost, the NHL became the first professional sport to cancel an entire season because of a labor dispute.
After more than 500 hockey-less days, the NHL is back with a few new logos, new players and a commissioner-guaranteed “new and improved” game.
As part of this “New NHL” the league has added and instituted a hard salary cap that limits the money teams can spend on players. Other components to the new league are several intriguing rules changes. As a traditionalist myself, I was more than skeptical about rules such as allowing two-line passes, adjusting the size of the zones, limiting the goaltender’s playable space and perhaps the biggest addition, the shootout.
I took my skepticism to the Rangers’ first home game since the lockout, and I was shocked. The rules changes did much of what they promised. Stars could move where they pleased without obstruction. The bigger offensive zones allowed for more wide open passing, and the shootout was a huge success. Fans truly got into the game!
How better to get the league back on the map then having Jaromir Jagr fly up the wing uncontested, make a fancy deke over the Islanders’ Rick DiPietro and see it over and over on “Sportscenter”?
Despite what seems to be a successful venture at improving the quality of the game, the biggest question has been what effect the lockout would have on attendance. As attendance generally decreased over the last few seasons and revenue dropped, would fans from an already flailing sport come back after a year hiatus?
So far the results have been rather encouraging. Your mainstay teams such as the Rangers, Islanders, Devils, Flyers, and Red Wings made stronger than usual advertising campaigns and so far attendance has not been drastically affected if affected at all.
For the newer teams, such as the Nashville Predators and Columbus Blue Jackets, where most fans don’t acknowledge many sports beyond NASCAR and football, it has been especially tough to regain the fan base. However, both the league and these new teams have made great strides in advertising and have offered many perks such as free gifts, player meet and greets and ticket discounts which have kept the attendance reasonable and close to pre-lockout numbers.
I guess it appears that commissioner Gary Bettman has been successful, however let us not let him off the hook that easily. As my ethics professor has preached, we must acknowledge sustainability. Can the league survive, especially with a questionable cable television deal? Even beyond survival, can it reclaim itself as a “big four” sport with football, baseball, and basketball?
Time will tell. But for now GAME ON!
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