UPDATE: NHLPA votes for further negotiations on 24-team return to play format

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by djsFlames

Yeah I'd like to see how many CP posters that spend a portion of their free time and even work day surfing a forum attached to the Calgary Flames don't tune in for hockey involving said Flames club because of potential asterisk or gimmick reasons.

I most certainly would tune in, but that does not change the fact that I think it is a bad idea for the NHL to resume operations this year. I get that the NHL has to do their due diligence to preserve their own economic viability into the future, but I also think that the chances of a resumption of play before October at the earliest are extremely slim.

Sure, senior high horse. Because there are so many more enticing things out there for entertainment that you've got lined up during this time of absolutely zero ongoing productions or sports related events.

Beggars in a pandemic can't be choosers.

My problem with this type of response is how shortsighted and insular it sounds. No one is thrilled about being stuck at home; no one is happy about the massive, physical, psychological and economic tolls this pandemic is taking on everyone right now. But in the interest of public health the first thing we should all be willing to sacrifice is our needs to be entertained. Yes, leisure is important. But in desperate times, we are simply going to need to seek out new outlets if the traditional sources of our entertainment are deemed to be unsafe. I get that the NHL is publicly committed to maintaining the safety and well-being of their employees and clients, but this seems futile in the immediate future.

[troutman]

Originally Posted by Strange Brew

no one thinks all those Candiens banners are illegitimate.

Don't get me started on that. #unevenplayingfield


post #25
https://hfboards.mandatory.com/threa...quebec.725314/


Montreal n'est pas bon.

[Strange Brew]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

Right, but we are talking about historical precedents that are now at least 40-years in the past. The League has changed so much over the course of that time that I don't think these appeals to the game of long-past eras hold much legitimacy. But moreover, I also think with how entrenched the League has been about the current playoff format that this exemplifies just how critically important it is to them, the players and the fans. Even amid some pretty dramatic changes in the 1980s, 90s and oughts, the one constant has been four rounds in a seven-game format, six players aside, and by resolution of scoring more goals than the other team in each game. It has been like this for so long now, that I would argue this is as sacred a tradition as there is in the League today.

Sixteen wins. That is what every Stanley Cup champion of the present era has had to achieve. Anything less than that is anathema in my books.

Anathema? Well that is one extreme reaction. Sports as well as any other institutions change as the environment evolves. An SC champion with say 14 wins vs 16 wins doesn't strike me as some gimmicky, extreme compromise. This regular season is already longer than other shortened seasons and I bet you can't name those tainted champions without looking.

Other pro sports have evolved their playoff formats in recent years for less important reasons.

Sorry guess I just can't buy the "we've done it this way for 30 years so can't change" argument about anything really, much less a spectator sport which exists for no reason other than to provide people entertainment. But it truly is a question of personal taste as there don't seem to be any persuasive arguments.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Strange Brew

Anathema? Well that is one extreme reaction. Sports as well as any other institutions change as the environment evolves. An SC champion with say 14 wins vs 16 wins doesn't strike me as some gimmicky, extreme compromise. This regular season is already longer than other shortened seasons and I bet you can't name those tainted champions without looking.

Yeah, "anathema" was more about literary flourish on my part than anything else. I stand by my opinion that in today's NHL 16 wins is the minimum requirement for crowning a Stanley Cup champion. Whether or not I can name previous champions from recently shortened seasons is beside the point, which is that each of them didn't hoist the Stanley Cup until after 16 wins.

[Geeoff]

Originally Posted by Reggie Dunlop

What happens when a player, fearing for their health (a legitimate concern), refuses to participate? Can you blame them? Do you void their contract? What if it's a star?

All it takes is one star player refusing to participate to open the floodgates as many others follow suite.

I imagine the NHL and NHLPA would allow players to opt out. Also, I think there are at least a few players with Diabetes that probably wouldn't be allowed to play?

[Jason14h]

Where do people think the players are going to catch Covid walking from the hotel to the bus and bus into the stadium?

Sure having 18000 fans is a bad idea, but 20 players a team who will be staying in a hotel is about the lowest actual risk we can have

There’s a lot of people who are going to work daily . How would hockey be any different?

[Johnhitbox]

Originally Posted by Geeoff

I think that restrictions are very close to being relaxed in Winnipeg

I thought heat killed this virus? Or maybe the cold


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[Johnhitbox]

Originally Posted by PaperBagger'14

If the NHL doesnt want fans in the building, it only makes sense to pick Florida

So why not Ottawa? Oh wait.


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[calgaryred]

I guess the league cared more about player safety in 1919, if this is really a serious conversation between the NHL and NHLPA.

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[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Jason14h

Where do people think the players are going to catch Covid walking from the hotel to the bus and bus into the stadium?

Sure having 18000 fans is a bad idea, but 20 players a team who will be staying in a hotel is about the lowest actual risk we can have

There’s a lot of people who are going to work daily . How would hockey be any different?

All it takes is one infection, and while staying in a deserted hotel is about as safe as any place, it's the close confines and the contagiousness of the disease that are the real issue. Simply put, there is nothing that can be done to ensure total protection for every player, and once ONE player, official or arena worker contracts the virus, then it's all over.

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[Weitz]

I think people forget the NHL is first and foremost a business.

Probably one that will have a hard time surviving as is till the end of next season without fans.

[jayswin]

Originally Posted by troutman

Yes. Ok to hold a tournament if they can - but let's not award the Stanley Cup for it. Call it something else.

This is fantasy. The NHL is a business that is looking to finish their season. There is no option where they risk infection/backlash for a non-Stanley Cup tournament for ****s and giggles. That is ridiculous.

[dissentowner]

Those who are complaining awarding the SC this year because the play would be different seem to forget the Cup was originally made to award Canada's top amateur team. Saying any team who wins it under an improvised format should have an asterisk beside their name is as ridiculous as saying any NHL team should also have an asterisk as well. Sometimes change is inevitable. People need sports now more than ever. They need that escape from the negativity. If it can safely be done of course they should finish the season.

[bigpete]

I for one hope they can play the playoffs this summer. And I guarantee if the Flames go on any kind of run, every single one of you complaining in this thread about things being gimmicky will be glued to your tv sets cheering them on.

[dino7c]

I wont be glued to my set in summer...especially since it probably wont happen anyway

being realistic about it I doubt it happens. Millionare Players are gonna be locked in a hotel room in Edmonton for 2 months

[djsFlames]

Originally Posted by dino7c

I wont be glued to my set in summer...especially since it probably wont happen anyway

being realistic about it I doubt it happens. Millionare Players are gonna be locked in a hotel room in Edmonton for 2 months

^ True. That would be a summer from hell for any player.

And they absolutely would need to stay contained to the complex and hotel in order to keep from risking a positive case closing down the whole thing. Can't make for a high quality of life for the two to three months or whatever it is.

[Weitz]

Originally Posted by dino7c

I wont be glued to my set in summer...especially since it probably wont happen anyway

being realistic about it I doubt it happens. Millionare Players are gonna be locked in a hotel room in Edmonton for 2 months

Yah the guys whose main source of income that is in huge danger won’t want to partake in making money because edmonton.

[dino7c]

Originally Posted by Weitz

Yah the guys whose main source of income that is in huge danger won’t want to partake in making money because edmonton.

Yeah because this tourney will save the league and make all kinds of money playing hockey in the summer with no fans

[calgarygeologist]

Originally Posted by Jason14h

Where do people think the players are going to catch Covid walking from the hotel to the bus and bus into the stadium?

Sure having 18000 fans is a bad idea, but 20 players a team who will be staying in a hotel is about the lowest actual risk we can have

There’s a lot of people who are going to work daily . How would hockey be any different?

If you enforce strict lockdown orders and make sure they are only in their hotel, gym and arena the risks are very low. It becomes an issue if and when a player goes for a walk or run outside or maybe to grab something from a store. Now the risk increases and if one person gets infected it could quickly spread to the other 200 or 300 people within close contact. Just look at how quickly it has spread at Cargill for example.

Let's face it, these guys are humans and it is not part of human nature to be locked up for 6 or 8 weeks under strict monitoring. I wouldn't want to do it personally. I would rather live a pseudo normal Covid life in the comfort of my own home. I'm sure most of the players love playing hockey but do they love it enough to make such huge sacrifices just to finish what is essentially a meaningless season? Sometimes you don't get to see your hard work through to the end of a project and it sucks but it is part of life.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Weitz

Yah the guys whose main source of income that is in huge danger won’t want to partake in making money because edmonton.

It sounds plausible.

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