Cereal Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 STATEMENT FROM NHLPA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR DON FEHR REGARDING PROPOSED NHL REALIGNMENT ... Doesn't sound like they are asking for much. Geez, the way he puts it really makes the League seem like a bunch of meanies. To take a look at a sample proposed schedule seems like a reasonable and feasible request. To negotiate on the inequality of playoffs qualification seems reasonable, but the League likely doesn't have any good solutions to the problem? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frissonic Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Geez, the way he puts it really makes the League seem like a bunch of meanies. To take a look at a sample proposed schedule seems like a reasonable and feasible request. To negotiate on the inequality of playoffs qualification seems reasonable, but the League likely doesn't have any good solutions to the problem? the solution is "simple": add two more teams to the league. there were many who said that that the NHL would allow a team to move before considering expanding. looks like they might have to consider expansion if they want to go to a 4-conference alignment with the NHLPA's consent. and it only makes sense. 2 conferences of 7 and 2 of 8 is hardly level playing ground. *come to salt lake* *COME TO SALT LAKE* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eleven Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Geez, the way he puts it really makes the League seem like a bunch of meanies. To take a look at a sample proposed schedule seems like a reasonable and feasible request. To negotiate on the inequality of playoffs qualification seems reasonable, but the League likely doesn't have any good solutions to the problem? Fehr would have bitched about any proposed schedule. They're already complaining about possible 10-day road trips, as if that would be new to hockey. Inequality of playoff qualification is not a labor issue. Some of Fehr's constituents have a greater chance of making the playoffs, too. And it's no different than baseball (which Fehr has plenty of experience with) or football during the 80s and 90s. This is about Fehr drawing lines in the sand. It will happen over and over again until there is no hockey next year. Chris: we were writing at the same time, but I'll say that the solution definitely is not to add two new teams. There's enough talent dilution already. Subtract two, maybe, but don't add two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cereal Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 the solution is "simple": add two more teams to the league. Would adding more teams to the league, regardless of the other issues presented with the re-alignment, be favorable for the NHLPA, or unfavorable? I would guess unfavorable because of 11's "talent dilution" point below? Fehr would have bitched about any proposed schedule. They're already complaining about possible 10-day road trips, as if that would be new to hockey. Inequality of playoff qualification is not a labor issue. Some of Fehr's constituents have a greater chance of making the playoffs, too. And it's no different than baseball (which Fehr has plenty of experience with) or football during the 80s and 90s. This is about Fehr drawing lines in the sand. It will happen over and over again until there is no hockey next year. Chris: we were writing at the same time, but I'll say that the solution definitely is not to add two new teams. There's enough talent dilution already. Subtract two, maybe, but don't add two. Good points. For what it's worth, NFL of course is even, and the MLB will even up once Houston moves to the AL (I believe AL West) in 2013 (I think). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eleven Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Would adding more teams to the league, regardless of the other issues presented with the re-alignment, be favorable for the NHLPA, or unfavorable? I would guess unfavorable because of 11's "talent dilution" point below? Good points. For what it's worth, NFL of course is even, and the MLB will even up once Houston moves to the AL (I believe AL West) in 2013 (I think). More teams benefits the players (more jobs) but really, there are some pretty crappy rosters as it is. It would hurt the game. Yeah, NFL is even now, but I remember well the four-team western divisions in each conference while the central and eastern divisions had five. And MLB will be balanced for the first time in memory once Houston finally moves. Fehr sanctioned unbalanced playoff probabilities during the entirety of his MLBPA career. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frissonic Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Would adding more teams to the league, regardless of the other issues presented with the re-alignment, be favorable for the NHLPA, or unfavorable? I would guess unfavorable because of 11's "talent dilution" point below? don't care. want team. :) i don't think adding two more teams to a professional sports league is going to dilute the talent base to the point of screwing the entire sport. there are plenty of talented kids out there itching for a spot on an NHL team. NFL has 32 teams. think their "talent pool" is diluted? and that's just from pretty much one country. hockey is played world wide. no, adding two more teams will not dilute the talent pool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eleven Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 don't care. want team. :) i don't think adding two more teams to a professional sports league is going to dilute the talent base to the point of screwing the entire sport. there are plenty of talented kids out there itching for a spot on an NHL team. NFL has 32 teams. think their "talent pool" is diluted? and that's just from pretty much one country. hockey is played world wide. no, adding two more teams will not dilute the talent pool. Yes, the NFL's talent pool is diluted! Look at some of the starting Qs out there. I know you want a team; I hope one of the Florida teams moves for you. Please, no more NHL teams! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frissonic Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Yes, the NFL's talent pool is diluted! Look at some of the starting Qs out there. I know you want a team; I hope one of the Florida teams moves for you. Please, no more NHL teams! LOL!! okay, good enough. thanks for the support. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taro T Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 STATEMENT FROM NHLPA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR DON FEHR REGARDING PROPOSED NHL REALIGNMENT Toronto (January 6, 2012) - National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA) Executive Director Don Fehr issued the following statement this evening regarding the League's realignment proposal: "On the evening of December 5, 2011, the NHL informed the NHLPA that they proposed to put in place a four-conference format beginning with the 2012-13 season. As realignment affects Players' terms and conditions of employment, the CBA requires the League to obtain the NHLPA's consent before implementation. Over the last month, we have had several discussions with the League and extensive dialogue with Players, most recently on an Executive Board conference call on January 1. Two substantial Player concerns emerged: (1) whether the new structure would result in increased and more onerous travel; and (2) the disparity in chances of making the playoffs between the smaller and larger divisions. In order to evaluate the effect on travel of the proposed new structure, we requested a draft or sample 2012-13 schedule, showing travel per team. We were advised it was not possible for the League to do that. We also suggested reaching an agreement on scheduling conditions to somewhat alleviate Player travel concerns (e.g., the scheduling of more back-to-back games, more difficult and lengthier road trips, number of border crossings, etc.), but the League did not want to enter into such a dialogue. The travel estimation data we received from the League indicates that many of the current Pacific and Central teams, that have demanding travel schedules under the current format, could see their travel become even more difficult. On the playoff qualification matter, we suggested discussing ways to eliminate the inherent differences in the proposed realignment, but the League was not willing to do so. The League set a deadline of January 6, 2012 for the NHLPA to provide its consent to the NHL's proposal. Players' questions about travel and concerns about the playoff format have not been sufficiently addressed; as such, we are not able to provide our consent to the proposal at this time. We continue to be ready and willing to have further discussions should the League be willing to do so." Doesn't sound like they are asking for much. Because I'm certain that Don Fehr won't threaten litigation (or actually bring it) when the actual schedule ends up different than the 'sample' schedule. <_< To put together a 'sample schedule' you only have to come up with 1230 games in ~33 different venues (assuming you send 4 teams to Europe again to play a couple of games each and play another Winter Classic), all of which host additional events besides NHL hockey. Were the owners not dealing with a pitbull they probably could provide a sample schedule that would ballpark travel. They are dealing with a pitbull and anytime they try to give it a treat it will bite their ###### hands hard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Who Else? Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 I am glad the new plan is dead. Just because it is new does not make it better. There was an inequality between conferences as far as playoffs probability. The first time there was an issue with this (probably the first year) the league would have been scrambling and looking even dumber than the NFL with the Seahawks last year. There is an number of different ways to align these 30 teams w/o contraction or expansion. some of them were even mentioned on this site. The one I liked the best was the 3 conference system. Playoffs could be as easy as 5 teams per conference and 1 wildcard team or 4 per with four wildcards. Whatever. That plan sucked let's move on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bmwolf21 Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Paraphrasing FDR: we have nothing to fear but Fehr itself. This will get FAR uglier than it needs to be. They have an agreement that has seen leaguewide shared revenues increase every year since the lockout. While there are definitely modifications that need to be made to improve the deal (for both sides), the thing doesn't need to be blown up. I don't expect that Fehr believes that. I was not happy to see Fehr become the labor leader; this little negotiating ploy definitely doesn't make me appreciate him any more than previously. They had Daly on NHL Tonight last night and he seemed pretty disappointed. He alluded to the fact that the NHLPA withheld their consent unreasonably, and said they would explore legal options, but that it was too late in the game this year to fight this and set the schedule for next year. I agree completely about Fehr. I said it when he came on board, and I hope I am wrong - he scares the ###### out of me when it comes to labor peace. I hate twitter. It's like trying to read the thoughts of Rain Man. I'm still pretty new to it - I use it mainly to follow others for breaking news, and when I cover live sports we use it for score and game updates. It's actually not bad for people who used it for a while and have figured out how to express a thought within the 140-character limit. But reading Helene's "To Be Continued" tweets was rough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spndnchz Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Let's understand this, the NHLPA didn't BLOCK this. They were open to discussions and wanted a change to the unbalanced divisions. Winnipeg doesn't mind the travel for an extra year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taro T Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Let's understand this, the NHLPA didn't BLOCK this. They were open to discussions and wanted a change to the unbalanced divisions. Winnipeg doesn't mind the travel for an extra year. The league gave the PA estimates of travel, and the PA was unhappy with the estimates. "The travel estimation data we received from the League indicates that many of the current Pacific and Central teams, that have demanding travel schedules under the current format, could see their travel become even more difficult." How does having the league jump through hoops to come up with more detailed estimates change the PA's unhappiness with people having to travel more? And when you are making players travel to places they didn't have to under the current system (i.e. every barn in the league) and making it a more balanced schedule travel will necessarily increase. Making guys play in every barn also gives fans what they want - an ability to see EVERY player in the league, not just the same ones over and over and over. Additionally, that's great that the PA was willing to continue to discuss this, unfortunately, while they're in 'discussion' the clock is ticking and prime dates will be getting booked in the rinks. Sorry, if somebody that's shown a willingness to work with the other side is making the 'requests' that the PA made and the league rebuffed him I'd probably come away with a different opinion of the matter than when a guy that is known to fight on every single point makes the request. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spndnchz Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 I can't comment any more on this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LabattBlue Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Am I the only one that is surprised that the NHLPA has any say in this at all? Does the PA have any say when franchises move from one city to another? I don't get it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eleven Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Am I the only one that is surprised that the NHLPA has any say in this at all? Does the PA have any say when franchises move from one city to another? I don't get it. It's a change in working conditions. I don't know enough labor law (much less the labor laws of Canada--there are two countries' laws involved) to say whether it's enough of a change in working conditions for the union to have veto rights by law, and I also don't know if there is something in an agreement between NHL and NHLPA giving the union veto rights in this situation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LabattBlue Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 It's a change in working conditions. I don't know enough labor law (much less the labor laws of Canada--there are two countries' laws involved) to say whether it's enough of a change in working conditions for the union to have veto rights by law, and I also don't know if there is something in an agreement between NHL and NHLPA giving the union veto rights in this situation. What change in working conditions? They still play 82 games a season. 41 at home. 41 on the road. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eleven Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 What change in working conditions? They still play 82 games a season. 41 at home. 41 on the road. The travel and the chances of making the playoffs from the Western Conference, purportedly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LabattBlue Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 The travel and the chances of making the playoffs from the Western Conference, purportedly. So why isn't the PA having a hissy fit with WInnipeg for the 2nd straight year(if the realignment doesn't get approved) being in a division with Carolina, Florida, Tampa & Washington? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eleven Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 So why isn't the PA having a hissy fit with WInnipeg for the 2nd straight year(if the realignment doesn't get approved) being in a division with Carolina, Florida, Tampa & Washington? That's not a change from the present conditions; it's a continuation of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LabattBlue Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 That's not a change from the present conditions; it's a continuation of them. Wasn't it a change when the NHL owners approved the move of the franchise from Atlanta to WInnipeg?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabres Fan in NS Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 So why isn't the PA having a hissy fit with WInnipeg for the 2nd straight year(if the realignment doesn't get approved) being in a division with Carolina, Florida, Tampa & Washington? It's all smoke and mirrors ... Also, since Winnipeg is just happy to be back in the NHL, not to mention just an outpost in the Canadian tundra, the PA don't care about them and the Jets would do whatever the league wants at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eleven Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Wasn't it a change when the NHL owners approved the move of the franchise from Atlanta to WInnipeg?? It was then but it wouldn't be now. Presumably, then, either the union approved or approval wasn't needed. The CBA very well could state that the league can approve team moves w/o the union. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sabres Fan in NS Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 Wasn't it a change when the NHL owners approved the move of the franchise from Atlanta to WInnipeg?? The move was approved, which made the talk of realignment start. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eleven Posted January 7, 2012 Report Share Posted January 7, 2012 The move was approved, which made the talk of realignment start. Good thing Atlanta didn't try to move in a "CBA year." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.