FanNation - The Republic of Sport

Obviously, the main thing that's wrong with the NHL is relatability. Unless you grew up playing a sport, you're not going to be very inclined to play it. Of course, even though most kids play soccer no one watches that but that's a story for another time.

More relevantly though, the NHL is in a pretty terrible bind. Who thought that expanding a league way beyond the talent pool then enforcing a salary cap which limits each team to one or two star players would make the league worse? Well, as much fun as watching 28 interchangeable, mediocre teams play eachother night after night is, I would like to propose a change - 

get rid of the salary cap!

Obviously, parity would be hurt. Nashville and Phoenix might not have a chance to ever make the playoffs, but do they anyway? Plus, imagine seeing Toronto, Montreal, Boston and New York back at the top. I'm sure Carolina's 2 fans would be upset at how hard it is to compete, but...

More importantly, if Bettman wants to make the NHL more relatable in US cities, how bout providing us with good hockey for a change! The reason the NHL doesn't get good ratings isn't because every fan doesn't have his own personal team like Bettman thinks, its because when they tune into NBC (or Versus if they can find it) they see midlevel grinders playing with dumbed down commentary.

Think about the NFL. I along with most of the USA used to watch the Colts and Patriots play every year even though I hate Boston and live nowhere near the midwest. Its just high quality sport!

Getting rid of the salary cap would not only produce a higher level of competition but also a better transaction market. But the NFL and the NBA both have salary caps and fair player movement you might say, and you would be right. The problem with the NHL is that they've combined the tricky aspects of both those systems into a complicated, impossible to navigate disaster. The NFL, like the NHL, has a hard cap which teams cannot exceed. However, no contracts in the NFL are entirely guarenteed. Not happy with Jerry Porter's 3 year deal? Cut him and take a cap hit relative to his smallish bonus. NHL contracts, like NBA contracts, are entirely guarenteed. However, the NBA has a soft cap, which means that teams can be over the cap and only be limited in their ability to sign free agents. The NHL has developed a system where players are only worth as much as their contracts. Look at how hard it has been to move Heatley from Ottawa. Even worse, the size of NHL teams combined with the relatively low salary cap makes it impossible to field a cost-effective contender. Go ahead, try and find an NHL team safely below the cap with Cup hopes. There are none.

By ensuring a mediocre league with a diluted talent base and no player continuity or exciting movement, Gary Bettman has doomed the NHL to obscurity.