Rinknotes Lockout Edition

With NHL games nowhere in sight, defending NCAA champ Denver University is taking advantage. In Philadelphia, Comcast Sports Net will be putting the minor league Phantoms on the air.

With a Canadian television deal in hand, the AHL will begin its own season next Wednesday, and will be utilizing some, but not all, of the rule changes (registration required) the NHL asked for before the season began.

Here's an idea: as an NHL Center Ice subscriber, I've already pre-paid for the 2004-05 season. Instead of keeping my money and just sitting on it, would it kill the league to fire up their satellite capacity (which, as I've pointed out, I've already paid for), and air a slate of AHL and NCAA hockey in the place of the NHL?

Yes, it would probably cost more than letting the league simply sit on its hands (and my money). But they took our money even though they knew they had no intention of starting the season on time. Think of it as a goodwill gesture, one that would purchase the league more than a little goodwill with their biggest supporters.

If the only way you're willing to build support is through press releases and media interviews, then don't be surprised when fans sit on their hands when you come back.

Outside the swamps of Jersey, the Newark City Council approved a downtown redevelopment plan that includes an 18,000 seat arena for the Devils:

Before the 6-3 vote, residents of the city who addressed the council at a public hearing were divided over whether Newark's $210 million contribution to the project would be better spent on schools, roads and city services.

The answer to that question is yes. And considering that Devils owner Jeffrey Vanderbeek is a former member of the executive committee at Lehman Brothers, one would think he'd know something about private financing. In addition, the state government already pays the Devils $3 million annually to stay in the state, whether they play or not -- something some state officials think is a travesty that ought to be ended.

A group of French-Canadian NHL players are conducting a barnstorming tour for charity across the province of Quebec.

With Richard Zednik and Alex Tanguay the latest NHL players to sign with European clubs, the International Ice Hockey Federation reports that 194 members of the NHLPA are currently playing in Europe.

Eric 06:52 AM

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Posted by: at October 8, 2004 01:35 PM

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