Virus could have long-term effects on the NHL
All parties involved were saying the right things when the NHL decided to suspend the season because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But there could be some heated negotiations down the line, which is not a good situation at a time when the league and the players’ association are working on a collective agreement.
The big questions will centre on salary. The players will probably take a hit because of missed games, but the possible cancellation of more than 100 regular-season games and the loss of playoff revenue mean that hockey-related revenue will be down for this season.
And that will have two important repercussions.
If the revenue is down, it will have an effect on escrow payments and that means the players will take a second hit. And, while NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has indicated that the salary cap will go up next season, that issue might be revisited as the bottom line drops.
TV networks, particularly the Canadian sports networks, will be hurting because they have lost prime programming. TVA Sports was already looking at another dreary spring because the Canadiens were out of the playoffs. It’s not a concern for RDS or TSN because they don’t televise any playoff games.
Tough year for women’s hockey: Hockey Canada announced the names of 23 women who won’t be competing at this year’s world championship, which were one of the first casualties of the coronavirus pandemic. The list includes Quebecers Ann-renée Desbiens, Marie-philip Poulin, Lauriane Rougeau and Mélodie Daoust.
The cancellation of the world championship, which was to be held next month in Halifax and Truro, N.S., was the latest blow to women’s hockey.
The world’s best players became nomads after the collapse of the Canadian Women’s Hockey League last spring. The top players from Canada and the United States announced that they would not play in an organized league until there was a properly funded and managed professional league, a backhanded slap at the U.s.-based National Women’s Hockey League.
The players formed the Professional Women’s Hockey Players’ Association and embarked on the Dream Gap Tour, which showcased the best players in weekend events in Toronto, Boston, Philadelphia, New Hampshire and Tempe, Ariz. There was a slightly smaller PWHPA event in Quebec, with games in Montreal and Sherbrooke. The tour was supposed to go international, but the coronavirus outbreak forced the cancellation of an event last week in Japan.
There were other efforts to provide an opportunity to maintain their competitive edge leading up to the world championship. The Rivalry Series between the U.S. and Canada was expanded from three games to five and BFL Canada, an insurance firm headed by Montreal super booster Barry Lorenzetti, funded an enhanced series of training camps for the Team Canada women.
Richard funeral a private affair: Henri Richard was a quiet, private person and it’s no surprise that his funeral this week will be a low-key affair limited to family members, in direct contrast to the very public sendoffs for other Canadiens icons, such as his older brother Maurice and Jean Béliveau.
There were plans for a visitation at a funeral home, but those were scrapped due to concerns about COVID -19. Richard, who was a member of a record 11 Stanley Cup teams, died on March 6 at age 84.
Quebecer finalist for top NCAA award: Elizabeth Giguère, a junior forward at
Clarkson University, is one of three finalists for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, which is presented each year to the outstanding player in NCAA women’s hockey. Giguère, a Quebec City native, is the daughter of former NHL goaltender Jean-sébastien Giguère.
The other finalists are Alina Mueller, a sophomore forward from Switzerland who plays at Northeastern University in Boston, and University of Wisconsin senior forward Abby Rogue from Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. The award was to be presented at a luncheon next week in Boston, but that event has been cancelled for obvious reasons.