It's a Canadian Game

With both sides putting up offers this week and still no deal made, who do you feel is the one to blame, and who needs to step up to get a deal done?

This past Thursday was supposed to mark the start to the 2012-2013 season, but of course thanks to the lockout we wait until a deal is reached. Now in the past few weeks some players have voiced their optimism of a new deal coming together before the entire season is wiped out, while others continue to believe there is no deal in sight. So, why is this? Sidney Crosby this week was one of the few players who made it clear that he thinks the entire season won't be lost. Crosby stated, "I can't see it getting to that point, I really can't. It hasn't even crossed my mind to be honest with you. I think, if anything, my thoughts are more just about whether the NHL has a date in mind (for the season to start) and just when they're actually going to start negotiating." Crosby believes that the fact that both sides have been meeting together and that negotiations are taking place means that they are getting somewhere. Wayne Gretzky is another who has voiced his optimism that a new deal will be made before the season's projected end. Gretzky believes that the real timeline to get a deal done is the Winter Classic. The Winter Classic this year is scheduled to be between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Detroit Red Wings on New Year's Day. http://youtu.be/RNrBJE_xtoA Wayne Gretzky interview about the lockout The Winter Classic has been pointed out as a date of interest partially because of the huge profits the game brings and with this year's scheduled to be the biggest so far the NHL would be stupid to let this opportunity slip them by. The game between the Leafs and Wings is scheduled at Michigan Stadium where the record for the most people at a hockey game was set in 2010. The plan for this game is to try and break the record of over 104,000 people by hoping to get close to 115,000 fans in the stands and with a wait list for tickets already in effect that doesn't seem to be a problem. Tickets for the game have been priced between $79 and $279 so NHL is looking to make anywhere between $9,000,000 and 33,000,000 on ticket sales alone. A preview of HBO: 24/7 from 2011 featuring the Flyers and Rangers Now although, both sides have been meeting including two more meetings this past Wednesday and Thursday, it seems that, like we've heard so many times since the lockout began, both sides are no closer to a deal than when the lockout began. This week neither the NHL nor the NHLPA brought any new proposals to the table, solidifying the belief that no solution to the lockout is close. Now for those hoping to stick by Crosby's comments, take them with a grain of rice because it was Crosby who said during the summer that the fans need not worry about an NHL lockout coming into affect. Follow me on Twitter @Craig_Hagerman

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In regards to saying what if Giroux gets injured, I guess that is part of the risk of them going and actually Rick Nash last week got slammed into the boards in a game and they feared he might have hit his head hard and possibly may have gotten concussed. Luckily it turns out that he only hurt his shoulder, but to think what could have been had he actually received a severe concussion.

So far the NHL has cancelled games up until October 24th so most of the season could still be played out and games that have already been cancelled could still be tacked on to the end of the season, barring a deal is finally reached. However, assuming this doesn't come to light, certain players may be more impacted than others. One name that comes to mind is all-star goaltender and future hall-of-famer Martin Brodeur. At the end of last season rumours swirled all over that Brodeur may be playing in his last season, believing retirement was imminent at the end of the season. Marty went on to sign a 2 year deal at the end of the season, but if he has to sit around and wait to play in his final seasons in the NHL is it maybe in his best interest to retire now? This is just one example of a group of NHLers that may go unnoticed when talks about who is impacted the most by the NHL lockout circulate. In 2004 this same phenomenon happened with another one of the game's greats. Brett Hull signed a contract for the beginning of the 04-05 season with the Phoenix Coyotes, a team that was looking to finally prove themselves as a contender. Now the season prior was the NHL lockout and the season prior to that Hull put up a respectable 25 goals and 68 points in 81 games. Great numbers for someone his age. So, Hull headed into the 04-05 season after a lockout with new rules and a much faster game. After only 5 games and recording just 1 assist Brett Hull announced his retirement from the game believing he could no longer keep up with new pace and speed of the game. Hull would finish he career with 1,391 points, good enough for 22nd all time. However, he finished just 35 points away from moving up to 15th all-time a feet that would have been very achievable had there have been no lockout during the 03-04 season. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrkTs4Ub8zI&feature=player_embedded A look at back some of Brett Hull's greatest moments. It seems that some NHLers may now be put into the same position as Hull and may lose out on that one last season. Besides Brodeur, this season also heard much speculation that Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson may be playing in his last season in the NHL. This made the all-star game in Ottawa this past season just that more emotional for the league and the city of Ottawa. However, Alfredsson decided the end of the season that he was not ready to hang up the skates just yet and that he would be back for another campaign. However, with the NHL lockout now in place have we seen Alfredsson's last game in a Senators' uniform? Next to Brodeur and Alfredsson, other players that may have to contemplate retirement this year or the next couple years are Teemu Selanne, Dwayne Roloson, Jaromir Jagr, and Jason Arnott to name a few. Lets just hope that once again we don't see the NHL ruin the chance for some of the games greats to hit those memorable milestones. Follow me on Twitter @Craig_Hagerman

Yea it's nice to see the players trying to still give back to the fans who love the game. I thought it was also interesting to see Bobby Ryan say he refuses to play overseas because he believes he should be in North America to show that he isn't running away from the CBA talks, but rather he is there to show that he cares and wants to stay informed.

With the lockout still underway we have seen players take to playing elsewhere, I guess when you grow up loving the game and playing it for a living you will do whatever you can to keep playing. However, is this necessarily the best decision for players? This week we have seen the likes of players such as Evgeni Malkin, Pavel Datsyuk, and Ilya Kovalchuck put up good numbers for the clubs they have been playing with over in the KHL, but is this the best use of their time off from the NHL? Rangers power forward Rick Nash returned back to play for the same team he played for during the 2004 NHL lockout, HC Davos of the Swiss Elite League and this week he was forced to leave a game after taking a hard hit into the boards. Although it was ultimately determined that it was merely just a shoulder injury opposed to a head injury which many people had feared might be the case, it still raises the question if risking getting injured playing elsewhere is worth it. Nash had an MRI and it was determined that there was no significant damage done. A couple weeks ago Carolina Hurricanes young star Jeff Skinner decided that instead of reporting to the Hurricane’s AHL affiliate team for the year that he would rather continue to work out in Toronto. Skinner over the summer worked out with former NHLer and extreme nutrition and fitness guru, Gary Roberts. Roberts in the last few years has helped players such as Steven Stamkos, Jason Spezza, and Tyler Seguin reach the next level in their game. So, it seems that Skinner feels that continuing to work on his personal fitness is the best use for the time off until the league is able to come to an agreement that will bring an end to the lockout. Here is a video of Gary Roberts Biosteel Camp 2011, notice various NHLers and Junior players. Maple Leafs goaltender James Reimer seems to be in the same mindset as Skinner. Reimer was plagued with injury and some very inconsistent play last season after stealing the reigns away from J.S. Giguere at the end of the 2011 season. Reimer became an instant fan favourite as he brought the Leafs within a couple points of reaching the post-season. During this summer Reimer made it his initiative to get in shape with the hopes of getting back in to the form that Leaf fan’s fell in love with in 2011. So, like Skinner, Reimer has focused on getting in shape and working on his game until the lockout is over. So, what do you think, is playing elsewhere during the lockout the best decision for NHLers? Follow me on Twitter: @Craig_Hagerman

It has been a very busy last week and a half with many more NHLers flocking to Europe to find somewhere to play some hockey. In this past week alone Danny Briere, Claude Giroux, Joe Pavelski, Gabriel Landeskog, Andrei Markov, Zdeno Chara, Patrice Bergeron, Jamie Benn, and Matt Duchene have all packed their bags and headed to Europe. Now with news coming from sports outlets such as ESPN and recently Sportsnet that they will now be broadcasting some KHL games this season this may give a little hope for true hockey fans to see their favourite stars in action. However, what this influx of players heading overseas still, even after more than 20 days since the lockout was announced, means is there's a sign that a resolution to the lockout is no closer than when the lockout began. Last weekend the NHLPA and the NHL were at the table trying to hammer out a deal that would bring an end to the lockout, but like the other meetings between the two sides, nothing was accomplished and it seems that a deal may be a lot further away than most NHL fans would hope. During the negotiations the players have been meeting along with Don Fehr (NHLPA Executive Direcctor) to be more informed about the lockout situation, however many players have still continued to head to Europe. Does this mean that the players are aware there is no deal in sight? That's what it is starting to look like. Would players continue to sign contracts and commit to playing for other teams if they knew that an agreement to end the NHL lockout was just around the corner? That seems highly unlikely. Both the NHL and NHLPA have continued to meet privately in Toronto this weekend, but until one side or the other brings something new to the table don't expect any significant news. Fans looking to catch some hockey action in the mean time can catch KHL games on ESPN. The next game will air on Sunday October 13th at 9 am when Dynamo Moscow (featuring Alex Ovechkin) takes on Sibir HD. Follow me on Twitter : @Craig_Hagerman

Yea the contracts for playing overseas allow so that as soon as a new CBA is reached the players can return to their NHL clubs with no hesitation. However, if the new CBA decides to cut the wages of the contracts players have already signed and for European players getting the chance to play closer to home you might see many players decide to stay in Europe instead of coming back. Also, it must feel nicer playing under a league that seems to have all its politics in place. This is what Ilya Bryzgalov who is playing in Moscow of the KHL thinks many Russian players may end up doing. The NHL better think hard and quickly if they want to keep their big stars on North American soil.

Since the lockout has started an influx of NHLers have flocked to Europe to play hockey in various leagues including the KHL and elitle leagues in Switzerland, Sweden, Germany, and more. For many die hard hockey fans this is the next best thing because at least then they will still have the opportunity to watch their favourite players this season. However, others are starting to get the feeling that once the lockout ends many players may decide to stay and play in Europe. So, what do you think? Follow my blog at: http://its-acanadiangame.blogspot.ca/ and on Twitter @acanadiangame to keep infomed on what is happening with the players while the lockout carries on.