First of all they were dumb enough to continue to stand on principle when they'd already sold their so-called principle (of no cap) up the river. What can the players possibly gain by turning down a $42.5 million cap now? Nothing. And they'll lose millions of dollars in a fight they'll never win. As Bettman said, now the deal HAS to be linkage and a much lower number. The players foolishly thought all along the owners would crack, despite a handful of teams nearly going bankrupt, despite the war chest, they were arrogant enough to think they could wait out the owners because that's exactly what Goodenow's buttbuddy Fehr told him would happen.
But of course baseball and hockey are two different worlds economically, which the players failed to realize. They might have realized it if A) they believed the INDEPENDENT report from Levitt and B) they took the NHL up on their offer to audit their books but they refused to believe reality. If they had, they would have realized that the owners were DEAD serious about not playing unless they not only got the deal they wanted, but NEEDED. The onus was never, ever, ever on the owners to get a deal done. The players would have made money hand over fist no matter what, all the owners wanted was a meager profit and the players wouldn't even give them that. The owners even bent and would accept the possibility of a loss and that STILL wasn't good enough for the idiot players
There was NO WAY the owners could make any of the deal the players offered, and anyone that believes there was is too consumed with anti-Bettman bias. And the players STILL don't get it. I heard a little bit of the Mike Peca interview on WFAN driving home and when they brought up linkage he said well the rollback is off the table now. Ayiee, they still don't get it
At least Peca TALKED to the damn media though, give him credit for that, Goodenow won't even give them the courtesy of that. May Goodenow and the NHLPA rot in hell. 
Edited by Hasan4978, 16 February 2005 - 03:33 PM.
