Well it certainly is on life support, the tubes are in and it may be in a coma but it is in fact still breathing.
Reasons Why it Might Die
The Lockout - The lockout had negative effects on the NHL. First off lockouts or strikes are never beneficial for the leagues audience. The NHL has always been a niche sport and the hardcore fans usually come back after an elongated break, however there are always people that are bitter over their loss of game time so there were certainly people that gave up on hockey.
Casual Fan - This is something that the NHL has lacked in the past but it most certainly is at the worst in NHL history. The Casual fan is going to need build up to be interested in the NHL again.
Expansion - Expansion has tainted the NHL. Tell anyone who does not know hockey very well that there are teams located in Atlanta, Tampa and Nashville and they'll give you a crazy eye. And then tell them there is a team in Columbus and they'll probably ask you where Columbus is.
Superstars - The NHL may have a lot of young talent right now, but there are no identifiable superstars in the league to the casual fan. Superstars and names are what bring in the casual fan, its the same with the NBA and always has been. The NHL needs Crosby or someone else to transcend the league and become a name outside of just the hockey circles.
TV Contract - I don't get the OLN (Versus), do you? Not unless you have at minimum digital cable or direct tv. The playoffs for myself were non-existent for myself from the time the Rangers were swept out of the first round until the sometime in the finals, not even the first game of the finals that was still on OLN (Versus). So I couldn't watch any of it not necessarily because I didn't want to but because I couldn't get it at my house. So if you can't watch NHL on TV how do you expect little kids to want to play hockey when their a kid.
Expense - If kids are not interested in the league when they are children, then they will not play hockey, why because it is by far the most expensive sport to play as a child.
Major Markets - This finals consisted of the Whalers and the Oilers. The Rangers haven't won a playoff game in 12 years. The Bruins have one of the worst owners in professional sports. The Kings are never good and the Blackhawks are miserable. Those are the biggest 4 American markets. 0 for 4 is not good.
Why the Life Support
Lockout - Negative because it lost the casual fan but positive because they finally are treating the players as what they are, pro athletes in a B pro league. Players can not make the contracts that MLB and NFL and NBA players make. In addition they put in a salary cap to hold down salaries. Financial stability is a key to the life support.
Canada - Canadians love it. They will always provide the best players in the league, why Betman does not move teams back into Canada where they actually care about the sport is mind boggling. I mean Edmonton is not a big city is it?
Hard Core Fan - The NHL does have a Hard Core fan base, granted they live mostly in the North and in Canada, where Ice in fact does exist, but they're still there and they will always tune in and watch.
Live - Honestly, hockey might be the most fun sport to watch in person. The arenas are not enormous so you are close to the action, there is a lot of violence, you get to see the skill of the players more accurately. It just doesn't seem to translate onto the television the same.
Rules Changes - Ya apparently its faster and more scoring, ya I really didn't notice it that much, but I did notice the shootouts after the overtime. That was their best idea. Americans hate ties, I despise them, and shootouts are interesting and are not going to be some fad that fans will get sick of.
Conclusion
I just think the NHL is going to remain what it is now a niche sport with some hardcore fans and only occasionally bringing in the casual fan. It will never surpass the NBA, and with an increase of immigrants into the states from Europe and South and Latin America could easily be surpassed by soccer as the 4th biggest team sport in the US.
Reasons Why it Might Die
The Lockout - The lockout had negative effects on the NHL. First off lockouts or strikes are never beneficial for the leagues audience. The NHL has always been a niche sport and the hardcore fans usually come back after an elongated break, however there are always people that are bitter over their loss of game time so there were certainly people that gave up on hockey.
Casual Fan - This is something that the NHL has lacked in the past but it most certainly is at the worst in NHL history. The Casual fan is going to need build up to be interested in the NHL again.
Expansion - Expansion has tainted the NHL. Tell anyone who does not know hockey very well that there are teams located in Atlanta, Tampa and Nashville and they'll give you a crazy eye. And then tell them there is a team in Columbus and they'll probably ask you where Columbus is.
Superstars - The NHL may have a lot of young talent right now, but there are no identifiable superstars in the league to the casual fan. Superstars and names are what bring in the casual fan, its the same with the NBA and always has been. The NHL needs Crosby or someone else to transcend the league and become a name outside of just the hockey circles.
TV Contract - I don't get the OLN (Versus), do you? Not unless you have at minimum digital cable or direct tv. The playoffs for myself were non-existent for myself from the time the Rangers were swept out of the first round until the sometime in the finals, not even the first game of the finals that was still on OLN (Versus). So I couldn't watch any of it not necessarily because I didn't want to but because I couldn't get it at my house. So if you can't watch NHL on TV how do you expect little kids to want to play hockey when their a kid.
Expense - If kids are not interested in the league when they are children, then they will not play hockey, why because it is by far the most expensive sport to play as a child.
Major Markets - This finals consisted of the Whalers and the Oilers. The Rangers haven't won a playoff game in 12 years. The Bruins have one of the worst owners in professional sports. The Kings are never good and the Blackhawks are miserable. Those are the biggest 4 American markets. 0 for 4 is not good.
Why the Life Support
Lockout - Negative because it lost the casual fan but positive because they finally are treating the players as what they are, pro athletes in a B pro league. Players can not make the contracts that MLB and NFL and NBA players make. In addition they put in a salary cap to hold down salaries. Financial stability is a key to the life support.
Canada - Canadians love it. They will always provide the best players in the league, why Betman does not move teams back into Canada where they actually care about the sport is mind boggling. I mean Edmonton is not a big city is it?
Hard Core Fan - The NHL does have a Hard Core fan base, granted they live mostly in the North and in Canada, where Ice in fact does exist, but they're still there and they will always tune in and watch.
Live - Honestly, hockey might be the most fun sport to watch in person. The arenas are not enormous so you are close to the action, there is a lot of violence, you get to see the skill of the players more accurately. It just doesn't seem to translate onto the television the same.
Rules Changes - Ya apparently its faster and more scoring, ya I really didn't notice it that much, but I did notice the shootouts after the overtime. That was their best idea. Americans hate ties, I despise them, and shootouts are interesting and are not going to be some fad that fans will get sick of.
Conclusion
I just think the NHL is going to remain what it is now a niche sport with some hardcore fans and only occasionally bringing in the casual fan. It will never surpass the NBA, and with an increase of immigrants into the states from Europe and South and Latin America could easily be surpassed by soccer as the 4th biggest team sport in the US.
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