Not surprising - and expect more....
From TSN:
I wrote at the start of October...
Montreal Canadiens winger Pierre Dagenais is the latest locked out NHLer to speak out, expressing concerns in Montreal La Presse over whether players of his ilk are being fairly represented by the NHLPA. The comments come two days after Calgary defenceman Mike Commodore expressed similar sentiments on a Calgary radio station.
I wrote at the start of October...
If the players feel the pressure from the public it won't be long before a few start calling up their union reps asking about the owner's cap proposals - what would a cap really mean, how much money, what percentage.
Once that crack is opened, the pressure for Goodenow to negotiate a cap will grow.
These types of players that are speaking out are not the players that are flying over to Europe to play. They are the type of player that is going to play far fewer years in the NHL than the stars, and for them, it would be tough to make up their lost salary (around $500,000 for each of them) even if the PA gets their way.
Here is how the salaries are broken down in the NHL:
| Salary Range | Number of Players | Percentage of Players
|
| between $0 and $999,999 | 337 | 45.1%
|
| between $1,000,000 and $1,999,999 | 194 | 25.9%
|
| between $2,000,000 and $2,999,999 | 86 | 11.5%
|
| between $3,000,000 and $3,999,999 | 51 | 6.8%
|
| between $4,000,000 and $4,999,999 | 26 | 3.5%
|
| between $5,000,000 and $5,999,999 | 18 | 2.4%
|
| between $6,000,000 and $6,999,999 | 13 | 1.7%
|
| between $7,000,000 and $7,999,999 | 5 | 0.7%
|
| between $8,000,000 and $8,999,999 | 6 | 0.8%
|
| between $9,000,000 and $9,999,999 | 6 | 0.8%
|
| between $10,000,000 and $10,999,999 | 4 | 0.5%
|
| between $11,000,000 and $11,999,999 | 2 | 0.3%
|
Data from USA Today.
The crack has been opened - we'll see now whether the PA's meeting with the player reps on Tuesday will have any effect on their stance.
