New Jersey

Well, this may not be a story, but this is how its affecting me.

For basically my whole life I've been watching the Devils. I even
remember my first game from when I was 4. As I type this now, i look
to my right and see pictures from game 4 against the Red Wings in the
1995 Stanley Cup Finals that my dadhad taken at the game. I see Shawn
Chambers scoring a goal from the circle, the clock running down the
final seconds to the Devils first championship, and a picture of the
celebration at center ice. I was fortunate to be able to witness that
event from home in my lifetime, as well as 2 more Stanley Cups,
especially in 2003, when i was in attendance for the final game 7.
Some of the best memories of my life involve the NHL. But
unfortunately, that is all they will be it appears. Just old
memories, as there is no NHL around to create new ones. One thing
i've always been able to look forward to was when fall changed into
winter, and hockey season started to heat up. The Jets season was
ending, Nets season was still in its first couple months of a
torturous year, and baseball was still months away. But i always had
hockey to turn to. I stayed with hockey through the labor issues in
94-95, because i knew it would be back. I stayed with my team when
there were rumors everywhere that they could be packing up and moving
to Nashville, and hoped for the best. I stayed with it no matter how
many ups and downs my team had throughout the years because i loved
the sport for what it was. A high paced game full of excitement from
the moment the puck drops until the final horn sounds. I put aside
the pain of defeat every season because I knew there would always be
next year. I sit here now, and it appears i'm still waiting for next
year. The year after that isn't even such a sure thing now. This
lockout has hurt many fans around the world. The players and the
owners are all arguing over money in a sport where the money they
argue over comes from the people they have alienated throughout this
process. The fans. Without the fans, the league will not survive.
You have to wonder if the league even wants to survive with the way
its treating the fans throughout all of this. Its sad to see that
everyone in these negotiations comes to the table thinking "what am I
going to get out of this," instead of thinking "what will the fans get
out of this." We may not know what the players and owners want, but
everyone knows what the fans want. They want the sport they love and
cherish back as soon as possible. Instead of focusing on themselves,
both sides should find a common ground, to meet the demands of its
supporters around the world. Its sad when grown men playing a kids
game for a living go from playing for the fun of the game, to
negotiate their way to being able to get a bigger mansion, or a faster
car. Instead of playing for the fans, they're focusing on the bank
accounts. For the owners, who get to be a part of the greatest game
in the world to go from putting their teams out there and caring for
their loyal fans, to trying to keep their wallets just full enough
that they don't quite burst at the seams. I understand the league is
a business, but both sides need to look at this thing from another
perspective. Players are worrying about only making a 1-2 million,
instead of 3-4 million a season. These guys complain about making
more money in one year than many people will see in a decade. The
people who won't see nearly this much money are the people paying
their salaries. The owners, worrying about their own pockets instead
of the customers who help their business run. Many people spend their
hard earned money just to get nosebleed seats to see their favorite
team play, and now the teams won't be playing because the players
don't feel they make enough? Or because they owners don't trust
themselves not to spend themselves into a bigger hole? All of this
arguing over themselves, and forgetting about those who have paid
their salaries, and supported their business for years.

I don't have anything else without the NHL around. Baseball is months
away, football season is over, and the new owner of my basketball team
wants to take that away from New Jersey too. The longer this lockout
goes, the fewer fans that will remain standing. I hadn't watched a
single hockey game since the Stanley Cup finals ended last June, up
until the other day. I decided to go to one of my high school's
hockey games. The talent level was rather awful, but i'm going to go
whenever possible. The games aren't as exciting, the players aren't
nearly as talented, but i'll keep going. Why? The guys playing are
in it for the love of the game. Not for their wallets. Finally.
Someone who has the right idea about it.