Ok we are all frustrated, but perhaps not surprised with this NHL lockout.  No doubt that there are owners, players, employees and most importantly NHL hockey fans who are frustrated with the pat 78 days of the NHL lockout.  As hockey fans if we just stopped to think about it, the NHL lockout has very few positives but a tonne of negatives that come along with it.  Here are ten ten things that really suck about this lockout, the fourth major work stoppage under Gary Bettmans’s reign of the NHL.

10 Things That Suck About the 2012 NHL Lockout

1. Major NHL Records will not be broken by this generation of players – there are a number of highly talented players in the game.  Two work stoppages  within a decade ensures that major NHL records will not be broken, perhaps ever.  Take Steven Stmakos for example.  Stamkos scored 60 goals last season and had a chance to do it again.  He is so gifted as a scorer that he may have had a chance to break the record for consecutive 60 goal seasons currently held by Wayne Gretzky with 4 consecutive seasons of scoring 60+ goals.
2. NHL Arena and Team employees losing their jobs – not everyone associated with an NHL franchise is a millionaire.  What about the arena workers, front office workers, etc that become casualties of a lockout.  Nice job Bettman.
3. Players retiring as a s result of the lockout – as a hockey fan, my favorite player of all time was Mark Messier.  After the 2004-2005 NHL lockout, the Moose retired, along with a number of other players, with little fanfare.  I hate when that happens.
4. The opportunity to see veteran players live – the longer the lockout goes, the less chance there is to see your favorite players live in action.  Think of the fans in Winnipeg who would love to see Teemu Selanne a few more times or at least one last time.  Or Martin Brodeur, Daniel Alfredson, Ryan Smyth, Jarome Iginla etc etc.
5. No chance for team dynasties – contrary to popular belief, parity sucks.  Gone are the days of back-to-back champions.  The watered-down (read: parity rich) NHL is gone.  With no action in a missed season, the Stanley Cup simply displays less names of the trophy winners with an asteriks in the record books “Season not played due to NHL lockout.”
6. No Hockey Pools – gambling aside, sports and fantasy pools are fun for sports fans.  Hockey pools are fun to participate in and make the games a little more interesting.  No hockey, no pools.  Sorry AHL fans, but AHL pools are just not like NHL pools.
7. No chance to watch rookies – young players enter the league with big dreams and big skills.  Hockey fans like to see the up and coming future super stars of the league.  No NHL hockey, no rookies to watch.
8. No trades / player transactions – hockey fans love a good hockey trade.  No hockey = no hockey trades.
9. No Stanley Cup trophy winner – the greatest trophy in all of sports gets to collect dust in the Hockey Hall of fame with the exception of some charitable events.  The NHL and NHLPA should be ashamed of themselves.  Really fighting over $200-$400 million or whatever the exact numbers are.  We know there is more to it than that, but other pro leagues work and have signed long term agreements what makes the NHL so special or not?  One thing, the Stanley Cup.
10. Little kids missing out on watching their favorite players on TV – the game of hockey for Canadians has an associated mystique.  As a small child you have a favorite team and possibly a favorite player.  You watch Hockey Night in Canada or now hockey on TSN or Sportsnet to watch your team play.  No hockey – no TV coverage of your favorite team.

Hockey fans don’t care about the dollars in sense, but in the past couple of decades have been forced to think about the business of hockey.  The business of hockey takes away from being a fan of hockey.  Another NHL lockout makes it increasingly difficult to be a hockey fan, new or old.  You can bet that as we approach the holiday season, there are a lot of people who simply want a little NHL hockey for Christmas.