Strike

As many of you have probably heard, the Professional Hockey Players' Association declared a strike against the Central Hockey League owners today.

My story that will run in tomorrow's Times is already up online, and you can read it here.

This announcement certainly surprised me, and from what Bucks head coach/general manager Terry Ruskowski and team captain Serge Dube told me, they were pretty shocked, as well.

Both are obviously hoping things can be resolved in time for the season to begin.

Bucks majority owner Glenn Hart was not quite as surprised, but he also wants to see things cleared up as quickly as possible.

The choice of timing by the PHPA was impeccable, though in the worst way possible for everyone involved.

With the season just around the corner, the owners will definitely feel the pressure to take care of things, and players who have not yet crossed the border cannot do so until negotiations are finalized.

Basically, it comes down to the fact that a lot of teams aren't making money, and thus aren't going to approve increases in spending. But, I guess they might not have a choice.