Players should hold out. They have the upper hand. I think 50/50 is fair, but the players could easily get more.
Sadly, there are no good moves here. They will lose fans that they cannot afford to lose. I guess tangentially it would be a plus mark on the owners side of the sheet, but in reality what has been gained? I know you are being sarcastic, but in your sarcasm is some dickhead lawyer lining up what they believe to be strategy of the highest order. Yeah, ok!
While i don't think it is fair, I think the average fan views the owners as the 1% and the players as the 99%. Obviously the average NHL player is making enough to be in the top 5%. The owners will always be the villains. They were the problem in the last lockouts and will be viewed that way for a while. People can hate Bettman all they want, but the bottom line is he is doing his job. He represents the owners, and his job is to get them the best deal. This PR stunt won't mean shit. The superstars are happy making 70% of their NHL contracts in other places.
Also, the third proposal by the NHLPA was for 50/50 split, but owners had to honor all contracts signed by the players. The owners turned that down. That is the most fair deal so far. Owners rejected it. Owners shouldn't be allowed to back out of previous contracts.
Sounds like the current deal from the owners allows them to get back whatever they give up in escrow, but it will count against the cap in that next year, so really the owner's aren't paying them, future players are paying them. Predict the players reject this as well.
Stick a fork in the season. http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nhl-rejects-union-bid-return-074935980--nhl.html
Just Go Away, Buttman and take Herr Fehr with you. http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/8639525/just-go-away-gary
Their TV ratings are shit until after football season anyway. They are taking a break from negotiations until after Thanksgiving. :huh Gonna be a while.
I think that they will be excrement for a good long time after this. Huge mistake this has been. Say what they want about Goodell, he runs a tight ship and gets the job done. Not that I always agree with him, but it is not my job; it is his to do.
Go Riverhawks! I haven't brought myself to go to one of their games yet....it would be too depressing thinking about how the B's should be playing.