With about $25 million remaining on his contract, the Rangers’ Bobby Holik has about as much to lose as any NHL player if Commissioner Gary Bettman cancels this season.
Yesterday, after attending an eight-hour players’ union meeting in Toronto that had begun Monday night, the outspoken center put his mouth where his money is – in complete support of union president Bob Goodenow and the locked-out players.
“I will put my word to it – the proposals we already have made to the league contain significant concessions that address every one of their issues,” Holik told The Post by phone before returning to his offseason home in Wyoming.
“It is very clear to me that the owners expect us to bear the burden alone of solving the problems they have brought on themselves by showing a lack of control.
“We are willing to negotiate. We are willing to work with the owners to fix the problems they have identified. They refuse. They want to dictate. They have one solution and one solution only. They demand a cap – and that isn’t even a solution. They don’t acknowledge what a cap would do to the game. It would drive the game to mediocrity.
“I believe that in life, knowledge is power. After attending this meeting and hearing the opinions of my fellow players, and after listening to Bob explain in detail what we have proposed, I feel very confident with the position we have taken as an association. I feel much better now about the direction we’re taking than I did before coming [to Toronto.]”
Approximately 80 players attended the meeting, including Montreal’s Pierre Dagenais, who last week had publicly questioned the union’s negotiating stance and commitment to role players. Dagenais is one of a handful of low-paid support players whose recent comments in support of a cap have been blown out of proportion by the Canadian media.
“I think it was great that Pierre came, and I think the meeting was an eye-opener for him, and maybe some of our other guys,” union vice president Billy Guerin told The Post. “Bob made a presentation that explained very clearly how cap systems work, and how in any cap system it’s the mid-level and lower-level guys who get crushed.
“There’s one thing this union has been pretty consistent about over the years, and that’s looking out for all the players, not just the upper echelon. I think that with this meeting, everyone has a much better understanding of that and of our position.”
The NHLPA has extended two tax-based proposals to the league and has indicated a willingness to negotiate off those offers. Not only have both been dismissed out of hand, but Bettman has repeatedly said that the league has no interest whatsoever in anything other than a cap.
He has repeatedly announced a stance of no-compromise. The league has told the union it sees no point in meeting until the PA commits to accepting a cap. Perhaps it’s that stance that prompted Philadelphia goaltender Robert Esche to observe yesterday, “I think there’s a lot of great owners out there, but they’re being led by a madman.”
