Just when you thought you were going to have to spend the rest of your Saturday nights talking to your wife comes news the NHL is coming back.  Well, whoop de freakin’ doo.  It’s about bloody time.  I don’t know about you, but I’m gonna miss all the posturing, delaying, and total disregard for anything else but the bottom line.  Now that it’s over, I really don’t know who to blame.  Do I blame the money grubbing owners, or the overpaid players?

     It’s the way this lockout ended that truly disgusted me.  Usually when two sides are bargaining a new agreement there’s no set deadline to get things done.  But not for the NHL.  NBC was pressuring Lord Bettman to get a deal done because their new sports network can’t survive on showing cycling and the world sun tanning championships.  And then we heard last week about players coming home from Europe because they thought a deal was gonna happen.  What a load of garbage.

     This lockout didn’t accomplish a thing because it was scripted on both sides from the get go with a predetermined length.  Oh, it may have divvied up the billions differently through a new formula, but there is absolutely no good will left between the two sides.  Donald Fehr saw to that.  Don Cherry tweeted yesterday that Bettman saved the season.  Maybe.  More like the NHL’s sponsors told him to save the season.  And despite all your high and mighty protests over the last four months, you’ll be there when Hockey Night in Canada returns.  Still beats talking to your wife.