Former NHL executive Stan Kasten has done his part to try to accelerate the negotiation process between the NHL and NHLPA, writing an open letter to both sides asking them to return to the bargaining table.
Kasten, a key member of the Atlanta sports scene for more than a quarter century, was president of the Atlanta Thrashers, Hawks and Braves before stepping down in 2003.
The letter sent to both sides read as follows:
Gentlemen,
In what should be the most joyous time of the year, we stand, instead, facing the worst nightmare any hockey fan could have. What might have been once unthinkable now seems almost a certainty...the cancellation of an entire NHL season. To make matters worse, recent events have been accompanied by rumors, misrepresentations, and a fair amount of unflattering personal invective. I know this saddens each of you even more than it does the rest of us who love the NHL.
That is why I am today offering this proposal for your consideration. Obviously my three decades of involvement in sports business and collective bargaining negotiations has been exclusively on the management side, and my sympathies continue to lie there. Nevertheless, my call to each of you today is intended to be non-partisan, and so unlike the many other suggestions being circulated by various media outlets, I offer no view on any of the substantive matters which are currently the subject of negotiations. Nor do I call for the intercession of any mediator, arbitrator, politician or any other third party. My sole intention is to propose steps which the parties could take to enable them to reach agreement between themselves in time to salvage the season and avoid the ignominy of being the first professional sports league to lose an entire season to a labor dispute.
To that end, I propose the following:
1) Bob Goodenow and the NHLPA should be allowed to address the entire membership of the NHL Board of Governors, face to face. He should be allowed to bring anyone he wants and make any presentation he wants on whatever offer he chooses to make. Presumably he would also be willing to answer any questions. This session would last as long as necessary.
2) Gary Bettman and the NHL should be allowed to address the entire body of over 700 players of the NHL, face to face. He should be allowed to bring anyone he wants and make any presentation he wants on whatever offer he chooses to make. He would also stay to answer any questions the players may have for as long as necessary.
3) Following the conclusion of both of these sessions, each side would allow its membership to vote on the other side’s last proposal by secret ballot. Since each side will remain entitled to its own ratification procedures, and since there will no doubt be a need for additional negotiations subsequent to this vote, this vote will not be binding, but the vote totals should be made public.
Doubtless, there will be a need for agreement between the parties on a host of ground rules to facilitate this proposal, such as timing, eligibility of attendees, etc, not to mention the logistics of the meetings. But this last-ditch effort will surely be worth the trouble. Nothing which happens after the cancellation of the season will be as good for the NHL as a resolution achieved collectively before such a cancellation.
I recognize that these suggestions are unorthodox, and perhaps even unprecedented. But our industry, which was sick before the lockout began , is now on life support. A patient on life support requires heroic measures. The players , owners and fans of the NHL, both in North America and around the world, deserve no less.
Good luck to you both.
Sincerely, Stan Kasten
Kasten was president of the Hawks since April 1986, president of the Braves since November 1986 and president of the Thrashers since 1999. He was the first person to serve as president of three major professional sports teams at the same time.