Professional sport players are entertainers with big contracts like movie stars. The difference, however, is that the player not only earns large amounts of money, he also faced carreer-ending injuries during the performance of his sport.
I must agree with Mr. Bertrand’s editorial in Thursday’s Trail Times, addressing the current NHL dispute.
I would like to go a bit back to the years, when the former players and superstars scratched up the ice. How they must feel now, when they realize how they were treated by the greedy owners.
Let’s take the case of the Hall of Famer, Mr. Gordon Howe, who was assured by the Detroit owner, that he would also be their highest paid player on the Red Wings. Gordie earned $40,000 per season.
When Bobby Baun was traded to the Wings, he related to Gordie that his contract paid him $80,000.
In comparison to such amounts, at that time, the average worker earned between $2,000 and $4,000 annually. It was considered big money the players received.
The gradual explosion of player earnings started with the start of the WHA and the signing bonus of $1 million Bobby Hull received in Winnipeg. The hockey world was stunned. The honeymoon for the owners was over.
Player earnings skyrocketed like unwanted weeds. The ever-escalating earnings were on the way to grow out of proportion. The situation had to come to a head.
Again, like in 2004, the valuable praised fans face another winter without their favoured sport. Canada is the main breeding ground for NHL talent. The faithful fans are paying outrageous ticket prices in the super modern new arenas.
In the current dispute, however, the praised, valuable fan is totally being ignored.
It is disgusting how the Canadian national game is being directed and manipulated by foreign interests.
Karl Fricke
Fruitvale