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CRACK THE CODE - February 2, 2007 NHL Schedule Reports from the All Star affair say the teams that wanted a change to the NHL schedule format fell one vote short of reaching their goal. There is a lot of resentment towards Ottawa and Montreal from the rest of the Canadian teams, for bailing out on the movement for change, for their own short sighted reasons. Once again Hockey Spy.com brings forward what was said and what it really meant: Edmonton Oilers chairman Cal Nichols wore his heart on his sleeve, saying the league had fumbled the ball. Nichols also believes commissioner Gary Bettman should have shown more leadership on the matter. "I wish he would have," said Nichols. Hockey Spy.com translation: “We’ll be leading the charge to fire his ass.” "I'm very comfortable with the decision that was taken," said Canadiens president Pierre Boivin. "Let's finish the cycle and take the time to carefully think about a solution." Hockey Spy.com translation: “Our owner is the cheapest son of a bitch in the league.” For example, Sidney Crosby has yet to play an NHL game in Edmonton, Calgary or Vancouver under the scheduling format adopted after the lockout. He will finally get there next year. "What's interesting to me is that in the early '80s, when we had the two home-and-away against each and every team in the 21-team league, everybody got Gretzky twice and that was OK," said Nichols. "Now the shoe is on the other foot and it's like it doesn't matter." Hockey Spy.com translation: “There’s no one on our roster worth paying to see.” The three-year cycle that the current schedule is on also means the Oilers, Flames and Canucks will not play a single game against Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa next season. "I think the Canadian hockey fans would sooner see us play the other Canadian teams than any U.S. teams," Nichols said. Hockey Spy.com translation: “Playing the Leafs and Canadiens means easy points for us.” "It's something that we were looking for, there's no denying that," Ferguson said of the proposed change. "We firmly support the better competitive balance and having the opportunity to seeing especially the Canadian teams and a little more variety for our fans. It didn't come through but we'll continue to work on that front. . . . Hockey Spy.com translation: “The more we play in Canada, the more licensed products we can sell to fill our already bloated bank account.” But Buffalo Sabres GM Darcy Regier rejected the notion that the NHL is out of touch with what the fan base wants. "In fact I would argue that the league is very much in touch," he said. "I come at it from a Buffalo perspective, and for Western New Yorkers and the Buffalo Sabres it works well." Hockey Spy.com translation: “We still travel by horse and buggy. Our fans don’t give a crap so we want Leaf fans to keep buying tickets.”

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