UPDATE: 'challenged' NHLPA boss Kelly fired, per TSN; the search for a successor continues

From Allan Muir's article at Sports Illustrated/SI.com this morning:

The truth is, as a group, the players are far more interested in playing the game than in having their lawyers beat up the league's lawyers. The anti-Kelly cabal shouldn't mistake a silence bred by disinterest in PA matters for a mandate to pursue this course.

Whoever takes the reins has to do more than convince guys like Henrik Zetterberg, Roberto Luongo and Vincent Lecavalier to give up another year or more of their careers to fight another quixotic battle. He'll also have to win over the legion of third- and fourth-liners who've learned how easily replaceable they are.

As one former PA rep said Tuesday morning, "Whoever it is, I think he'll have a lot tougher sell next time around."

The player, who said he'd yet to hear from his team's current rep about the grounds for dismissal, wondered about the quality of candidates that would be offered as Kelly's replacement.

"I don't even know who'd want the job at this point," he continued.

"Who'd feel safe when everyone always has their knives out?"

Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/allan_muir/09/01/paul.kelly.nhlpa/index.html?eref=nhlg#ixzz0PxJ3BoPs

The Talking Head was on Team 1200 this morning and made a valid point - the last lost season was a lockout. Fans were pissed, but could at least understand (to a certain extent) the idea that the owners wanted a degree of cost certainty.

This time, it's looking to be more likely to be a strike, and fans are less likely to accept that - most don't take too well to the image/thought of highly paid athletes "whining" that they aren't getting even more money.

When the average fan has to work for almost two years to earn what players like Heatley earn per game, any sort of player-initiated action is likely to have a devastating impact on long-term fan support.

I see "the mouth" Roenick has come out and been critical of the process that removed Kelly...

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=289964

Also of interest is a comment by Alfredsson in there saying he had confidence in the process...

"I have confidence in the executive committee that they're doing the right thing for us," said Alfredsson on Friday. "Hopefully this is something we'll look back on and be happy about the decision that we made.

I guess only time will tell if it was the right move.

Alfredsson has to support the process now that it's in motion - he's the team rep. His words are interesting though: "Hopefully..."?

If he truly had confidence that this was the right move, he would have been firm about his statement, not hopeful.

Yeah... sounds like he was a little hesitant to get behind it 100%. Man... what really went on?

to me, it sounds like a power play by either Pink or Hargrove (or Chelios et al).

In any case, it's a signal to all that the players plan on taking a very hard stance in the next negotiations. Interesting that this all seemed to boil over only after the cap stopped moving upwards - think that's a coincidence?

It seems an internal audit on the NHLPA's spending launched by Kelly was the reason for his demise...

http://www.nesn.com/2009/08/kelly-firing-proves-nhlpa-will-never-learn.html

I guess the investigation was going to reveal some serious secrets that they didn't want to get out...

What a bunch of clowns. I predict there will be a high price to pay for this. We're going to lose more hockey before it's all said and done.

Wait, did McGinty have anything to do with the NHLPA?

wprager wrote:Wait, did McGinty have anything to do with the NHLPA?

Yes.

Came across Burnside's article on the madness that is the NHLPA...

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/columns/story?columnist=burnside_scott&id=4442804

The intro is hilarious:

Wanted: One NHL Players' Association leader who is prepared to kowtow to powerful office lawyer, suck up to potentially vindictive advisory board and kneel before an ombudsman whose union roots date back to Canadian autoworker disputes.

Qualifications: Must be prepared to be railroaded out of town at a moment's notice if aforementioned kowtowing, sucking up and kneeling are not performed to the specifications of aforementioned figures. And the ability to galvanize membership, deal with NHL and work toward forging a better future for union, league and game is a bonus, not a necessity.

Too funny.

@Shabbs> what you're saying is, the NHLPA has pucked itself?

davetherave wrote:@Shabbs> what you're saying is, the NHLPA has pucked itself?

I believe they have phucked themselves...

shabbs wrote:

davetherave wrote:@Shabbs> what you're saying is, the NHLPA has pucked itself?

I believe they have phucked themselves...

Do you mean diddled?

Look who's fluffing now.

wprager wrote:Look who's fluffing now.

Good call!

wprager wrote:Look who's fluffing now.

Feeling insecure, MR Montafluff?

More information coming to light about the NHLPA's struggles...

http://www.thestar.ca/sports/hockey/article/693438

Andrew Ference is emerging as being the one that was pushing hard for the late night vote on Kelly's dismissal.