Rich

Yes it is.

Its unfortunately advertising the NHL is injecting into the link. I'm sure they are sponsors of the contest. You need to click the "skip these deals & continue to nhl.com " link in the top right.

For anyone who doesn't frequent the NHL section of the site but is interested in joining the MBB NHL Playoff Bracket tournament, click below.

Since a couple of people asked, I've setup a bracket league for the site. http://bracketchallenge.nhl.com/leagues/mbb-playoff-challenge Password is: MBB If you are interested in joining, looks like you need to fill in your bracket before puck drop tomorrow. I'll toss in a site sponsored Jets Store Gift Certificate (or team of your choice for the out of towners) for the winner.

That is my issue with your proposal. Getting both sides to agree on that really isn't that simple.

What's market value for Enstrom?

What kind of deal would you offer him to waive his NMC? Jets would be looking for a pay cut from his current salary to re-sign him. So his options would be waive his NMC, sign for less and extend his contract so that if he gets picked up by Vegas, he is stuck there longer. Or play out his final season and see what he can actually get on the open market. I don't think anyone is going to break the bank to sign him in free agency, but given those options, why wouldn't you opt to go and find out ... unless his heart is dead set on ending his career in Winnipeg.

Yeah, if you look at some of the comparables who signed last season in his age group, Lindholm 6 years @ $31.5M and Seth Jones 6 years @ $32M, they are averaging just over $5M per season. Now, Trouba will be 2 more years closer to free agency + if you are signing for 8 years instead of 6, that is a total of 4 more years of free agency you need to buy. $7M + seems like it would be closer to what it would take.

It isn't that he doesn't like Winnipeg. It is that most players don't put non playoff teams on their trade list unless there is some other connection or appeal to that city.

Wow. Wonder what happened. Who fires their GM weeks before the draft?

I don't think cheaper concession prices attract more people. It may affect who eats at the stadium but I've never heard anyone say I'm not going because beer is too expensive. I have head people say I'm not buying beer because it is too expensive. Transportation is mandatory to get people to buy a ticket.

The other thing that hasn't been mentioned with the Park N Ride, is you can get a season pass for $40. Save you $10 if you go to every game.

Access will be granted to the buses this year.

The larger issue is there is already a narrative out there that the stadium location sucks and the traffic in and out of games is horrendous because of how poorly it was planned in season 1. Getting in and out has improved by leaps and bounds but it isn't as easy as saying double the park n ride cost because there are already a contingent of fans looking for excuses to stay at home and not go to games. That is reality of that location right now Start putting a consistent winning product on the field again, and they can probably start to raise prices for the bus.

Parking costs us something like $200 for the season. 10 home games split 3 ways.

For sure the park n ride expense. Not sure on the transit subsidy. I could be way off here as I park, but I think it was transit the first season but the subsidy was way too much and they moved to school buses.

The extra 40 cents still won't cover it and cause more problems and time delays giving people change as they board the bus. These are school buses not transit buses. No PayGo cards.

Transit / city stopped helping out in 2014. http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/canada/manitoba/bombers-fans-to-pay-bus-fare-to-stadium-but-rides-back-are-free-1.2666040

The $5 is for the school bus park and rides. First I don't think even transit fares cover the full cost of transit. Second they have a bunch of school buses shuttle in a bunch of people. Sit around for 3 - 4 hours (not generating any fare revenue but you still pay salaries and time of use for the buses). Then they shuttle people home. Lastly it isn't more than transit. It's $5 there and back. Two bus rides.

In the world of accounting though capital vs operating is quite different. http://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/042415/what-difference-between-operating-expense-and-capital-expense.asp

$5 for round trip park & ride - http://www.bluebombers.com/park-and-ride/ Regular transit fares for transit buses - http://www.bluebombers.com/regular-transit-routes/ I wonder how much that $5 would have to go up so that they aren't subsidising the busses. Need to find that balance of how much people will pay vs. the inconvenience / cost of just deciding to not go to a game.

This is what I was wondering when I read that article. Good that we made a profit. Not good that we didn't make enough to cover the mortgage payment

I haven't seen the players say no we won't concede anything with scheduling, so that is pure conjecture. At the end of the day, they are in the business of selling entertainment. And they aren't giving their customers what they really want. It is the same with every lockout and strike, I blame both sides. Same old, same old .... billionaires arguing with millionaires ... and the average fan loses out.

How about going to stop alienating your current fan base. Is there any existing hockey fan out there that doesn’t want to watch the best players in the world compete with each other under their countries flag? What hockey fan out there has said, no … I don’t want a three week stoppage so I can watch Olympic hockey with NHL players! Give me the all-star game instead. I’ve usually been on the side of the owners when it comes down to CBA discussions, but tying CBA negotiations into the Olympics is wrong. The PA should be accommodating for scheduling reasons in the Olympic year (starting earlier, giving up mandated practice days off / mandatory breaks, or whatever) to accommodate the season stopping, but not re-negotiating other key issues of the CBA. Why should the NHL go to the Olympics? Because the vast majority of their existing fans … the ones who pay for the tickets, the ones who the sponsors need to keep generating television revenue, want it. The NHL can do it. They’ve done it before. This is just another slap in the face of the existing fans who support their game. Will they lose fans over this decision? Probably not. But at some point they need to realize who ultimately pays their bills. If you keep doing things that alienate your fans, at some point they won’t come back.

They were saying on the morning show today that even players who don't go to the Olympics enjoy the break because it gives them a rare opportunity for a mid winter vacation with the family. I also think this is short sided by the NHL. They've exhausted the North America market for growth.