Islander Loony Tunes

Thought of the Week: The Islanders Loony Tunes

Owners attempt to slash payrolls, while NHL holds its breath

New York, June 21, 1999 -- In the early 1980s, the New York Islanders were a model franchise, both on the ice and in the front office. Winning four consecutive Stanley Cups (the last team to accomplish that feat), they assembled a team which combined some exquisite talents with gritty determination and excellent coaching and managing. Every trade seemed to be a winner; every playoff game seemed to go their way.

Fast forward 15 years. Today, whatever glories of the team are faded memories. Playing in an inadequate facility by today's luxury-box infested standards, the team has gone through ownership changes, threats of not playing in their facility because of structural dangers (even though their own expert witness denied that such dangers existed during a hearing) and now slashing their payrolls by trading away their most talented, but expensive players.

Zigmund Palffy was their marquis player until he was traded to the Los Angeles Kings as part of a multiplayer deal. The Islanders will receive "talented" young players and draft picks. A deal with the New York Rangers fell through because of cash demands (apparently the Rangers wanted to pay $2.5 million in cash, but the team owners wanted more, according to the Associated Press).

One person who cannot be happy with the series of events is NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman. In a recent "state of the NHL" breakfast, he said "We expect the Islanders to ice a team that hasn't simply been created to slash payroll. We will monitor all trades to make sure the team isn't being stripped." The means that he will -- and should -- take a hands-on role regarding moves the team makes.

Commissioner's Role

One of the duties of a commissioner is to make sure that neither a player, coach, league employee or team takes any action detrimental to the "best interests of the sport." In 1976, then baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn rejected the sale of certain Oakland Athletics players as detrimental to the sport. To avoid the effects of losing star players as free agent, he he attempted to sell them and put the money into his very successful farm system. He attempted to sell Joe Rudi and Rollie Fingers to the Red Sox for $2 million and Vida Blue to the Yankees for $1.5 million.

Kuhn voided the sale as violating the best interests clause of the baseball constitution. A federal court upheld the exercise of Kuhn's powers.

If the Islanders remain in business to put an inferior product on the ice as a holding measure for a possible sale of the team, it behooves the NHL to be proactive in the matter. Either force the owners -- who claim significant money losses (but still get monies from one of the lucrative cable deals in the league) to sell or mandate they act in the best interests of their fans the league.