Does anyone care about the NHL?

So, I can see the argument for why sports players ought to make more than the national average in salary. Their careers are less than half that of an ordinary American. It's an elite club that takes great talent and they ought to be compensated for the entertainment value they bring to the country. Arguably they provide incentive for us all to work a little harder to afford those season tickets and sports paraphernalia which contributes to the GNP.

But let's be honest, is anyone going to cry for the NHL players this season? Much as they may need help, especially the ones on the lower tiers of the payroll, I can't imagine any campaign being started to raise funds for needy NHL stars. And when we consider the possibilities of next year, I wonder if the NHL can ever really come back from this. They seem to talk like a next year is expected but on what basis? Everyone I talk to seems to blame the players, they are fed up with million dollar crybabies. And the NHL was already number 4 in terms of sports in the USA. I think the true fans have already turned to college hockey.

And my spellchecker for this blog didn't even know NHL. Prognosis: they just turned off life support.