The American Hockey League kicked off its season over the weekend, their teams suddenly replete with high-end talent thanks to the NHL's labour pains. The Portland Pirates, for instance, got a major boost to their powerplay with the arrival of Phoenix Coyotes' star Oliver Ekman-Larsson.

Ekman-Larsson should very well dominate at the AHL level (he scored and had a team-high 5 shots in his first game), but it will be vital for him to remember that the Pirates aren't the only team getting an injection of NHL-calibre skill. Brayden Schenn and Sean Couturier reminded him of that in a big way Saturday night:

That's Ekman-Larsson at the point on the powerplay getting cleaned out after attempting a casual spin move under pressure. Maybe he thought it would work at the AHL level, but not when the Phantoms' penalty kill features NHL talent like Schenn and Sean Couturier. In a flash, he's on the ground, and Schenn is breaking out with just one man back.

That's about when Schenn takes the

THE VENT is a forum for rants, raves, pleas and laments from hockey fans across the world about the NHL lockout. It runs every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. If you've got a take on the lockout and need to let it out, email us at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com, Subject: The Vent.)

Since this lockout began swirling back in the summer, we've been given a number of articles explaining the issues to fans. But has anyone stopped to explain the issues to the players and the owners? Michael F. takes up the task.

Someone needs to sit both sides down and explain the facts of the real world to them so they can have actual productive discussions and get things resolved.

The Owners: The basic fact is that no one pays for admission to see the owner wave to the fans from his luxury box a la Ted Leonsis. We, the fans, pay to see the players on the ice. You've agreed to deals with the players currently in the NHL, now you want to change the terms of those deals, whether through a roll-back of salaries or retaining funds through escrow. Either way, it's money you agreed to but are now apparently unwilling to pay.

Get over it. You want a deal like football and basketball, where the players receive 50% of the revenues from the sport. Fair enough. But you shouldn't expect to take the money back from players in one big step. Use Adam Proteau's model to step the revenue sharing down one percent per year, essentially extending the current salary cap levels on an absolute basis, assuming a reasonable growth rate, for seven years until the player's share reaches 50%, then allowing growth from there.

Keep in mind, a nice chunk of your revenues is tied up in a long-term TV deal that isn't going to be increasing over the course of the next ten years, so don't count on revenues continuing to increase at the same rate they have. The economy, in case you haven't heard, has not been in the best condition over the last few years. You can't continue to raise ticket prices 5-10% per year indefinitely and expect fans to keep purchasing them. If you double or triple ticket prices over the course of the next CBA, as some of you have over the course of the last one, you'll drive fans out and there aren't that many willing to pay inflated prices to sustain your revenue at the elevated levels you've been enjoying over the past CBA.

Also, most players have careers lasting five to seven years, so locking them into a five year rookie contract and not giving them the chance to test the market until after most of them are out of the league is unfair to the players. Three years rookie contracts (with performance bonuses), plus unrestricted free agency after seven years in the league. If you want something to make both the owners who make money and the players happy, look at the 30 highest paid players in the league. Average their annual salaries out and remove that much from the salary cap. Then allow each team to designate one player's contract which doesn't count against the salary cap.

The stipulation - the player has to have been drafted by the team and stay within the organization. If the player is traded, the exemption for that player is gone, although the team may apply it to another "home-grown" player for that season.

The Players: As stated, you're the reason the fans show up. We know you do things on the ice that most people cannot, but as some of you have learned during this lockout, there aren't that many high playing jobs as a hockey player out there. You have something that no other sports league players have - guaranteed contracts. Recognize that.

Also recognize that league revenues are more dependent upon the gate than any other sport. Demanding ever higher contracts and keeping the salary cap at an ever increasing rate is good for your wallets, but potentially bad, ultimately for the game. There are currently 30 teams in the NHL, which means a lot of jobs for a lot of players. Driving half of those teams into bankruptcy ends up being a Pyrric victory as you get the terms you want, but have fewer jobs today and down the road.

Look at Adam Proteau's model. With the current rate of revenue growth in the NHL, stepping down the player's share keeps the amount available for player salaries constant for seven years, as it reduces to 50%. At that point, the salary cap will start increasing noticeably again, assuming revenues continue to grow. You keep the same contracts you've signed and make the money you've negotiated for, without a rollback. You should fight to keep the current rookie contracts and free agency periods, but be willing to bend on maximum contract length. While ten years would be great, settle for seven years maximum contract length.

The Fans: Don't be afraid to throw a BS flag on the owners. We've seen ticket prices steadily increase to the point where they are becoming unsustainable over the long haul. I know owners like Ted Leonsis like to point to the health of the franchise by noting the renewal rate for season ticket holders. If we keep buying the tickets and then selling them off, they think things are great and keep things rolling forward.

We love the game, but hate that there have been two work stoppages in seven years over money issues. Let's bring the point home to the owners that we're tired of things. The first step would be, following the end of the lockout, to organize a boycott of stadium vendors (concession stands, team store, etc) for one game a month. Sure, not everyone will participate or get the message, but if even one in five get something to eat on the way to the game instead of at the game, revenues will drop significantly enough that the owners will understand the fans are getting tired with the constant ticket price increases, overpriced food, drink and jerseys.

This league can't exist without its fans and they have to show respect to the people that make both the owners and the players possible.

Late last month, Krys Barch sat down in front of a fire, 8 OV deep, cracked open a bottle of Porte, and took to Twitter for an epic rant about the lockout. It was a divisive moment, heralded as a rallying cry for some and criticized as a whiny and off-putting diatribe by others.

But one thing nobody called it: inherently musical. And, as it turns out, it sort of was. Youtube channel The NOC gave a section of Barch's rant the "Music twideo" treatment, setting his musings to a sweet acoustic tune sung by New York based singer Michelle Ferreira. The results? Surprisingly moving.

Granted, it helps to have Ferreira singing the crap out of Barch's words, but seriously, until the she hits the phrase "work stoppage", you'd think these lyrics were written by Aimee Mann or something.

If the whole hockey thing doesn't work out, Barch might want to consider a future in songwriting. He's got the chops.

Frankly, if this lockout drags on into next year, I hope Barch and Ferreira cut an album together. They could be the next She and Him, or The Swell Season, or even Elton John and Bernie Taupin.

Follow Harrison Mooney on Twitter at @HarrisonMooney

boothfalcor

• David Booth kills Falcor the Luckdragon. And ManBearPig. And Alf. And the Lorax. [Pass it to Bulis]

• Amidst the doom and gloom, Wayne Gretzky still believes the season will begin by January. He believes it in his heart. "Yeah, in my heart, I do. I think first of all you have two smart people in the commissioner and the commissioner's office leading the ownership group and of course Donald Fehr leading the NHLPA. I really believe in my heart that in '04, changing the landscape, going to a salary cap was a real big issue and a real big fight. I think this one is more of a numbers issue. I see them getting something resolved here. I think both sides want to come to a resolution. I think right now both sides are doing the best negotiating they can do. So optimistically I still believe that everyone will be back playing hockey and I sure hope so. It's a great game. It gets better every year and we have great players and great athletes and good people in our game. I know the great fans across North America right now are dearly missing the sport of hockey." [Sports Radio Interviews]

• Dean Lombardi is concerned about the Stanley Cup hangover. "I talked to a number of teams, whether it was the 49ers, Yankees, Patriots, teams that were dynasties, and wanted to know what they did after the first year they won," Lombardi told ESPN.com this week. "I found so many different schools of thought." [ESPN]

• Speaking of the Kings, since their Stanley Cup banner won't be hanging from the rafters any time soon, here are some alternative uses it. Why, Dustin Penner could use it as a hammock! [The Royal Half]

• CTV has had to rename lockout "Big Bang Night in Canada" after CBC claims that it would "confuse" viewers. I'll say. There's nothing more embarrassing than thinking you're in for an evening of hardcore erotica on basic cable only to get two hours of Jim Parsons bein' quirky instead. [Financial Post]

• The Buffalo Sabres will be unveiling a French Connection statue tonight in Alumni Plaza. [WGRZ]

• Manny Malhotra takes a veiled shot at the players that have basically taken the "call me when the lockout's over" approach: "If you just want to bury your head and just go to the rink and play hockey and do nothing else, you're missing a world of the behind the scenes of what really goes into a CBA, what goes into the makeup of the league, how the league operates," he said. "It's an incredible learning experience." [Sportsnet]

• Kyle Quincey has signed with the Denver Cutththroats of the Central Hockey League. [Denver Post]

THE VENT is a forum to rants, raves, pleas and laments from hockey fans across the world about the NHL lockout. It runs every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. If you've got a take on the lockout and need to let it out, email us at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com, Subject: The Vent.)

We begin today with an open letter to the players from Dan T., whose heart breaks for Mr. B, the Minnesota miracle sandwich man. I'm with Dan. If this lockout costs us one of Minnesota's great sandwich artists, I am out, you hear me, NHL? I AM OUT.

At the Xcel Energy Center there is a sandwich shop called Mr. B's. It is run by a very nice gentleman who makes great food, takes the time to get to know his customers, and who depends on you guys to play so that he can make a living. I'm not worried about the owners who have more money than God. I'm not worried about you players, who make anywhere from great money to extremely great money to play a game that you love. I'm worried about the thousands of people who are now hurting because, through no fault of their own, have also been locked out of their jobs. The only difference between them and you is that they don't have a million bucks in the bank that they can rely on.

Do you stop to think about all those who are affected? Ticket takers and vendors, building maintenance staff and restaurant owners. Heck, even the Vancouver PD will be forced to lay off workers. Jobs are scarce these days, and it is insulting to those who struggle to find work to hear that people who make millions of dollars every year are complaining that they might have to bring in a little less each month in order to do their share to make the business viable.

If a deal is signed tomorrow, there probably won't be a major reduction in fan support. If we lose half of a season, that will no longer be true. If the entire season is cancelled, the damage to the game will be irreparable. The game has seen great growth in the non-traditional hockey markets over the last few years, but how many of the new fans will come back if the year is lost?

How many of you will make more money playing in Europe than you would in the NHL, even if they reduce salaries? The average career length is 5-6 years; how many of you are willing to sacrifice 17% of your career just to support a pissing match between two arrogant jerks?

How many chances in your lifetime do you get to win the Stanley Cup? Was this the year your team was going to win? There's only one way to find out, and that is to play the damn game.

Everybody involved knows that in the end, the owners are going to get a deal that is a lot closer to what they want than what you want. You know it, we know it, the owners know it, and even your anointed Superman Donald Fehr knows it. The only remaining question is how much damage the game we all love will sustain?

Comcast hates you

• It's official: Comcast is mocking us. [Reddit]

• Rick DiPietro's next injury will occur as a member of German 2nd-tier club SC Riessersee. [Lighthouse Hockey]

• Evander Kane is struggling in Russia. He's pointless through four games and his coach says, "He is in bad shape and not ready yet to play on KHL level." But he seemed so fit on the Winnipeg Jets! Oh right... relativism. [Sportsnet]

• The Western Michigan Broncos' championship banner was stolen. Defenseman Luke Witowski cribbed the monologue from Taken and threatened the perpetrator. The banner was recover 24 hours later because, like, that's how that works. [Buzzing the Net]

• Former NHLer Brett Maclean on his cardiac arrest and the players and paramedics that saved his life. [TSN]

• Bill Daly: "What I can say is obviously we lost about $90 million with losing the preseason. I would say with the cancellation of the first two weeks of the regular season, we're probably in jeopardy of losing about another $140 million. So you're talking about 230, 240 to this point that's in jeopardy. That's 240 that we both lose. It's not just the league that's losing that money. The players are sharing on some basis in that. Some subtatntial basis. Whether that's 57 percent, or whether that's 50 percent or whether that's 47 percent. It's some basis and it's a signficiant basis." [OC Register]

"The current situation hasn't benefitted either side, that's for sure."

• Adam Henrique was a Calder nominee last year, so there isn't much left for him to learn in the AHL. That in mind, he'll work on leadership or something. [NHL]

• AEG's asking price for the Staples Center, Nokia Theater, L.A. Live, the Kings, and all those other properties. $10 billion. That's 100 Shea Webers! [LA Weekly]

• Dominik Hasek's top 10 moments. He was pretty good. [Kukla's Korner]

• R.J. Umberger will pass the time during the lockout as a volunteer coach for the Ohio State Buckeyes. [OSU]

Yes, indeed, despite the promise of impending labor Armageddon and a prolonged work-stoppage, your friends at Puck Daddy are previewing the 2012-13 NHL season (whenever the heck it starts). Why? Because this is the most important election in the history of all-time ever, and you need to know the candidates — like the Vancouver Canucks.

It's a testament to the skill of the Canucks that you can say a season in which they won the Presidents' Trophy was also a season of underachievement, but it was.

Fresh off an appearance in the 2011 Stanley Cup Final, expectations were sky-high in Vancouver, and despite the team winning the regular-season, these expectations went severely unmet.

The five-game postseason probably had something to do with that. Sure, there was no stopping the juggernaut that was the Los Angeles Kings, but that's little consolation for a franchise that was one season removed from being a juggernaut themselves.

But the Canucks' problems went beyond running into a team of destiny. The Sedins became somewhat stale, and by virtue of that, their entire offense did too, especially on the powerplay. Ryan Kesler wasn't the same player. Sami Salo aged out of the top four, and Alex Edler looked lost without him. Alain Vigneault retreated back to a defensive shell and the team lost some of their identity.

A year removed, the Canucks are hoping they've addressed all of these problems. If they have, it could be a fun year in Vancouver. If they haven't, they could be caught by several of the Western Conference's other improving teams. Then fans might not even get a third Presidents' Trophy to belittle.

Are the Canucks still an elite team?

Yes, indeed, despite the promise of impending labor Armageddon and a prolonged work-stoppage, your friends at Puck Daddy are previewing the 2012-13 NHL season (whenever the heck it starts). Why? Because this is the most important election in the history of all-time ever, and you need to know the candidates — like the Toronto Maple Leafs.

It was a disaster of disastrous proportions for the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2011-12.

But it didn't start out that way. With another All-Star turn from Phil Kessel and a breakout performance from Joffrey Lupul, the Leafs got off to a hot start. As late as February 22, they were still in playoff contention, sitting in a three-way tie for seventh place.

Then bad things happened.

Toronto's season actually began to unravel a week earlier on February 14, when they lost their fourth straight game for the first time all season. They would win the next night, briefly assuaging fan concern, but then everything went to crap. The Leafs proceeded to rattle off six and five-game losing streaks over the next 13 games. Ron Wilson was fired at the beginning of March. The goaltending situation became untenable. Hair stylists in Ontario declared bankruptcy en masse because nearly everyone in the Greater Toronto Area tore every last follicle from their scalp.

Like I said. A disaster of disastrous proportions.

But hey. The Leafs have a new coaching staff, they made a big offseason trade, and the universe can't kick this franchise in the Charlie Browns forever, right?

Is this the year the Leafs finally end their playoff drought?