NHL Lockout: Players Make Alternate Plans

See Also:
NHL Lockout Basics - Cutting through the jargon with a quick and easy look at the issues.
NHL Lockout Coverage - The latest on the labor war.

Something called the Original Stars Hockey League shuddered to life last night. It's a collection of NHL players who will tour small towns during the NHL lockout.

The inaugural game, in Barrie, Ontario, featured "stars" like Wade Belak and Aaron Downie, divided into teams called "Detroit" and "Toronto." By all accounts, the match was played with all the intensity of a half-hearted morning scrimmage, with a final score of 16-13.

"I've seen more heart with 10-year-olds than these clowns," one fan told Slam Sports. "I hope nobody else gets suckered into buying tickets for this."

With training camps shut down, NHL players are trying to find somewhere to skate and stay in shape.

Colorado's Peter Forsberg has signed a one-year deal with his old Swedish team, Modo. Forsberg will not return to the NHL this season, even if the labor dispute is resolved.

Joe Thornton of the Boston Bruins and Rick Nash of the Columbus Blue Jackets are already busy with new jobs in Switzerland. Nash scored and Thornton had two assists Friday, as the pair debuted with HC Davos of the Swiss Elite League. Like most NHL players, Nash and Thornton have clauses in their contracts allowing them to return to North America if NHL play resumes.

Although several Canadians and Americans have crossed the ocean, most of those headed overseas are Europeans returning to the fold. Hence the headline in the Moscow Times: "NHL Talent Comes Home."

Meanwhile, a report from TSN says another bunch of skaters will play exhibition games in Europe, starting in December. Sergei Fedorov, Mats Sundin, Martin Brodeur, Rob Blake and Dany Heatley are said to be among the featured names.

Several 18 and 19-year-olds, like Florida's Nathan Horton and Boston's Patrice Bergeron, might return to their old junior teams. Under normal rules, they are too young to play in a minor pro league such as the American Hockey League. But teams are hoping exceptions can be made to allow those players into the AHL.

NHL players who are older, but still in their first three years of pro hockey, can be assigned to the minor leagues, and many assignments were done before the NHL lockout began. The AHL is also available to those on injury rehabilitation. NHL free agents are free to sign anywhere, but it's unlikely any of them will opt for the five-figure salaries and lengthy bus rides of the minor leagues, especially when the money is much better in Europe.