Why should NHL players pay for the mistakes of spendthrift team owners?

Answer: It's true that NHL teams created their own financial troubles by signing too many players to too many lucrative contracts. But the league argues that the current collective bargaining agreement is at the root of the problem.

Teams do not act in isolation. If the New York Rangers sign a checking center like Bobby Holik to a contract worth nearly $9 million per year, it affects the market for other checking centers all over the league.

The league argues that there will always be mistakes and poor decisions. There will always be teams and players that do not perform up to expectations. That's the nature of a sports league with 30 independent, highly competitive teams.

But under the current NHL system, decisions made by one team have far-reaching consequences for all other teams. A few big-budget teams can change the way the entire NHL does business. The NHL says the system that allowed this environment to flourish has to be changed.