from Mark Spector of Sportsnet,

Sometimes, it is good to step outside your comfort zone to confirm something you already thought you knew.

So we asked economist and author Andrew Zimbalist, a favourite voice from lockouts past, what it means, exactly, when a professional sports league is facing its third lockout in as many collective bargaining agreements?

"It means it is poorly managed," said our frank, 64-year-old professor of economics at Smith College in Massachusetts, and author of 20 books, including May The Best Team Win: Baseball Economics and Public Policy.

"Mr. Bettman, although he has some qualities that are admirable, has made a lot of bad decisions," Zimbalist said this week, before Thursday's confirmation that we are heading towards Bettman's third lockout since becoming the commissioner of the National Hockey League in 1993. "He has not promoted effective management at the team level, and he is unwilling to admit his mistakes and walk away from them."

continued