from Ken Campbell of The Hockey News,

So far in this lockout, the owners have been placed under a gag order by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman. As a result, there have been very few cracks in their ranks and, regardless of whether or not you side with Bettman and the owners, they have basically been able to remain consistently on message.

The members of the NHL Players’ Association, meanwhile, have been free to speak their minds whenever they wish with the blessing of their leadership. And the results have been a disaster. Not only are schisms beginning to form (see Hamrlik, Roman), the players are coming across as a bunch of vindictive ingrates. From the boozy ramblings of a goon early in the lockout to David Bolland retweeting a fan’s death threat against Bettman, the players are embarrassing themselves more with every passing day.

continued