from Ian MacIntyre of the Vancouver Sun,

At the end of the last lockout, the National Hockey League marked the start of its bold new era with a redesigned logo.

The league’s acronym reversed direction, tilting upwards across a shield trimmed in silver to reflect a more positive energy and trajectory. Who knew Gary Bettman believed in feng shui?

Whenever this lockout ends, the logo will require a more radical renovation.

The league’s new symbol should be an asterisk. While Bettman may or may not torch another season, he has already ruined NHL history books with his third lockout in 18 years and second major work stoppage in eight years.

With nearly two years of hockey missing — 34 games per team flushed in 1994-95, 82 games a decade later and about 32 games so far this “season” and counting — statistics have been skewed downward for a generation of players. It’s not only money the players will never get back.

Teemu Selanne, 42, and Jaromir Jagr, 40, will finish in the Hockey Hall of Fame even if the current lockout finishes their careers. But give each another 150 games, and they’d be mentioned in conversations about the greatest players ever.

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