from Cathal Kelly of the Globe and Mail,

You can buy this line – the NHL morphing into a mental-health NGO for as long as the pandemic lasts – to a certain point. Sure, people love their hockey. And yes, if you live somewhere the police helicopters start circling at 8 p.m., then turning up the volume on the game may allow you to feel less hunted.

But let’s not get carried away. The NHL is continuing because its employees expect to be paid one way or the other. Cancelling the season creates a labour migraine that could take years to abate.

Also, it wouldn’t suit the league’s tough-guy self image if they took a public-health pause while soccer, filled as it is with guys who’ve never played a second half after having three teeth knocked out, soldiered on.

If Bettman had the luxury of being forthright, his “really clear” answer to why the NHL is going forward would be anything but. It’s an unequal combination of business necessity, inertia, internal pressure and fear of being left behind.

And, yes, buried in there somewhere is the love of the game. The rest of us have to go to work in order to afford the little extras, like the fancy brand of Kraft Dinner. The pros have the financial luxury of staying home. Back in early summer when this thing still scared the young and fit along with the old and infirm, a few Major League Baseball players did that.

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