The NHL announced that it would be cancelling the 2012-13 season up until December 14 and All-Star Weekend.
All-Star Weekend was slated to take place January 26 through 27 in Columbus, Ohio. The cancellation means that a total of 422 regular season games (34.4 percent) have been cancelled.
"The reality of losing more regular-season games as well as the 2013 NHL All-Star Weekend in Columbus is extremely disappointing," said NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly. "We feel badly for NHL fans and particularly those in Columbus, and we intend to work closely with the Blue Jackets organization to return the NHL All-Star events to Columbus and their fans as quickly as possible."
Analysis
The move is clearly the NHL's way of hitting back at the players after recent negotiations went awry. The NHLPA stated that the league had shutdown its latest offer. These statements put a negative light on the league and it seems that their response to the NHLPA's attacks was to hit them where it hurts most. This obviously hurts the fans more than anyone else, but with most of December gone, the hopes of saving the season seem to diminish by the second.
As for the All-Star Game, it is the latest in a series of bad luck for Columbus and its fanbase. The Blue Jackets were the worst team in the NHL in 2011-12, but many found a silver lining: the chance to draft Nail Yakupov first overall in the 2012 Draft. However, Columbus lost in the Draft Lottery to Edmonton and had to settle for defenseman Ryan Murray. A few months later, franchise star Rick Nash was traded to the NY Rangers in a trade that most felt was less than Columbus could have obtained for Nash back in February prior the trade deadline. Now comes the cancellation of the All-Star Game and Columbus' chance to earn some positive spotlight for the first time in years.