That's the thing. Bettman and the league keep saying how only 12 teams are profitable.
Are the Devils and their ridiculous contract for Kovalchuk profitable?
Are the Wild with the two giant contracts they just took on in Suter and Parise?
Or the Preds when they gave Weber $110 million over 14 years?
Or the Hurricanes who gave Semin a $7 million deal?
The owners are doing this to themselves and each other, yet expect the players to bear most of the burden for fixing their idiocy.
Reduce the players share by a few percentage points (keep in mind owners are reducing what constitutes HRR so even if the percentage were the same, the owners are getting more money). Put a reasonable limit on contract length of 7 or 8 years to make it harder for GM's to circumvent the cap like they have been. Increase revenue sharing if the owners really do want to help these struggling franchises. Minor tweaks to most other things. Play hockey.