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February 17, 2005Fans are 'upset, hurt' by newsMood somber as season's calledDETROIT (AP) - In other cities, football or basketball stars are plastered on downtown billboards.But in Detroit, an outsized photo of a hockey player - Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman - looks down on the city's main square. So it's not surprising that Detroiters took it especially hard Wednesday when the National Hockey League announced it was canceling the rest of the season because of a continuing dispute between players and owners. "I've been a Red Wing all my life. I've got to figure out something else to do, and that won't be easy," said Johnny Wilson, who played for the Red Wings in the 1950s and coached the team in the early 1970s. Wilson watched the announcement from Andrews on the Corner, a bar that has been shuttling busloads of Red Wings fans to games since 1982. Owner Tom Woolsey said he usually has 20 employees on the Red Wings' opening day. This year he had three. "It hurts us. It hurts all the businesses in Detroit," Woolsey said. Red Wings general manager Ken Holland said the team has been trying to find other jobs within Ilitch Holdings Inc. for the 100 or so employees who work at Joe Louis Arena every day. Ilitch Holdings, which owns the Red Wings, also owns the Detroit Tigers and Little Caesars Enterprises Inc. "I know that there's a lot of people who rely on the sport of hockey and on the National Hockey League. Obviously today is a very disappointing day," Holland said. "We're very, very sensitive to people who have... got to make a living." An additional 1,000 people work at the arena on game days, selling popcorn and beer and acting as ushers. Red Wings spokesman John Hahn said those were part-time jobs, and many of those workers also work at baseball and football games. At the Hockeytown Cafe downtown, the small lunch crowd grew quiet for the NHL's announcement. Waiters in Red Wings jerseys watched with somber faces. Michelle Detmer, 31, who was eating lunch at the cafe, said she was saddened by the announcement and worried about its effect on downtown businesses. She blamed both owners and players for failing to reach a compromise. "To get paid $2.1 million just to fling a little puck around, that's a bit much," she said. "Nobody's worth that, to do something they love doing." Last season's average salary was $1.8 million. In Livonia, about a dozen people spent the afternoon at Coach's Corner sports bar absorbing the bad news. Owner Gus Varon said most of his patrons blamed both the owners and the players for the standoff. "We were all pretty upset about it," Varon said. "It's too bad they couldn't come to an agreement." Varon said he'd hoped there would be at least 25 to 30 games this season and then the playoffs, which is usually one of his busiest times. "Now I'm just hoping they can do something for 2005 and 2006," he said. See related stories: NHL season iced; Dallas Drake: This falls entirely on owners Owners reject final proposal; Bettman cancels season Red Wings, Hockeytown fans lament loss of 2004-05 campaign
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