The 2004–05 NHL lockout marked a turbulent chapter in league history, but in retrospect, it was a necessary reckoning to ensure the sport's long-term financial sustainability.
The lockout introduced a salary cap, fundamentally restructured the financial architecture of team operations, and ushered in a series of on-ice rule changes—many of which continue to define the modern game.
Had the salary cap never been implemented, the NHL might well have teetered on the brink of financial collapse—or worse, faced the prospect of fragmentation akin to the schism that once plagued American open-wheel racing with the split between CART and IndyCar.