Off-Ice Jobs Will Be Lost During NHL Lockout in St. Paul

The NHL lockout has silenced the Xcel Energy Center for hockey and dozens will scramble to find jobs.  Dozens of vendors and businesses that sell tickets will be hit hard, if the lockout drags on for months. The people who sell the beer and food at the X will now have to make other plans to make up for their lost income during the lockout.

Walter McNeil, better known as "Wally The Beer Man" tells 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS that vendors often try to find replacement income when lockouts cut out a chunk of their pay. McNeil has served fans for over 40 years at Vikings, Twins, Timberwolves and Wild games. He's survived strikes and lockouts in the past. He is semi-retired and says this lockout won't affect him as bad as some of the other vendors.

McNeil says a lot of the vendors work other full-time jobs, like teachers, and they use their vending income to help make ends meet. McNeil says those folks will need to find other part-time jobs because they are depending on the Wild games this year. There are estimates that each Wild home game brings in close to a million dollars a night for downtown.

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