The worst part about the lockout, and something that many of us forget as we sit around wondering when we'll be able to watch our favorite sport again, is that the folks who can least afford it get hit the hardest. The economy's already terrible, and now people who work for the Blues and for the businesses around the Scottrade Center can count on loss of income. Unfortunately, the loss of jobs came today for twenty members of the St. Louis Blues' office staff.

According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, those twenty job cuts might be permanent as Tom Stillman's new ownership group looks for ways to continue running the franchise on a responsible budget. They haven't been outlandish in spending on players like other franchises have been, which is great to see. What's not great to see is twenty members of the staff fall under the lockout's axe.

The remaining 75 employees aren't exempt from belt-tightening. They've either taken a paycut or switched to working four day work weeks for the duration of the lockout. Remember this next time you're complaining about having to watch the KHL: there are real people really getting hurt by this lockout who can ill afford to.