With a new labor deal in place the National Hockey League was back in business on Monday, but some teams may find it easier to hoist a Stanley Cup than win back disillusioned fans.

Having dragged fatigued fans through a fourth work stoppage in 20 years, most recently a 113-day lockout that ended with a tentative deal on Sunday, NHL officials and players are unsure what reception awaits them when the season begins next week.

"The face painters are going to come back, they have never really abandoned the sport," David Carter, executive director of USC's Sports Business Institute, said. "What the NHL has lost is the ability to cultivate casual fans.