The NHL Lockout...does anyone REALLY CARE?

[ALinChainz]

Whenever I read anything by him, I can hear his irritating loud voice like when he's giving his 2 cents on ESPN.

ANNOYING to say the least, but the article was good.

[ALinChainz]

Red Wings veteran Yzerman says season is lost; likely won't return in 2006


January 30, 2005

DETROIT (CP) - Steve Yzerman may have played his final National Hockey League game. The Detroit Red Wings veteran told the Detroit News on Sunday he's not optimistic the NHL lockout will end anytime soon, and that if the labour dispute extended into 2006, he likely wouldn't return.

"I've pretty much got my mind made up about what I'm going to do, but there's no need to say for sure yet," said Yzerman, 39. "If next season started on time and the Red Wings called about playing, it's something I'd definitely consider. But starting in January might be different."

With no talks scheduled, Yzerman acknowledged the season is likely lost.

"I don't see it happening," the Red Wings' captain said. "The philosophies haven't changed and there's no compromise in sight. I'd hoped at the last moment the owners would move off the salary cap, but they're not going to.

"I don't see a deal being done in the next week, and that's pretty much all the time that's left."

Yzerman sits sixth on the all-time scoring list with 1,721 points (678 goals, 1,043 assists). He had 18 goals and 33 assists in 75 games last season.

[ALinChainz]

Hall of Fame.

[ALinChainz]

Inside Dish: Semantics rules labor discussions

By Kara Yorio - SportingNews

With unconfirmed rumors that a soft-cap system is on the table, the labor dispute once again has become about semantics. The "soft cap," which would tax teams that exceed a payroll threshold, is a luxury tax system--the same type of system the NHL has sworn won't work and said it won't accept. If the league does make a soft-cap deal, it will be capitulating. But don't declare a players victory just yet. These things are like big trades--it takes years to analyze the outcome. After all, the last collective bargaining agreement was declared a huge victory for the owners, and the players obviously got the better of that one. . . .

With a negotiating strategy that leaves the league unwilling to declare a drop-dead date, fans are left hanging. Is the league willing to play a 28-game season? A 30-team Stanley Cup playoff tournament without any regular-season games? NHL vice president Bill Daly says the league isn't at a point where it knows how few games would constitute a viable season. Of course, it does know and must have multiple contingency plans. This obviously is not an area in which the league would be unprepared. . . .

Update from Europe: A possible season-ending wrist surgery took Modo C Peter Forsberg out of the running for the Swedish Elite League scoring title--and ruined a sentimental reunion with Canucks LW Markus Naslund, whose first Modo game was the one in which Forsberg was injured. Panthers LW Kristian Huselius led the league in scoring heading into last weekend. . . .

The AHL All-Star Game has turned into the NHL young-stars game. Twenty players on the 25-man Canadian roster played at least one game in the NHL last season, and more than a few were full-timers, including Bruins C Patrice Bergeron and Senators C Jason Spezza.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/news?slug=insidedishsemanticsrules&prov=tsn&type=lgns

[Va Beach VH Fan]

They need to get this shit resolved....

One week without football and I'm going nuts already....

[Bob_R]

ESPN.com news services

The NHL is expected to make a formal proposal to the players' association Tuesday, and it still includes a salary cap, according to media reports.

With the clock's ticking growing ever louder, the league sent a memo to teams outlining its latest ideas.

The proposal, much of which already has been disclosed informally to NHLPA leaders, would include a salary cap with a minimum of $32 million and a max of $42 million but likely would not include an individual cap of $6 million, according to a New York Daily News report.

The plan also is expected to require profit-sharing, with a 50-50 split of money over a figure to be determined, although speculation has put it at at least $100 million.

The league also wants to make salary arbitration a two-way street, giving teams as well as players the right to exercise that option.

Opinions differ as to whether a luxury tax -- a league no-go thus far -- could be on the table. The Daily News reports that the formal proposal won't include a luxury tax, but former Canucks president and general manager Brian Burke told the Toronto Star that the two sides "will discuss a luxury tax."

The lockout reached its 138th day Monday and already has forced the cancellation of 747 of the 1,230 regular-season games plus the 2005 All-Star Game. Time is running out to reach a deal and prevent the NHL from becoming the first major North American sports league to lose an entire season to a labor dispute.

Speculation is that a deal must be done this week -- or next week at the latest -- to salvage the current season.

[Full Bug]

Domi takes a shot

Leaf pleads with sides to get a deal done now

By MIKE ZEISBERGER, TORONTO SUN

A candid Tie Domi has a blunt message for Gary Bettman and Bob Goodenow. "Get together now before it's too late!" the veteran Maple Leafs forward said yesterday, urging the NHL commissioner and the head of the players' association to finally step out of the shadows and up to the plate before the 2004-05 season is officially flushed away.

"Bob and Gary are our leaders and they owe it to the 730 players, the 30 owners, the countless number of fans and the hundreds of thousands of people who are affected by this, to give it one last shot. If the season is cancelled without one last shot or without their best efforts, there will be serious consequences for both parties and the sport."

Domi is worried about the future of hockey, especially given the indifference of many fans toward the lockout.

"When dog shows and poker are receiving higher ratings (than hockey had) on ESPN, there is legitimate reason to be concerned," he said.

"This has nothing to do with who's right and who's wrong. This is about the game. And for two guys to have control of this situation and not talk, it doesn't sit well.

"It's not like the clock is ticking any more. We're at midnight right now. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out this is a crucial time for all parties involved."

Unfortunately, Domi's plea might be falling on deaf ears.

In an e-mail message yesterday afternoon, NHL executive vice-president Bill Daly said he "anticipated that something will be scheduled for later this week." Yet later in the day, Daly seemed less optimistic, wondering why he had not heard from the union.

The answer is simple. The players were not impressed during a pair of meetings last week, claiming the owners continue to insist on cost certainty -- meaning a salary cap.

"Bill knows that the concepts they discussed with us on Thursday would not form the basis for an agreement, so he should not be surprised that he hasn't heard from us. We were very clear on Thursday that we would not be negotiating over his proposed concepts," Ted Saskin, NHLPA senior director, said in a statement.

Maybe not. But Domi was quick to point out that Bettman and Goodenow were not part of any recent face-to-face talks.

"We know there is a lot of bad blood right now, but we can't let egos get in the way of the game," said Domi, one of the more business-savvy Leafs. "We need to work together to help the game grow.

"The owners and players both want a successful NHL and that starts with a partnership. But before you can have that, you need trust and there isn't a lot of that right now. We need to fix that.

"One side wants a cap, one doesn't. It's up to (Bob and Gary) to be creative and find compromise."

Domi has seen little of that from the league.

The union, he noted, offered a 24% across-the-board rollback in salaries. The league, meanwhile, has conceded little.

"The bottom line is, the fans don't want to hear our issues. They don't want to hear who's right and who's wrong. They just want entertaining hockey back."

[Lou]

Originally posted by EVH FANATIC
Speculation is that a deal must be done this week -- or next week at the latest -- to salvage the current season.

Gee no kidding. It's only been "things have to be done this week to save the season" for a month now

[ALinChainz]

NHL makes new offer to players' association

By IRA PODELL, AP Sports Writer
February 2, 2005


NEW YORK (AP) -- The NHL's latest salary-cap proposal to end the season-long lockout was rejected Wednesday by the players' union, which came back with its own idea: Bring commissioner Gary Bettman to the bargaining table.

Bettman accepted, and is set to rejoin the talks Thursday for the first time since Dec. 14. He'll meet with union head Bob Goodenow.

In turning down the league's offer, the union reiterated it won't accept a salary cap as a solution.

``The league presented a written proposal with minor variations of concepts that were presented orally by the NHL last Thursday,'' NHLPA senior director Ted Saskin said. ``We told the league last week and again today that their multilayered salary cap proposals were not the basis for an agreement.''

The sides met for four hours in Newark, N.J., the fifth time in two weeks they've talked.

The NHL proposed a six-year deal that contained a cap that would force teams to spend at least $32 million on player costs but no more than $42 million -- including benefits. Both figures would be adjusted each year to reflect changes in league revenues.

The lockout reached its 140th day Wednesday, and has forced the cancellation of 762 of the 1,230 regular-season games plus the All-Star game.

Bettman has promised the 30 NHL teams that he will get them cost certainty, a direct link between league revenues and players costs. This offer would give the players between 53 and 55 percent of league revenues.

If a deal is reached in time for hockey to be played this year, the NHL proposed that the players' association would still receive 53 percent of revenues generated from a full playoff schedule that would follow a shortened regular season.

Also included in the offer -- which could be reopened by the union after four years -- was a profit-sharing plan that would allow the players' association to evenly split revenues over a negotiated level with the league.

On Dec. 9, the players' association proposed a luxury-tax system with an immediate 24 percent rollback on all existing contracts. The NHL liked the idea of cutting down salaries but called that a short-term fix.

That portion of the union's offer, however, was accepted and included in the league's new proposal.

The NHL also proposed keeping guaranteed player contracts as they currently exist and implementing a jointly monitored accounting and audit system that would penalize teams with multimillion dollar fines and the loss of draft choices if they failed to disclose financial information.

The league agreed to keep arbitration, a change from its counterproposal to the union on Dec. 14, but the NHL wants to make it so teams can take players to arbitration instead of it being a one-way process.

The league also proposed offering a joint council between owners and players to discuss various business and game-related issues.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/news;_ylc=X3oDMTBpNWZic251BF9TAzI1NjY0ODI1BHNlYwN0aA--?slug=ap-nhllockout&prov=ap&type=lgns

[Va Beach VH Fan]

I'm guessing when the big boys are there on Thursday, they'll formally say they're rejecting the offer, and then Bettman will inform them that the season is kaput.....

[ALinChainz]

They are making somewhat of a stink in Detroit about Chelios, Hatcher, and Draper signing on to play for that minor league team, where they have a total team SALARY CAP of $260,000.

Oh the irony ...

[ALinChainz]

NHL union rejects profit sharing

By Tim Panaccio, Inquirer Staff Writer

Not even the enticement of a 50-50 profit-sharing plan could persuade the National Hockey League Players' Association to accept the NHL's latest collective bargaining agreement proposal.


The union rejected the league's proposed six-year deal yesterday afternoon after a meeting in Newark, N.J., because it still contained a salary cap.

Both sides will meet again today in faint hopes of ending the 141-day lockout.


"They have not made much change from their position on Dec. 14," said Ted Saskin, the union's senior director and lead counsel. He said the latest proposal offered "minor variations" from what both sides discussed informally last week in New York.


There is agreement that a deal must be in place this week to have a 25-to-30-game season. Today's meeting will include NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and union executive director Bob Goodenow.


"We all know we are right down to the end here, and Bob and Gary have to be in the room to do the deal that needs to be done," said Bill Daly, the league's chief legal counsel. At the same time, Daly added, he had "no particular sense of optimism" given the union's rejection.


So why meet if the union won't accept any deal with a salary cap?


"Let's try to see what it is we want to achieve," Saskin said. "We believe there are many ways to reduce players costs, and it's not always through a salary-cap method. We're not wedded to luxury taxes."


Taking part in yesterday's face-to-face negotiations, the first since last week, were the fewest officials to date - four. They were trying to find common ground to bridge the "philosophical" gap that has prevented a new agreement.


The league's offer encompasses what would be left of this season plus six full seasons (through 2010-11), with a reopener clause for the union after 2008-09.


The offer included variations of what the league proposed in December regarding free agency, revenue sharing and salary arbitration, and a twist on the hard salary cap becoming a "floating" cap. For the first time, however, the league offered a profit-sharing plan, which Saskin described as "fairly vague."


Daly did not provide money figures or say when profit sharing would kick in, nor did he explain how the league would share revenue among its clubs. Saskin labeled the revenue-sharing idea "fairly mysterious."


The proposal would require each of the 30 clubs to spend $32 million, with a hard cap set at $42 million. Payroll ranges would be adjusted annually to reflect league revenues. The league said that it would accept the union's offer of a 24 percent across-the-board rollback on all existing contracts and that it would "consider" inclusion of a payroll (luxury) tax "within" the confines of the $42 million hard cap via a tier system.


Given that half the clubs last year had payrolls of more than $50 million, the league's tax would seem meaningless within the NHL's "floating" payroll range. If the league wanted a true luxury tax, it would institute a tax above the hard cap - not within it. The league's offer linked player costs and revenues, with no less than 53 percent and no more than 55 percent going to the players.


Also included in the proposal:


Two-way salary arbitration in which both sides could take the player/team to arbitration, with mutual "walk-away" rights in which players would become free agents.


Qualifying offers to restricted free agents set at 75 percent for players earning $800,000 or more; 100 percent if less than $800,000.


Free agency reduced to age 30 from 31, effective in the 2006-07 season.


The entry-level system increased to a four-year-contract from three years, with the rookie maximum set at $850,000 (salary and bonus). The minimum salary would increase to $300,000 from $186,000.


Profit sharing on a 50-50 basis if league revenues reached a negotiated threshold.


To assure that clubs weren't hiding money on profit and revenue sharing, an independent accounting firm would be jointly selected by the league and union. Any club found to be hiding money would face fines of $2 million to $5 million and the loss of as many as three first-round draft picks.


Yesterday's session included Daly and his outside counsel, Bob Batterman. Representing the union were Saskin and outside counsel John McCambridge.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/news?slug=knight-nhlnhlunionrejectsprofits&prov=knight&type=lgns

[JCOOK]

Yea I miss it especially come play off time,and truth be told I'll start going back to watch games.... in person not on T.V

[ALinChainz]

Report: NHL set to cancel season


February 3, 2005


NEW YORK (Ticker) - With little hope of a settlement, it appears the NHL is ready to pull the plug on the 2004-05 season.

ESPNews is reporting that an unidentified team owner has said the league will announce a cancellation of the season either Thursday or Friday. The owner reportedly indicated the announcement could come following Thursday's negotiating session.

If the season in cancelled, the NHL will become the the first North American sports league ever has lost an entire season due to a labor dispute. A Stanley Cup champion has been crowned every year since 1893 with the exception of 1919, when the Finals were canceled after five games due to a flu epidemic.

One day after the NHLPA rejected the NHL's latest proposal, the two sides are meeting again Thursday at an undisclosed venue in New York.

Unlike the previous five meetings, however, Thursday's session includes commissioner Gary Bettman and union executive director Bob Goodenow.

But with the lockout in its 141st day and over 60 percent of the schedule already postponed, the possibility of salvaging a portion of the 2004-05 season appeared extremely dim. The 1994-95 lockout was settled on January 11, 1995, and a 48-game season began later that month.

On Wednesday, the league revealed a new proposal featuring an equal profit-sharing plan and a salary cap, which it referred to as a "floating team payroll range."

The payroll plan called for a salary floor of $32 million and a cap of $42 million per team. This range would be adjusted each season to reflect changes in league revenues.

Other points of the league's proposal included a mutual arbitration process, a reduction of age for Group 3 free agency and the increase in the minimum players' salary. The NHL also incorporated the union's most recent offer of a 24 percent rollback in salaries in its plan.

The union, which has maintained it never would agree to any deal that includes a salary cap, flatly turned it down.

[ALinChainz]

A closer look at the NHL's latest proposal

PIERRE LEBRUN

February 3, 2005


(CP) - A closer look at the NHL's latest proposal, which was rejected by the NHLPA:

Term: Six full seasons after this shortened year, including the 2010-11 season. The union would have the unilateral right to re-open the deal after the fourth full season, 2008-09.

The skinny: On the surface, the four-year re-opener is a gift to the union but the reality is that once you sign on to a salary cap system, it's very difficult to back out of it.

-

Entry-Level System: Four years, mandatory two-way contracts. Maximum compensation of $850,000 US includes salary, bonuses for games played and signing bonus.

Players can earn $250,000 more a season in individual 'A' bonuses, categories such as ice time, goals, assists, points, plus/minus and an all-star game appearance; goalies' bonuses would work on minutes played, GAA, save percentage, wins, shutouts and the all-star game.

A few select entry-level players can earn over and above if they reach the 'B' bonuses, which few ever do. That would include $500,000 for winning a major award such as the Hart, Norris, Vezina or Selke, or between $100,000 to $400,000 for being anywhere from fifth to second in voting for those awards.


The skinny: It's a step in the players' direction after taking away all bonuses in the league's Dec. 14 offer. Bottom line, given that very few entry-level players would ever reach the elite 'B' bonuses, the maximum compensation here is $1.1 million a year ($850,000 plus $250,000).

-

Restricted Free Agency: Qualifying offers (which are needed to retain rights) for players earning less than $800,000 (average salary last season was $1.8 million) would be 100 per cent of his salary from the season before. But the required qualifying offers for players earning over $800,000 would be 75 per cent of his salary from the season before.

Same right to match/draft choice compensation rules as under the expired CBA, in terms of other teams trying to sign restricted free agents to offer sheets.

But a new wrinkle: restricted free agents and their respective clubs have to agree to terms on a new deal by no later than 14 days after the opening of training camp. Failure to do so "results in player ineligibility (and unavailability to the club) for the balance of the season."

The skinny: The 75 per cent qualifying offers would be a huge victory for the league, clubs finally able to backtrack underachieving players without losing their rights. The 14-day signing deadline is a smart move, putting pressure on both the team and player to make a deal on time. Which likely means no more prolonged contract disputes. Too bad they didn't have that rule for the NHL and NHLPA in negotiating a new CBA.

-

Salary Arbitration: Entirely mutual, players and clubs have identical rights to request arbitration. Under the old agreement, only players could elect. All restricted free agents are eligible for arbitration, another new wrinkle. Under the old deal, only certain players who fit a certain criteria would elect.

Players and clubs can defer being dragged to arbitration in two ways: the player can defer the team's attempt at arbitration by signing his qualifying offer; the club can defer a player's attempt at arbitration by one year by signing him at 105 per cent of his prior year's salary. The entire deferral process would not apply to a player coming out of the entry-level system.

Walkaway rights: clubs can walk away from an arbitration award in return for which players become free agents subject, however, to right to match from his old club for any offer that's 90 per cent or less than the value of the award. Players can walk away from a bad award and instead accept a contract for 90 per cent of their qualifying offer.

And finally the big catch in all of this: The league reserves the option "to eliminate salary arbitration mechanism in its entirety at any time during the term of the agreement" by dropping the age of unrestricted free agency to 28 (more on that later).

The skinny: It's a step up from Dec. 14, when the league completely obliterated the entire system. On the other hand, the fact the league could scrap it entirely when it wants is hard to take. Another tough pill to swallow here for the players would be the team's right to defer arbitration by simply signing him to a five per cent raise. That would mean, for example, that Hart Trophy winner Martin St. Louis , who earned $1.5 million last season and who should have cashed in big in arbitration, could be re-signed by Tampa at $1.575 million. That's crazy.

-

Unrestricted free agency: Age eligibility would drop from 31 under the old deal to 30 in the new agreement. But it would drop to 28 if the league decides to scrap the salary arbitration system.

The skinny: A giveback to the players, obviously, and a major one if it drops to 28. On the other hand, some GMs believe the bigger the UFA market, the less crazy the spending is on the available players.

-

Player contracts: Minimum salary increased 62 per cent to $300,000 a year and maximum term of contracts to be no longer than three years.

Oh, and this: "The parties may have a mutual interest in negotiating over the establishment of an NHL maximum salary for individual players. No specific amount is being proposed in this regard," says the league.

The word on the street is that the league would like no player to make more than $6 million a season. Jaromir Jagr is slated to earn $11 million next year.

The skinny: On the surface, the players have been thrown a bone by simply having guaranteed contracts still in place. But the three-year maximum on contracts is a huge blow, giving players little security. And the individual salary cap to be negotiated is a total non-starter for the union.

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Linkage/salary cap: This is the meat of the offer, the league's most important component and the one that the union absolutely abhors.

League-wide player compensation in any year of the agreement can't exceed 55 per cent of the league revenues (it was 75 per cent last season); that's up from 54 per cent in the league's Dec. 14 offer. Also, player compensation can't be below 53 per cent of league revenues.

Under this scenario last season, 55 per cent of the league's $2.1 billion in total revenues would have limited teams to spend no more than $38 million apiece on player compensation. Laymen terms? That's a $38-million salary cap.

The league also calls for 15 per cent of each team's player payroll to be automatically escrowed every season to ensure compliance with the 55 per cent rule. In other words, the escrow is solely for the purpose of squaring up at the end of the year. If owners pay too much, they get paid back from the escrow. If everything balances out between the 53-55 per cent range, than the escrow money is simply released back to the players. If the owners ended up paying less than 53 per cent of their revenues to players, than the players get the escrow back PLUS get a cheque for the balance.

The skinny: This is why there won't be hockey this year. The players would rather retire en masse than link their future salaries to the league's revenues. What if the damage of the lockout drops league revenues to $1.5 billion for the next full season? The players would get 55 per cent of that loot, $825 million. Translation? Team salary caps of $27.5 million. Now you see why the players have no interest in this system. The owners, on the other hand, feel they need this to ensure they won't continue to pile up operating losses.

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Floating team payroll range: The new range would be set by averaging total team payrolls, reflecting the NHL's acceptance of the union's offer to roll back all existing contracts by 24 per cent. The average range would be set by knocking off the top five spending clubs from last season and also ignoring the bottom five, in order to find a more representative range of the league as a whole.

The result for this season (based on last season's $2.1 billion in revenues) would see each team required to spend at least $29.8 million in player salaries ($32 million including benefits) and no more than $40 million in salaries ($42.2 million including benefits).

The skinny: Regardless of this payroll range, the league-wide link between player compensation and revenues would override this component. It's all about the 55 per cent ratio, that's the real salary cap.

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Payroll tax: The NHL is willing to implement a payroll tax somewhere in the floating payroll range but admits it will only go ahead with this at the union's discretion. Yes, the union prefers a tax over a cap, but it doesn't want both!

The skinny: Forget this, if the union ever swallows a linkage/cap system, the last think it will want is to add yet another salary drag on top of it.

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Profit sharing: A profit-sharing plan to which the players would share in "league profitability over a negotiated level on a 50-50 basis." The players and owners would share the profits 50-50 over and above a negotiated profit threshold.

The skinny: Without a figure to attach the threshold to, it's tough to know whether this is for real. Still, it would be the first of its kind in the major professional sports leagues in North America.

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Joint audit: The implementation of a jointly monitored accounting and audit function, with stiff penalties to teams who try to cheat on their financial reports. Teams fined $2 million and lose their first-round pick for first offence and get nailed with $5-million fine and loss of three first-round draft picks for second offence.

The skinny: A major part of this deal if the union ever accepts linkage. But given the inability of both sides to agree on numbers since eternity, one has to wonder how they could ever agree on what is a neutral, third-party accounting firm. Still, a smart component put in by the league.

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Owner-Player Council: The establishment of a joint owner-player council to discuss various business and game-related issues. The union wanted this in its Dec. 9 offer. On the surface, this should give the players the voice it's always wanted in helping Colin Campbell, the league's director of hockey operations, re-shape the game and make it better.

The skinny: Somewhere Brendan Shanahan must have been smiling when he saw this. The Detroit Red Wings star held a hockey summit in December that called for players to get a bigger voice in the on-ice issues of the game. An important gesture by the league.

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2005 playoff plan: Plans for a shortened regular season this year with a full playoff, but splitting some revenues from the post-season to "ensure that the players receive the agreed-upon 53 per cent of league revenues."

The skinny: Given that players have already lost eight of 13 paycheques and only get paid during he regular season, a chunk of the action in this spring's playoffs is a must for them to agree to come back at this point.

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Salary rollback: The union's offer of 24 per cent across-the-board salary rollback for all remaining years of all existing contracts is accepted by the league.

The skinny: This is the original NHLPA rollback, not the league's restructured rollback of Dec. 14.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/news?slug=cp-nhl_lockout_primer&prov=cp&type=lgns