Here is the original post:
State:- Rule changes
- CBA stuff (luxury tax, hard cap, UFA age, etc...)
- Contraction (if any)
- Teams (Conferences/division)
- Number of games
- Playoff layout
- Commissioner & Head of NHLPA
In lieu of getting Canadian and U.S. Anti-Trust Law Repealed, which would solve all of these problems, by the way, here's the latest version of what i think will work as a CBA framework.
I've already laid out a great many of the rule changes I'd like to see here.
My take on the CBA was laid out here back in November, to which my thinking is a little out of date:
I have other thoughts about the NHL labor situation here, here, and here.
My Ideas for the CBA look like this:
1) I like the NHL's idea some form of Revenue Sharing primarily coming from the Playoffs, which is a league-driven event. So, I will re-iterate my original stance that Revenue Sharing should create a 'normalized' budget among all the teams in the league to level the resource playing field and allow for a budget process that results in near-equal competitiveness across disparate marketplaces. Non-Luxury Tax portion Should provide up to 10-15% of the Salary Cap figure.
2) Unpenalized Salary Cap set at 53-56% of NHL Revenues, a definition of which to be agreed upon by both parties and audited by a mutually-acceptable third party.
3) Luxury Tax which becomes part of the Revenue Sharing Pool that is graduated above the level set annually in point #2:
50% on the 1st $3mill (up to $1.5 million in taxes)
75% on the 2nd $3mill (up to $3.75 million in taxes)
100% on the next $6mill (up to $9.75 million in taxes)
125% on all other salaries.
with revenues at $1.8 billion and the Cap set at 55%. An untaxed cap of $33 million is in place. At a $45 million payroll, the team pays $13.5 million in Luxury taxes, or $466k/competitor ($13.5mil / 29).
4) A minimum total team salary based on 35-40% of NHL Revenues + 75% of the Revenue Sharing pool. (at $1.8 billion in Revenues, and RS paying 10% of $33 mil or $3.3 mil) salary floor is $24.97 million).
5) Back-Loaded Profit Sharing for the Players due to some costs not rising linearly with revenues. Because this is hard to judge where revenues will go, it's hard to put numbers on this. Also, my knowledge of the NHL's finances are not that comprehensive to make any kind of informed judgement on this. Depending on how this is structured, this ensures against an owner paying 'slave wages' (an oxymoron if I ever heard one).
6) Non-guaranteed contracts are the norm or set the buyout percentage lower (I'm thinking in the 40-50%), and costs associated with that count as a credit towards luxury taxes payable for up to 3 years going forward.
-- Ergo, if the Isles want to buy out the last 7 years of Yahsin's contract, at a cost of $4 million a year (or whatever the number is), that for the next 3 years the Isles will be exempt from the first 4 million in LT's they may owe.
-- Guaranteed Contracts, for example, or ones with a higher buyout percentage are still negotiable on an individual basis, but the credit toward the LT is fixed by the CBA.
7) Lower UFA age, 27 or 28, but Restricted FA's are qualified at 75% of current salary.
8) Performance Bonuses paid are considered to be a part of the Total Salary and subject to luxury tax.
-- As a result Total Salary Paid for the year will be calculated after Game 7 of the SCF's and all LT payments are due before the opening of Training Camps.
9) Remove all restrictions to entry level contracts. If ownership wants to overpay for draft picks... so be it.
10) Do away with Group V Free Agency. Once a player agrees to an Entry Contract he is the property of that team until he is available for Unrestricted Free Agency.
11) Eliminate Salary Arbitration as a mandatable option. Players and teams may use third-party arbitrators on an individual basis to settle contract disputes.
Comments