NHL, players reach deal

[Zebadee]

By The Philadelphia Inquirer and New York Daily News

After losing the 2004-05 season to a bitter, 301-day lockout, the National Hockey League said yesterday that it is ready to return to business.

The NHL and its players' association announced an agreement in principle on the terms of a new collective-bargaining agreement that is expected to span six years and include a salary cap.

If the deal is ratified by NHLPA members and the league's Board of Governors — that could come sometime next week when the players meet in Toronto and the owners convene in New York — the league would be back on the ice this fall.

Details of the agreement will not be released until it is ratified. The players widely had opposed the implementation of a salary cap.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman had canceled the season in February. That made the NHL the first sports league in North America to lose a year because of a labor dispute.

"I'm pleased that it is most likely over," Philadelphia Flyers captain Keith Primeau said yesterday. "It's important that we begin to try to repair some of the damage, some of the bridges we have begun to burn and really try to salvage what we can of our game."

There is plenty to salvage.

At the end of the day, everybody lost," Wayne Gretzky, the NHL's career scoring leader and managing partner of the Phoenix Coyotes, told The Associated Press. "We almost crippled our industry. It was very disappointing what happened."

Two sources familiar with the agreement indicated that the salary cap would extend from a low of $21.5 million to a high of $39 million, not including benefits.

One of the sources indicated that players would become free agents at age 30 starting this year and age 27 by the final three years of the deal. Currently the age is 31. Players who are seven-year professionals may also become free agents sooner, the source said.

Additionally, it is expected that all existing contracts will be rolled back 24 percent. The league's minimum salary is expected to rise to approximately $450,000; the old minimum was $175,000.

Players' salaries league-wide are not expected to exceed 54 percent of revenues. Sweeping rule changes that would place a greater emphasis on scoring also are expected to be implemented.

It also is expected that NHL players will be permitted to compete in the 2006 Olympics in Turin, Italy, in February.

A reduced version of the NHL draft is expected to take place later this month. All teams will have a shot at the No. 1 pick under the new deal, and that pick is likely to be Sidney Crosby. The 17-year-old forward from Nova Scotia is widely regarded as the next NHL superstar. His selection in the 2005 draft has drawn more attention than any since Eric Lindros (1991) and Mario Lemieux (1983) entered the league.

Each team begins with three balls. One is removed for each playoff appearance in the last three NHL seasons and for each first-overall selection from the last three drafts. Each team must have at least one ball in the hopper.

Regardless of what the final details are, Carolina forward Rod Brind'amour said what many players might really be thinking: "It's such a waste, and that's what bothers me the most. We just wasted a year, and who knows the damage that's been done to the game."

So can the game of hockey, which has been plagued by low television ratings, a meager national television contract and general fan apathy, recover from the biggest black eye in the sport's history?

"If there's a chance players won't ratify this, we're even less intelligent than people say we are," said New York Rangers center Bobby Holik, who lost nearly $9 million in salary last season. "It only gets worse.

"I don't have to know the details. I just want to know when and where I'm putting my skates on."

A league source confirmed that the NHL has been working on a schedule for the coming season and that it is expected to be released soon after the collective-bargaining agreement is ratified.

If the pact is ratified, players would report to training camp around their customary starting time, the middle of September.

The salary cap will draw the most attention. Mike Ilitch, owner of the Detroit Red Wings, said the team had hired a "capologist" to help assure they will be in compliance.

"It's brand new, and you can easily mess up," Ilitch said. "And [if] you mess up, the fines are going to be heavy. It can get disastrous if you don't ... follow the rules."

The cap is expected to put the Wings' payroll in the high $30 million range — quite a cut for a team that used to operate in the high $70 million range.

Flyers coach Ken Hitchcock said he felt as if "the weight of the world has been lifted off our shoulders."

"I did a lot of things that were interesting, but there is no place like home," Hitchcock said. "And no place like having your own team to work around."

Teams have been warned that they would be fined heavily for revealing information on the agreement, and even players are unaware of the final details.

Primeau was one of an estimated 40 players on a conference call with the NHLPA after the tentative agreement was finalized.

"My greatest fear was that this was going to extend another season," Primeau said.

The widely held perception is that the owners received the better part of the deal. But players still must approve that deal.

"The hard work starts now," said Tim Leiweke, Los Angeles Kings president, a member of the NHL's executive committee and vocal advocate of overhauling the NHL's economics.

"First, this has to get ratified, and second, we do not underestimate how we have to rebuild the bridge with our fans. But I'm absolutely convinced that we will come back stronger than ever."



Note

• The Red Wings are expected to hold a news conference tomorrow announcing Mike Babcock as head coach, the Detroit Free Press reported. The Wings have been negotiating a multiyear deal with Babcock since last week.

The Los Angeles Times contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2005 The Seattle Times Company

The league hasn't announced details, but here are some expected results...

Salary cap: Calls for total player compensation to account for no more than 54 percent of leaguewide revenue. Next year's salary cap will have a ceiling in the high $30 million range and a floor in the low $20 million range per team, according to one owner. Revenue sharing is also expected.

Salary cuts: All existing player contracts will be subject to a 24 percent rollback.

Lost wages: Players will lose their entire salaries for last season, although they will get credit toward their pensions and retirement.

The draft: The lottery will give all 30 teams a shot at landing the No. 1 pick. However, it will be weighted, giving teams that have struggled in recent years a better chance.

Rule changes: Aimed at increasing scoring, this could include reducing the size of goaltender equipment, using a shootout to eliminate tie games and pushing back the goal line but still must be approved by players.

The Washington Post

[MaddyG]

I'm not a huge hockey fan but I'm glad they settled.

[kattoo13]

It's a bad deal but it's better than no hockey. The new CBA is still flawed, especially with respect to revenue sharing, but did install the salary cap--a major point of contention with ramifications beyond the NHL. Major League Baseball is now the only major sports league without a salary cap and this can be used as leverage during their next collective bargaining talks (their CBA is due to expire after next season). It'll be interesting to see what the next year brings.

Welcome back hockey, we missed you (well, a handful of us did ).

[ProfL]

z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z-... hockey?
z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z--z-z-z-z-z
z-z-z-z-z- hunh what?

z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z--z-z-z-z-z--z

[crocodile_dundee_usa]

Apparently a very small handful.

[meandean]

WE HAVE HOCKEY AGAIN!!!!!! Ok I got that out of my system. Heh can't wait. Me and the other 12 hockey fans around the world can finally celebrate. Me and a few buddies of mine are going to the NJ Devils, NY Rangers, and the NY Islanders home openers. Thankfully they all fell on different nights. CAN'T WAIT!! WE HAVE HOCKEY AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!

[SecretAsianMan]

Hey I personally think hockey is one of the coolest sports
Bettern than football, soccer
I don't watch sports much unless its MA