A variety of reporters* recently provided more details about the owners’ new CBA offer.
Here they are in this collection of tidbits:
- The latest offer would cover six years with an option for a seventh, according to Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times.
- The league isn’t just looking to kill “lifetime” deals with a five-year limit. TSN also reports that each year’s variance would be limited to five percent, thus closing up the loophole where teams tack on seasons at drastically lower salaries at the end of a contract to drive cap hits down.
(TSN’s example: a $10 million cap hit could only vary $500K per season. Another example would be a $5 million-per-year deal only varying by $250K per year.)
- Various outlets including ESPN’s Pierre LeBrun report that rookie (aka entry-level) contracts will be limited to two-years.
Owners might seek this measure to reduce the impact of second contracts. TSN sums up the three measures in the new proposal that aim to do so:
1. Entry level would go from 3 to 2 yrs. 2. Salary arb eligibility would go from 4th to 5th yr. 3. UFA goes 7/27 (service/age) to 8/28.
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) October 17, 2012
On the other hand, high-end rookies would potentially get paid closer to their true market value one year sooner - even if they’d receive one fewer season to bolster their numbers.
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Coming soon: Steve Montador reveals elements of the offer that might be problematic for the NHLPA.
* - Including TSN’s Darren Dreger/Bob McKenzie double-posting Twitter hydra monster. Their dual-posts will be referred to merely as “TSN” to limit confusion.
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