What You Need to Know July 20

Welcome to another edition of What You Need to Know. This edition is coming to you from the mountains just outside of Montreal. It's been a crazy week around the NHL so let's get you caught up.

Today we'll start with the biggest move and a scenario that would pretty much ruin the Nashville Predators. Chances are you've heard of Shea Weber, the heart and soul of the Predators and their captain. On Thursday morning news broke that Weber had signed an offer sheet with the Philadelphia Flyers. The good news for Predator fans, is Nashville still has an opportunity to match that offer sheet and keep their captain in the music city. Only problem, the offer sheet is huge. How huge? 14 years $110 million. What makes this even worse for the Predators is they just lost Weber's friend and defence partner Ryan Suter to the Wild. The Preds stand in danger of losing both of their top two defenceman (ones already gone) and their captain, not a scenario you want to face. Of course they could always match the offer sheet, but do they really want to spend all that money on Weber?
If the Predators fail to match the offer sheet, they will receive four draft picks in exchange. Could this be the start of a massive rebuild?

Not a major surprise but unrestricted free agent Shane Doan has still not made up his mind on whether he will return to Phoenix or "take his talents elsewhere." Whats he waiting for? He is waiting for some clearer information on the ownership of the Coyotes. News that could take months to come! Doan has spent the last 16 seasons in Phoenix, and has been the captain since 2003. He has submitted a list of teams, and received a $30 million offer from one team (rumoured to be the Sabres). Only time will tell if Doan stays in the desert.

Stepping away from free agency and signing for a minute. More news on the 2013 Winter Classic. Leafs alumni Mats Sundin and Tie Domi both announced they will play in the Winter Classic alumni game. The two will join former Leaf Darcy Tucker. All three donned the blue and white together for several seasons.

What is Gary Bettman doing right now? His sole focus right now is trying to get a new collective bargaining agreement in place and avoid the third lockout under his control.  Bettman said he was "Focused on making a deal"and that he wants the deal done with the NHLPA prior to September 15th. But NHLPA head Donald Fehr wasn't as fond of the deadline his counter part set. Fehr commented that business can stall go on even after the deadline:

"The law doesn't require that the industry shut down if you don't have an agreement. Somebody has to chose to shut it down. At the moment, I see no reason to do that. Hopefully they don't either." ~ Donald Fehr

Talk about a loaded gun. This is basically Fehr's way of saying "If there is a lockout, it wasn't my idea". It will be interesting to see how much of a fight the NHLPA is willing to put up. But do the players really want to take a year of hockey?

Back to the signings. Buffalo Sabres first round draft choice Mikhail Grigorenko has finally signed his three-year entry-level contract. Grigorenko is now Sabres property and can not go and play for the KHL. But here's the kicker, if Grigorenko fails to crack the Sabres roster out of training camp he can't go play for the Rochester Americans because of his age. Grigorenko would have to go back and play in the QMJHL.

Tis the season to add coaches.
Next to free agency one of the busiest things about July is teams switching assistant coaches.

The New Jersey Devils have added Scott Stevens as an assistant coach. Stevens played 13 seasons in the NHL and was one of the most feared defenceman. He captained the Devils to three Stanley Cup championships and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2007. Decent resume eh?
Stevens will be in charge of the Devils defence.

The Chicago Blackhawks have added Jamie Kompon to their coaching staff. Kompon brings along a Stanley Cup ring from his days behind the Los Angeles Kings bench, where he spent 6 seasons prior.

Modano Return?
How much of an impact did the signing of Ryan Suter and Zach Parise have? It was big enough to convince Mike Modano to possibly come out of retirement and play one more season. Is there any truth to this rumour? Well Modano did start working out again on Monday, and didn't rule out the possibility of returning when he was asked.

"I don't know," he said. "You look at things and you wonder, 'What's the worst thing that could happen?' I mean, I get in better shape, one more year? That kind of intrigues me."

Mike Green returns to the Capitals
Mike Green is going to be seeing a lot of green after signing a three year extension with the Capitals. The two sides agreed to a three year deal worth $18.25 million, which will see him make $6 million for the next two years and then $6.25 million in the last deal. What do you think, is Mike Green worth the money?

That'll do it for this weeks update. Catch ya'll next week!

What You Need to Know July 20

Welcome to another edition of What You Need to Know. This edition is coming to you from the mountains just outside of Montreal. It's been a crazy week around the NHL so let's get you caught up.

Today we'll start with the biggest move and a scenario that would pretty much ruin the Nashville Predators. Chances are you've heard of Shea Weber, the heart and soul of the Predators and their captain. On Thursday morning news broke that Weber had signed an offer sheet with the Philadelphia Flyers. The good news for Predator fans, is Nashville still has an opportunity to match that offer sheet and keep their captain in the music city. Only problem, the offer sheet is huge. How huge? 14 years $110 million. What makes this even worse for the Predators is they just lost Weber's friend and defence partner Ryan Suter to the Wild. The Preds stand in danger of losing both of their top two defenceman (ones already gone) and their captain, not a scenario you want to face. Of course they could always match the offer sheet, but do they really want to spend all that money on Weber?
If the Predators fail to match the offer sheet, they will receive four draft picks in exchange. Could this be the start of a massive rebuild?

Not a major surprise but unrestricted free agent Shane Doan has still not made up his mind on whether he will return to Phoenix or "take his talents elsewhere." Whats he waiting for? He is waiting for some clearer information on the ownership of the Coyotes. News that could take months to come! Doan has spent the last 16 seasons in Phoenix, and has been the captain since 2003. He has submitted a list of teams, and received a $30 million offer from one team (rumoured to be the Sabres). Only time will tell if Doan stays in the desert.

Stepping away from free agency and signing for a minute. More news on the 2013 Winter Classic. Leafs alumni Mats Sundin and Tie Domi both announced they will play in the Winter Classic alumni game. The two will join former Leaf Darcy Tucker. All three donned the blue and white together for several seasons.

What is Gary Bettman doing right now? His sole focus right now is trying to get a new collective bargaining agreement in place and avoid the third lockout under his control.  Bettman said he was "Focused on making a deal"and that he wants the deal done with the NHLPA prior to September 15th. But NHLPA head Donald Fehr wasn't as fond of the deadline his counter part set. Fehr commented that business can stall go on even after the deadline:

"The law doesn't require that the industry shut down if you don't have an agreement. Somebody has to chose to shut it down. At the moment, I see no reason to do that. Hopefully they don't either." ~ Donald Fehr

Talk about a loaded gun. This is basically Fehr's way of saying "If there is a lockout, it wasn't my idea". It will be interesting to see how much of a fight the NHLPA is willing to put up. But do the players really want to take a year of hockey?

Back to the signings. Buffalo Sabres first round draft choice Mikhail Grigorenko has finally signed his three-year entry-level contract. Grigorenko is now Sabres property and can not go and play for the KHL. But here's the kicker, if Grigorenko fails to crack the Sabres roster out of training camp he can't go play for the Rochester Americans because of his age. Grigorenko would have to go back and play in the QMJHL.

Tis the season to add coaches.
Next to free agency one of the busiest things about July is teams switching assistant coaches.

The New Jersey Devils have added Scott Stevens as an assistant coach. Stevens played 13 seasons in the NHL and was one of the most feared defenceman. He captained the Devils to three Stanley Cup championships and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2007. Decent resume eh?
Stevens will be in charge of the Devils defence.

The Chicago Blackhawks have added Jamie Kompon to their coaching staff. Kompon brings along a Stanley Cup ring from his days behind the Los Angeles Kings bench, where he spent 6 seasons prior.

Modano Return?
How much of an impact did the signing of Ryan Suter and Zach Parise have? It was big enough to convince Mike Modano to possibly come out of retirement and play one more season. Is there any truth to this rumour? Well Modano did start working out again on Monday, and didn't rule out the possibility of returning when he was asked.

"I don't know," he said. "You look at things and you wonder, 'What's the worst thing that could happen?' I mean, I get in better shape, one more year? That kind of intrigues me."

Mike Green returns to the Capitals
Mike Green is going to be seeing a lot of green after signing a three year extension with the Capitals. The two sides agreed to a three year deal worth $18.25 million, which will see him make $6 million for the next two years and then $6.25 million in the last deal. What do you think, is Mike Green worth the money?

That'll do it for this weeks update. Catch ya'll next week!

Can Gary Bettman Survive Another Lockout?

While there is no guarantee there will be a lockout next season, as of right now there is no collective bargaining agreement in place. If the NHL and NHLPA are unable to reach an agreement on the new CBA the NHL will likely enter into a lockout. A lockout should be the last thing NHL commissioner Gary Bettman wants.

Since taking over as the head of the NHL in 1993 Bettman has had his critics. He's made some great decisions and helped grow the game but he has also made some rather poor choices. A third lockout may put the final nail in his coffin.

The first lockout under Bettman came in his first full season as commissioner and resulted in the 1994-1995 season to be cut down to 48 games. The main issues during the lockout were the league wanting to add a salary cap and adjust the free agency rules. The lockout got so bad Bettman was even threatened by former player Chris Chelios. who claimed "a fan or even a player might take matters into their own hands to get Bettman out of the way."
The lockout eventually ended in January of 1995. The two sides had not agreed on the salary cap issue, but had decided to put a cap on rookie contracts, start salary arbitration and change the free agency rules, so no players would become UFA until they turned 31. Bettman won over the owners as many believed the owners won the lockout.

The next lockout came in 2004-2005. I remember this lockout, and was extremely disappointed when the season got cancelled. I even did a speech about the lockout and why it should end in 5th grade. It was also right around the time I became a Buffalo Sabres fan. The big issue surrounding the second lockout under Bettman was the players salaries and how much revenue they were making. The players were making 75% of all revenue earned by the league (only making around 57% now). The owners were upset with the contracts and that they players were earning more money. It was announced in September that the players had been "locked out" and then announced three months later the whole season had been cancelled. Making the NHL the first North American league to cancel a season over a labor stoppage. After cancelling the entire season Bettman quickly gained the reputation for being one of the worst business managers.
Eventually the two sides came to an agreement and a hard salary cap was brought in. Also included in the new CBA: Players revenue shares reduced by 24% and the right to be a free agent after 7 years.

Another reason Bettman is so unpopular (especially north of the border) is his insistence on expanding the NHL south of the border and putting NHL teams in markets that can't support. Take Phoenix for example. The city of Glendale can't afford the team, heck Gary Bettman even owns the team. They're in some series trouble. Bettman could pull the plug on the coyotes and move them North of the border to Quebec or another hockey hungry market. The majority of people living in Phoenix don't care about hockey!

Another prime example: There are three hockey teams in Bettman's "backyard" while there is only one team in the largest hockey market in the world (Toronto).  It's sad to think of the 30 NHL franchises only 7 of them call Canada home, considering the game originated from here. Americans love football and basketball, the NHL has done their best to pump hockey into Americans, but they're not going to win them all. Bettman needs to wake up and realize their are markets north of the boarder just dieing for a hockey team. Quebec City and Markham (outside of Toronto) are both building new arenas that are big enough to shelter an NHL team.

The biggest question of all is Can the NHL survive another lockout? Forget about Bettman for a minute, let's focus on the game we all love. While us die hard hockey fans will cry ourselves to sleep if there is a lockout the majority of Americans or fringe hockey watchers will just find another sport to watch. No hockey, no big deal there's basketball and football. If the NHL starts losing fans to other sports. who says they'll come back to support the NHL?

So back to the original question, can Gary Betman survive another lockout. One would have to think the answer would be no. It will be the third lockout under his control, you have to think the owners and players are getting sick of it. The only way the way we would get rid of the dictator would be having more than 15 NHL owners vote against him. But what kind of league goes through three lockouts or work stoppages in less than 20 years? Could it be three strikes you're out for Gary Bettman?

Can Gary Bettman Survive Another Lockout?

While there is no guarantee there will be a lockout next season, as of right now there is no collective bargaining agreement in place. If the NHL and NHLPA are unable to reach an agreement on the new CBA the NHL will likely enter into a lockout. A lockout should be the last thing NHL commissioner Gary Bettman wants.

Since taking over as the head of the NHL in 1993 Bettman has had his critics. He's made some great decisions and helped grow the game but he has also made some rather poor choices. A third lockout may put the final nail in his coffin.

The first lockout under Bettman came in his first full season as commissioner and resulted in the 1994-1995 season to be cut down to 48 games. The main issues during the lockout were the league wanting to add a salary cap and adjust the free agency rules. The lockout got so bad Bettman was even threatened by former player Chris Chelios. who claimed "a fan or even a player might take matters into their own hands to get Bettman out of the way."
The lockout eventually ended in January of 1995. The two sides had not agreed on the salary cap issue, but had decided to put a cap on rookie contracts, start salary arbitration and change the free agency rules, so no players would become UFA until they turned 31. Bettman won over the owners as many believed the owners won the lockout.

The next lockout came in 2004-2005. I remember this lockout, and was extremely disappointed when the season got cancelled. I even did a speech about the lockout and why it should end in 5th grade. It was also right around the time I became a Buffalo Sabres fan. The big issue surrounding the second lockout under Bettman was the players salaries and how much revenue they were making. The players were making 75% of all revenue earned by the league (only making around 57% now). The owners were upset with the contracts and that they players were earning more money. It was announced in September that the players had been "locked out" and then announced three months later the whole season had been cancelled. Making the NHL the first North American league to cancel a season over a labor stoppage. After cancelling the entire season Bettman quickly gained the reputation for being one of the worst business managers.
Eventually the two sides came to an agreement and a hard salary cap was brought in. Also included in the new CBA: Players revenue shares reduced by 24% and the right to be a free agent after 7 years.

Another reason Bettman is so unpopular (especially north of the border) is his insistence on expanding the NHL south of the border and putting NHL teams in markets that can't support. Take Phoenix for example. The city of Glendale can't afford the team, heck Gary Bettman even owns the team. They're in some series trouble. Bettman could pull the plug on the coyotes and move them North of the border to Quebec or another hockey hungry market. The majority of people living in Phoenix don't care about hockey! 

Another prime example: There are three hockey teams in Bettman's "backyard" while there is only one team in the largest hockey market in the world (Toronto).  It's sad to think of the 30 NHL franchises only 7 of them call Canada home, considering the game originated from here. Americans love football and basketball, the NHL has done their best to pump hockey into Americans, but they're not going to win them all. Bettman needs to wake up and realize their are markets north of the boarder just dieing for a hockey team. Quebec City and Markham (outside of Toronto) are both building new arenas that are big enough to shelter an NHL team.

The biggest question of all is Can the NHL survive another lockout? Forget about Bettman for a minute, let's focus on the game we all love. While us die hard hockey fans will cry ourselves to sleep if there is a lockout the majority of Americans or fringe hockey watchers will just find another sport to watch. No hockey, no big deal there's basketball and football. If the NHL starts losing fans to other sports. who says they'll come back to support the NHL?

So back to the original question, can Gary Betman survive another lockout. One would have to think the answer would be no. It will be the third lockout under his control, you have to think the owners and players are getting sick of it. The only way the way we would get rid of the dictator would be having more than 15 NHL owners vote against him. But what kind of league goes through three lockouts or work stoppages in less than 20 years? Could it be three strikes you're out for Gary Bettman?

NHL CBA Setting the Battle Grounds

How many of you are holding out hope or are optimistic that the 2012-2013 NHL season will start on time? Unfortunately those hopes took a major blow on the weekend after the NHL offered their new CBA proposal to the NHLPA. By the terms of the first offer it's clear this is going to be a battle fought to the bitter end.

Let's get right to the bottom of the CBA "negotiations". NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA head Donald Fehr don't like each other. Both are power hungry guys who wont backdown and don't like to lose. Bettman may not be interested in playing nice with Mr. Fehr to save the season, and in the end it may come down to who blinks first.

What Gary Bettman has proposed

• Reduce player revenue shares from 57% to 46
• Limit the lengths of contracts to 5 years
• Players have to wait 10 years to become Unrestricted Free Agents
• Get rid of signing bonuses
• NHL Entry level contracts extended to 5 years (instead of 3)
• End future salary arbitrations
• To get rid of front loaded contracts, the money must be the same or less in each of the 5 years.

Can you spell trouble? Out of the points the NHL has offered, I can see only 1 being approved by the NHLPA and that's the length of contracts can only be 5 years maximum. Players and owners have mentioned in the past they aren't fans of the long term 12 year deals that seem to be all the rage right now. Yes it's nice for a team to lock up a franchise player, but if you have multiple players tied up for 8 years how are younger players supposed to break into the league?

But the real hinging point around the CBA is the revenue between the league, players and owners. The players want more revenue while the league wants to give them less. A recipe for disaster. While I am in the boat that says the players are already making for too much money to play hockey, the reduced revenue proposal is ludicrous. Look at it this way; The league revenue right now is at $3.3 billion which has sky rocketed since the last lockout where revenue was $2.2 billion. During the last CBA/lockout the players had a revenue percentage of 75, and that was a much smaller cut as opposed to them making that amount with todays revenue. But here's the kicker since the lockout out each NHL team is making $47.3 million as opposed to $18.3 million before the lockout. Some teams are crying poor and instead of sorting the revenue out amongst the other owners they have decided to take it out against the players. But the players have a different idea, they want a bigger piece of the pie. Considering the players are the major reason the NHL has revenue they should be getting a little more of the revenue they are making the NHL. 

While this was just the first proposition and the revenue for players will end up being different in the end. The NHL needs to be careful about losing players to the dreaded KHL. As of right now the KHL doesn't have any issues throwing large sums of money to lure players away from the NHL, and it may work. Especially with young rookies who if this CBA gets passed will have to wait 5 years before getting a half decent contract. So if the Mr. Bettman isn't careful the KHL will end up with a lot of young talented hockey players that had their sights on the NHL. 

But the good news for hockey fans is this is just step one in a very long process. What the two sides are doing right now are offering their versions of what they want in a perfect NHL. There is still a lot of debating ahead before October and one side has to cave. 

NHL CBA Setting the Battle Grounds

How many of you are holding out hope or are optimistic that the 2012-2013 NHL season will start on time? Unfortunately those hopes took a major blow on the weekend after the NHL offered their new CBA proposal to the NHLPA. By the terms of the first offer it's clear this is going to be a battle fought to the bitter end.

Let's get right to the bottom of the CBA "negotiations". NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA head Donald Fehr don't like each other. Both are power hungry guys who wont backdown and don't like to lose. Bettman may not be interested in playing nice with Mr. Fehr to save the season, and in the end it may come down to who blinks first.

What Gary Bettman has proposed

• Reduce player revenue shares from 57% to 46
• Limit the lengths of contracts to 5 years
• Players have to wait 10 years to become Unrestricted Free Agents
• Get rid of signing bonuses
• NHL Entry level contracts extended to 5 years (instead of 3)
• End future salary arbitrations
• To get rid of front loaded contracts, the money must be the same or less in each of the 5 years.

Can you spell trouble? Out of the points the NHL has offered, I can see only 1 being approved by the NHLPA and that's the length of contracts can only be 5 years maximum. Players and owners have mentioned in the past they aren't fans of the long term 12 year deals that seem to be all the rage right now. Yes it's nice for a team to lock up a franchise player, but if you have multiple players tied up for 8 years how are younger players supposed to break into the league?

But the real hinging point around the CBA is the revenue between the league, players and owners. The players want more revenue while the league wants to give them less. A recipe for disaster. While I am in the boat that says the players are already making for too much money to play hockey, the reduced revenue proposal is ludicrous. Look at it this way; The league revenue right now is at $3.3 billion which has sky rocketed since the last lockout where revenue was $2.2 billion. During the last CBA/lockout the players had a revenue percentage of 75, and that was a much smaller cut as opposed to them making that amount with todays revenue. But here's the kicker since the lockout out each NHL team is making $47.3 million as opposed to $18.3 million before the lockout. Some teams are crying poor and instead of sorting the revenue out amongst the other owners they have decided to take it out against the players. But the players have a different idea, they want a bigger piece of the pie. Considering the players are the major reason the NHL has revenue they should be getting a little more of the revenue they are making the NHL. 

While this was just the first proposition and the revenue for players will end up being different in the end. The NHL needs to be careful about losing players to the dreaded KHL. As of right now the KHL doesn't have any issues throwing large sums of money to lure players away from the NHL, and it may work. Especially with young rookies who if this CBA gets passed will have to wait 5 years before getting a half decent contract. So if the Mr. Bettman isn't careful the KHL will end up with a lot of young talented hockey players that had their sights on the NHL. 

But the good news for hockey fans is this is just step one in a very long process. What the two sides are doing right now are offering their versions of what they want in a perfect NHL. There is still a lot of debating ahead before October and one side has to cave.