It's practically a monopoly for young, talented canadian players. They have demands, expectations and consequences similar to what you'd expect from a 16-20 pro league looking to run a profit. They're essentially a workforce and the student-athlete designation keeps costs down legally. I mean, the moment you have pro potential you're basically never going to touch those tuition payments and those are the players who bring fans to the games. If you wait too long, no free tuition. If you're going into engineering, you're paid partially. If you take a small sabatical, you lose the priviledge. If you get cut before Jan 10, you lose it. The amount basically came down to 8800$/student, which is essentially a 14$/hr 4 month summer job, which only a portion of the athletes eventually use. Fine if you're a non profit, but as you said, this is a business, meaning with profits and higher team valuation in mind.
