I'm surprised this piece hasn't been picked up. While the reporter could/should have expanded a bit on some of the questions and issues as they're pretty interesting, there's still a few interesting comments from Bill Daly.
Star-Ledger Link to Bill Daly Q&A:
Some excerpts:
*Admits conventional television has been a challenge for the NHL for a while and continues to be a challenge.
*Versus could have done a better job with content they did/did not pick-up, but feels they’re improving and much of this was expected
*The NHL never meant to take hitting out of the game, and hopes it continues. “What we have made a conscious effort to deal with in an effective way are hits that are dangerous.â€
*Sees a potential for abuse in the rental player industry. “Obviously an agreement like that, whether implied or expressed, would clearly be a viola tion of our (CBA) as well as league rules and bylaws.†Mentions this has been explored with the NHLPA, but doesn’t expect any changes
--This is probably the biggest surprise to me. Anyone know what Daly is referring to when he says the CBA has provisions to dissuade teams from this behavior? It almost sounds like wishful thinking in that he’d like to have a clause about this but the NHLPA would not be amenable to it.
*Currently projecting about 6-7 percent growth in revenues = $47-49 million cap. If inflation factors are applied per CBA provision, which were not done in the past, this figure could go up by an additional $1-2 million.
Star-Ledger Link to Bill Daly Q&A:
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
BY RICH CHERE
Star-Ledger Staff
Q: How healthy is the NHL?
Healthy and getting healthier. Obviously we came from a position where too many of our franchises were not healthy and the collective bargaining agreement hasn't totally corrected that. Cer tainly it's provided a foundation on which our clubs can become healthy. That's the stage we're in now.
Some excerpts:
*Admits conventional television has been a challenge for the NHL for a while and continues to be a challenge.
*Versus could have done a better job with content they did/did not pick-up, but feels they’re improving and much of this was expected
*The NHL never meant to take hitting out of the game, and hopes it continues. “What we have made a conscious effort to deal with in an effective way are hits that are dangerous.â€
*Sees a potential for abuse in the rental player industry. “Obviously an agreement like that, whether implied or expressed, would clearly be a viola tion of our (CBA) as well as league rules and bylaws.†Mentions this has been explored with the NHLPA, but doesn’t expect any changes
--This is probably the biggest surprise to me. Anyone know what Daly is referring to when he says the CBA has provisions to dissuade teams from this behavior? It almost sounds like wishful thinking in that he’d like to have a clause about this but the NHLPA would not be amenable to it.
*Currently projecting about 6-7 percent growth in revenues = $47-49 million cap. If inflation factors are applied per CBA provision, which were not done in the past, this figure could go up by an additional $1-2 million.