Bill Daly on "Off the Record"

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Quite a few interesting exchanges during the show. http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/ Check out "Bill Daly on OTR"

The NHL Vice President and Chief Legal Officer appeared on a special prime time edition of the show on Tuesday to discuss the latest issues around the NHL lockout with Toronto Blue Jays President and CEO Paul Godfrey, player agent Mike Gillis and Erie Otters Owner/GM and former NHL team executive Sherry Bassin.

Two things that stood out for me. Daly stated the NHL is willing to explore any system, as long as it ties salaries to revenue. When asked specifically about a NBA style soft cap, Daly was very clear that the owners would be at the table making a deal, if it was in play.

The leagues negotiating stance is obviously not as intransigent as some have suggested.

Daly also made it clear that the PA has repeatedly refused, over the course of numerous years and attempts by the league, to sit down and attempt to define "hockey revenue". I'm sure this will be a major point if/when the league attempts to declare impasse. How can the PA be seen as bargaining in good faith if they won't even attempt to define major a crucial tool in any examination of the scope of the problem facing the league?

Some other interesting moments.

Daly and agent Mike Gillis had a fairly heated exchange over the Holik contract.

Godfrey was seen squirming noticably when the discussion turned to the MLB luxury tax and revenue sharing. He was obviously trying to put a brave face on the brutally non-competitive system currently in place in baseball, so as not to hurt his team's image, but his body language and continual references to the Rodriguez contract driving contracts up and Delgado out of TO said far more than his faint praise of the current MLB CBA.

All in all, a worthwhile show. Too bad they couldn't strap a muzzle on Bassin, who decided that we missed his "game is in trouble" rant the first five times he delivered it and it was therefore necessary to continually make the exact same speech.

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The leagues position is simple...if the players tie salary expenditures to revenues a deal will be fairly quick. When they do they are free to talk about what revenues belong where and what may or may not be missing in the URO's.

 

[shakes]

The leagues position is simple...if the players tie salary expenditures to revenues a deal will be fairly quick. When they do they are free to talk about what revenues belong where and what may or may not be missing in the URO's.

You have to love the "my way or the highway" approach to negotiation.

 

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You have to love the "my way or the highway" approach to negotiation.

Kind of like the PA refusal to discuss any link between salaries or revenue.

How about the PA's refusal to even discuss a definition of revenue, so the health of the league can be accurately examined?

My way or the highway (robbery) indeed.

 

[tantalum]

You have to love the "my way or the highway" approach to negotiation.

There is always one aspect of any CBA that has that aspect to it for both sides at this point of the negotiation. UNtil one side decides the other side's idea isn't so bad nothing is going to happen. I belive the leagues idea the better idea and that the players should recognize this. At this point in time the players don't. (and right now the owners don't recognize the players position as being valid...that may change who knows).