Kinda weird that ended up in the CBA. I thought for sure they'd grandfather the old deals. It was always my defense of why the contracts weren't such a big deal, but with the changes, uh oh, yeah...
On the upside, most other major teams are in the same boat. Like Minnesota, boy howdy, those two contracts are looking pretty monstrous right now. Those guys both have to play until they are 41. No big deal, right?
I think Bettman was pissed by GMs working around the last CBA so blatantly and so quickly. Just look at how ridiculous the penalty was that they eventually slammed NJ with. I'm sorta surprised he got the owners to sign off on it, but it doesn't surprise me that it's something the league pushed for.
And I'd be nervous about the Parise deal if I'm Minny. That guy relies a lot on his legs, and skating tends to slip when players hit their thirties. And we think the Franzen deal is scary.