Hey Big Spender

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HFNHL Red Wings

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So with the first round of UFA offers closed the question becomes which GM(s) are going to be loose with the purse strings?

GM’s have been fairly lax in their financial constraint the past few years while the NHL has finally shown signs of some restraint. Last year the NHL average salary grew by less than 0.5% and early indications this season are that the average salary in the NHL is going to drop (inclusive of UFA’s resigned pre July 1st). Will HFNHL GM’s show the same restraint?

Mr. Swingstein did his part to ensure that HFNHL salaries increased notably for pending UFA’s and RFA’s signed pre-July 1st and adding upward salary pressure to this years HFNHL free agent period will be the HFNHL ‘AHL’ teams. These are teams who are currently below the mandated 68OV rule that must be met by the close of the preseason thereby increasing the number of buyers.

Team bankrolls have been under pressure in the past two seasons. Although this picture has often been distorted by the redistribution of funds amongst teams over time there is no question the erosion of the financial picture has been escalating. Six years ago the league began with $30M per team. Heading into our seventh season the average bank account is now $21.5M. Still healthier than that of many NHL teams but the rate of decline continues to accelerate.

Look not to increased revenue but instead to increased restraint for the reversal of this trend.

Maybe someone with some time, and a crystal ball, may want to come up with a list of the high bidders.

For the record my bidding was moderate (no offer over $2.5M). Some say I was a high bidder last year but then again it came from the team that made the second highest bid. Sort of like the Leafs complaining about the Rangers complaining about the Holik signing when their offer was equally ridiculous :-P
 

Ohio Jones

Game on...
Feb 28, 2002
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CD - Columbus

After consecutive seasons of being among the higher bidders for certain kinds of players on the UFA market (notably defencemen), becoming known along the way for offering "windfall" signing bonuses, fiscal realities have caught up with the Columbus Blue Jackets. To their credit, their investments turned into the team's first-ever post-season appearance - a heartbreaking game 7 loss to the Red Wings - but their bank account (as well as their prospect pool) paid the price for their climb.

The Jackets have therefore stuck to prospecting in this year's FA pool, which has had the effect of keeping their offers down within the range of the rookie max - and in many cases significantly below that ceiling.

On the bright side, Jackets fans can look forward to another strong year at Nationwide Arena, as all 20 players on the starting roster are already under contract for next year - a factor which no doubt influenced the team's strategy in the FA market. GM Doug Emerson has therefore turned his attention to rebuilding the team's depth chart after his somewhat spectacular (OK, not quite "Buffalo Sabres" spectacular, but still pretty impressive) series of trades to acquire star talent ravaged the Jackets' prospect pool last year - trades which also left the team without a pick in the first five rounds at last month's entry draft.

In other words, the Jackets seem to be saying, "we've got more than enough on our plates just coping with the huge contracts of Brendan Shanahan, Jeremy Roenick, Martin Brodeur and Adrian Aucoin (all added last season) without diving into the free agent market, thank you very much!".

A bit late, perhaps, coming as it does from a team with less than $10 million in the bank, but even a little fiscal prudence is better than none at all.

Milo Minderbinder
Columbus Discoverer
 

Donga

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Feb 28, 2002
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HFNHL Red Wings said:
Mr. Swingstein did his part to ensure that HFNHL salaries increased notably for pending UFA’s and RFA’s signed pre-July 1st and adding upward salary pressure to this years HFNHL free agent period will be the HFNHL ‘AHL’ teams.

I hope the increases are not always in the salaries. *cough ratings cough*
:help: :joker:
 
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