demonic
Registered User
- Mar 10, 2005
- 343
- 39
So we know that Podkolzin is committed to his KHL club for the next two years, and because the NHL does not have a transfer agreement with the KHL, the only way out of it would be for the player himself (or his agent) to buy out the contract. I've seen the number $1,000,000 floating around, but I can't find any official confirmation on that, so I think it might be speculation. We also know that he's said that he plans to play out the contract, and that may actually be the best thing for his development. But since it's summer and there isn't much going on, I want to entertain another option, that Canucks fans start a Kickstarter campaign to buy out the final year of his contract with no involvement from the team. I don't believe anything like this has happened in professional sports before, and there are probably good reasons for that which I'm not considering, but I know that I'd be willing to put down $100 or so to get him a year early, and I'm probably not alone.
The campaign would probably have to be structured to have Podkolzin himself or his agent as the beneficiary, with language that would only allow him to claim the money if SKA St. Petersburg accepted the offer and committed to releasing him. It would also need to have a clause that cancelled the whole thing if the NHL (or KHL) stepped in and blocked it, although I'm not sure what grounds they would have to do that. But I'm thinking that this could be done with no risk to the contributors. If it didn't catch on, it dies on the vine and everyone keeps their money. If it did catch on and a significant amount was committed, but the club rejects it or Vasili decides to play out the contract anyway, everyone keeps their money and a positive message is sent to the player that we're excited to have him. Are their any risks or issues with this that I'm not considering? Would the NHL have any grounds or motivation to step in? Could it actually work?
The campaign would probably have to be structured to have Podkolzin himself or his agent as the beneficiary, with language that would only allow him to claim the money if SKA St. Petersburg accepted the offer and committed to releasing him. It would also need to have a clause that cancelled the whole thing if the NHL (or KHL) stepped in and blocked it, although I'm not sure what grounds they would have to do that. But I'm thinking that this could be done with no risk to the contributors. If it didn't catch on, it dies on the vine and everyone keeps their money. If it did catch on and a significant amount was committed, but the club rejects it or Vasili decides to play out the contract anyway, everyone keeps their money and a positive message is sent to the player that we're excited to have him. Are their any risks or issues with this that I'm not considering? Would the NHL have any grounds or motivation to step in? Could it actually work?
