NHL has made a new, "secret" proposal to NHLPA??

According to today's finnish newspaper Iltalehti, Christian Ruuttu (former 'Hawk & Sabre) the GM of FEL team Espoo Blues says that according to his sources NHL has already made a new secret proposal to NHLPA and the season could be saved.

Direct translation:

"as far as I know the new proposal has already been made"

"last thursday I was certain that the season would be cancelled but now I'm more hopeful, the season could be suddenly saved after all"

The same thing happened 10 years ago when Ruuttu was playing for Chicago Blackhawks and were their NHLPA representative

"suddenly we got the call that you must come over to USA in 2 days despite being told only one day earlier that there wouldn't be a season"

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for those interested, Ruuttu has kept very close ties to NHL, especially Detroit which has sent their prospects & coaches to Finland for 2 years now to train with the FEL team.

We'll see...

 

In my own pessimistic ways...I will believe it when I see it

 

Further details:

- The paper quotes "Canadian website Slam" saying the owners are about to come up with a new proposal on Friday, even though NHL wouldn't officially comment on the issue.

- What Ruuttu has to say though, according to his "North American" sources the NHL has in fact already presented a new offer.

- Ruuttu's comments: "It's only when both parties have stood their ground that the negotiations really get started."

- "I never thought that the PA would come up with the terms that will rescue the league. It's the employers who are in charge."

- Ruuttu expects that Bettman and Goodenow have been busy negotiating one-on-one.

- "The new offer by NHL should be satisfactory to players. They are tired of hanging around in Europe and nobody wants to lose any more money", Ruuttu interprets the information received.

- "NHL must resume. Hockey can not afford to lose an entire season."

 

Also Ruuttu commented Krys Kolanos bailing from Espoo Blues during the x-mas break without telling even his agent that he's not coming back to Finland.

"Did we really fight ten years ago for guys like Kolanos so that they can get better contracts?"

"Players have to take more responsibility and honour the contracts they have signed""

 

Could be related or then again not, but NHL help Krystofer Kolanos went AWOL over his Christmas holidays and failed to show up in Espoo on Sunday. Ruuttu has been busy tracking his whereabouts with the player's agent ever since.

So what, then? Well, for instance either a) Wayne is busy herding his Yotes together in preparation for a salvaged season, or b) Kris-boy came up with the brilliant excuse: "Yo Mr GM, I sure would like to come back to beautiful sunny Feen-land but you see there's been this new proposal and it's all hush-hush so we'll be playing over here in no time..."

Pick your choice.

 

There's nothing on the slam website suggesting the owners are submitting a new proposal on Friday, at least not that I can find. I'm hoping it's true just can't find anything other then this post.

 

The only part of that story I put any stock into is Ruutu saying the players are getting sick of hanging around Europe and losing money. I don't see the impetus for the NHL to approach the NHLPA. I think the NHL has shown the union that they are not bluffing this time around and put the ball firmly in the unions court to give a proposal that seriously takes into account tying thresholds to a percentage of revenues. If anything I see the union approaching the NHL with a behind the scenes deal. Really all the rhetoric from the players camp the past week is not unlike the rhetoric that got ramped up the last time they weren't going to offer another deal but did anyways.

 

Christian Ruutu seems to be in with someone because this is the 3rd or 4th time he's come out with something in the Finnish newspapers and the last few times he's been pretty dead on.

 

I don't think he would risk his reputation with a direct quote of something like that. He's a GM of a professional hockey team after all, not some second rate rumor & gossip mongering 'journalist' like Larry Brooks.

 

I have a name for you that gives lie to your position - Brian Burke.

 

Umm what about Burke?

 

Well it would make sense that the owners are responsible for making the next offer, seeing as their last one was a joke.

 

This quote should be blazoned everywhere, especially if the NHL wants to try and put non-guaranteed contracts on the table later.

They have to make another proposal if they have any plans of putting in replacement players, because even the conservative labour board would have a hard time saying the NHL tried hard with their last proposal. Taking all the concessions from the players proposal and then sticking them on top of the cap that you want is not negotiation.

If the NHL has any hope of getting a deal done, you are looking at a hard cap around the area of 40-50 million dollars, not low 30's. OR an extremely severe luxury tax starting at 35 million and by 45 million have it over $1.

 

If Kolanos breached his contract, the team should have recourse. Will Kolanos be sued as most would most people breaking a contract?

I dont think the owners will get a hard cap number. But they will have to find something creative that is specific to hockeys needs. Currently there is a rookie cap, yet teams are free to spend whatever they wish on overall payroll. A cap, yet not a cap. Some such clever compromise will have to be found. Bettman and Goodenow are pretty bright. Im sure they can do it once they put their minds to it.

 

True, I checked Slam first thing myself as well although didn't bother to dig too deep. Anyways that's why I left it in quotes. It's the paper's own words, not something they attribute to Ruuttu, but I admit it doesn't add to the credibility of the story. Still, you can always wish.

 

Unlikely that Blues would bother. The players sense this too, John Madden left IFK in a similar fashion just a month ago. Vanished in thin air, literally, leaving the team GM scratching his head.

Going to courts in Finland just wouldn't be worth the effort, especially when you compare potential return to effort required. Especially as the player's assets are somewhere on another continent.

 

MAdden was playing with a per game -contract so he didn't break any contracts as far as I know.

 

How many times do the owners have to say that they won't get rid of Guaranteed contracts before it is no longer brought up? Was Bettman's clear and concise statement during the most recent press conference unclear to you or something?

 

read this site, it has great rumours, and most of them have come true.

 

Contracts are already not guaranteed. They can be bought out. Did Bettmans clear and concise statement mention anything about buyouts? How else will teams get cap space in a 34-38mil system? They will need flexibility. Will they have the flexibility to offer more than a 1 year contract anymore? How will the IR rules work? 2 way contracts? Waivers? Maybe thats all a good thing. But its fast talking to suggest it isnt guaranteeing contracts anymore when they achieve it through all the back doors they are proposing.

 

And since this proposal was supposed to hit on the 28th...and in less than 8 hours it will be the 29th...again my reason for pessimism

 

So the "secret" proposal could be coming from the NHLPA and not the NHL, eh? I guess when you smell smoke, there's gotta be fire. But the offer seems a bit unlikely to me:

NHLPA to accept a sliding salary cap, without any pay reductions...and instituting a salary cap that would start at 50 million for two years, and then go to 40 million for two years...also want free agency at 27, and if they are going to be partners they want a bigger cut of merchandising.

But it sounds reasonable that the players may give it one last effort to save the season before the January meeting by the owners to cancel the season.

 

What you conveniently forget to mention is that buyout clauses are not forced upon players against their will. They are something negotiated through an agent, most often to add years onto a contract (i.e. Team will give the player a five-year deal as long as there is a buyout option in year five). These are pretty common in baseball as well, except over there they're called "team options."

Will there be flexibility to offer more than a one-year contract? Hmmm ... are there only one-year deals in football? Basketball?

 

That Eklund in the article is nearly always wrong, the players he hangs with are decidedly uninformed, or deliberatley trying to make him look stupid. Heh,what are the odds.

 

I dont think buyouts are done on an individual basis. The amount is universal as per the negotiated CBA.

Buyouts are different from option years. A team or player can have an option to extend the contract at a predetermined rate, by a year as part of the deal. But this is separate and different from buying out contracts at 66% OR 75% of their remaining value.