The NHLPA should consider this...

[Lanny MacDonald*]

So the NHL's deal isn't likeable at the moment because of the lack of potential money under profit sharing. Maybe they should look at it as a three investment, much like the 24% roll back was. Think about it for a minute. If the owners are so concerned about getting their houses in order and making a profit, then the NHLPA should work with them to attain that. Get the NHL to run lean and clean up their mess, then focus on making profit. And where is the really big profit? TV contract.

At present the NHL does not have a good contract and is not generating much revenue off of it. The league is not in a position to count this revenue as anything but an unknown. In other words, its potentially all gravy. If the NHL and the NHLPA can work together to make the game more marketable and sellable, this TV contract could be a gold mine for the PA. If the players are so sure that their abilities can take the game to the next level, is this not the gamble to make? You're already guaranteed 54% of the TV revenues, and if the contract takes off and proves to be a cash cow (in other words extremely profitable) the players are going to make 50% of the profits there.

There is great risk involved for the PA in doing this, but if the PA can work with the league in selling the players and selling the game, getting it to catch on and grow greater TV revenues, this could be a huge untapped cash reserve for the players.

Click to read more...

 

[Levitate]

what's your point...that the players should jump into an unfavorable deal because they could make some money off of TV revenues that dont' exist?

so what, any kind of deal the players are "holding out for" would get them a piece of that money anyways if it ever appeared.

this isn't any kind of incentive for the players to sign on to the NHLs last deal.


i mean, yeah it's a good idea for the players and league to talk about ways to improve the game, make it more popular and therefor get better TV deals (and i think they've already done that) but it's not a simple thing and it's not an incentive at this point to jump to signing a CBA

 

[Jazz]

I don't follow basketball, but I heard Helene Elliot of the LA Times say in a radio interview that once the NBA got it's salary cap, the players got smart and started to promote the game themselves (in addition to the marketing machine that Stern setup) and thus the game's profile increased and then the TV contracts came along. I do remember when the NBA finals used to be shown on tape-delays on late-night weekends and that notion is unthinkable now....

 

[Levitate]

cap or no cap it's still a good idea to promote the game more to get better TV deals, etc

without a cap, players still benefit from that money because then owners will be willing to spend more on the players cuz they'll have more money

 

[jcab2000]

I do believe that a huge reason for the terrible tv deal they got was due to the labor uncertainty.

 

[Beatnik]

I don't follow basketball, but I heard Helene Elliot of the LA Times say in a radio interview that once the NBA got it's salary cap, the players got smart and started to promote the game themselves (in addition to the marketing machine that Stern setup) and thus the game's profile increased and then the TV contracts came along. I do remember when the NBA finals used to be shown on tape-delays on late-night weekends and that notion is unthinkable now....

Yeah the NBA is a good model for a CBA but it's not a cap, it's a luxury tax!

 

[Beatnik]

I do believe that a huge reason for the terrible tv deal they got was due to the labor uncertainty.

And also because a stanley cup finals game gets less rating than the average arena football game.

 

[Levitate]

doh, weird double post situation, nm this

 

[snakepliskin]

so if the players understand that the tv money is not there at this time -and they realize some major corrections need to be made (hence the %24 rollback) and they would have the option to re-negotiatie in 4yrs-and currently they are losing 100% of their salary-WTF WON'T THEY AGREE TO A DEAL! -if in 4yrs the economics are better they can work on it then-plus if this 4yr period turns out to be profitable they would have a profit-sharing plan to lean on--they are cutting their own throat-STUPIDS!

 

[HckyFght*]

So the NHL's deal isn't likeable at the moment because of the lack of potential money under profit sharing. Maybe they should look at it as a three investment, much like the 24% roll back was. Think about it for a minute. If the owners are so concerned about getting their houses in order and making a profit, then the NHLPA should work with them to attain that. Get the NHL to run lean and clean up their mess, then focus on making profit. And where is the really big profit? TV contract.

At present the NHL does not have a good contract and is not generating much revenue off of it. The league is not in a position to count this revenue as anything but an unknown. In other words, its potentially all gravy. If the NHL and the NHLPA can work together to make the game more marketable and sellable, this TV contract could be a gold mine for the PA. If the players are so sure that their abilities can take the game to the next level, is this not the gamble to make? You're already guaranteed 54% of the TV revenues, and if the contract takes off and proves to be a cash cow (in other words extremely profitable) the players are going to make 50% of the profits there.

There is great risk involved for the PA in doing this, but if the PA can work with the league in selling the players and selling the game, getting it to catch on and grow greater TV revenues, this could be a huge untapped cash reserve for the players.

The NHL has spent the last ten years pandering to TV in every conceivable way. Remember the "glow puck?" The instigator rule, the 2nd referee, the moving of the lines, the point for overtime losses, the 4 on 4 in OT, all of it was a knee jerk response to network criticisms, and after all those gestures to prove to the big boys that the NHL would play ball with them, big TV turned them down. That's why we're in this mess, because the NHL put it's wagon before the horse and structured a deal with PA taking a looming TV deal for granted.Fact is, even the mighty NFL loses big money for their TV network carriers who only pay the price to pimp their programming.Fox, for instance, lost $320 mil alone on the NFL in '03. The NHL will have to grow it's markets first before the networks will jump in. And that will take a while. It's time for the NHL to put the wagons in a circle. They gambled and lost. Any player that was part of that temporary windfall shoopuld consider himself lucky. But the party is over.
-HckyFght!

 

[Lanny MacDonald*]

what's your point...that the players should jump into an unfavorable deal because they could make some money off of TV revenues that dont' exist?

No, my point is that they are not looking at the possibilities the CBA does offer. GUARANTEED 54% of revenues. That's the start. The players have been crying for months that they don't trust the owners and that millions of dollars are being hidden. Well if this is indeed true you are GUARANTEED 54% of those revenues that are found during an audit put together by both sides. There's a big plus without even looking at the profit sharing.

Going on to the profit sharing, there is a chance to make 50 cents on the dollar for every single dollar you can add to profit. There are many ways to make organizations more profitable that cost very little. The NHLPA could work with the NHL in defining these changes and bring greater profitablity to the individual franchises, increasing the players chances of greater profits in profit sharing. As well, players could bring new ideas for low cost/high profit products to the table that increase revenues, which they get 54% of, and get a 50% chunk of the profits.

How can someone not look at that and see how poorly the NHL has been run in the past 20 years and say that with better practices the NHL could be a gold mine? All you have to do is make the league more profitable and you're in the money. If you get the league to a profitable level with a TV contract that is non-existent, then when you DO get the TV deal that brings in huge chunks of money and is a cash cow you are set up to reap massive amounts of money.

For example, the NHLPA works with the NHL over the next three years to bring expenses down and bring profits to a level where the $115 million point is reached. If the league and the players manage to sell the game on TV and it garners a TV contract of $500 million (using this for simplicity sake) the players are guaranteed of getting 54% ($270 million) in base revenues and 50% of the $230 million profit ($115 million). By helping the league get to profitablity they could be the huge winners down the road with a new TV deal or if another huge revenue source is found. $385 million of a $500 million deal? Pretty good carrot if you ask me.

 

[Beatnik]

so if the players understand that the tv money is not there at this time -and they realize some major corrections need to be made (hence the %24 rollback) and they would have the option to re-negotiatie in 4yrs-and currently they are losing 100% of their salary-WTF WON'T THEY AGREE TO A DEAL! -if in 4yrs the economics are better they can work on it then-plus if this 4yr period turns out to be profitable they would have a profit-sharing plan to lean on--they are cutting their own throat-STUPIDS!

The does want a deal but they want a fair deal that does'nt make only them paying for the owners stupidity. Right now the players are negociating alone, it's hard to make a deal. The owners current offer is worst than the one of last summers, that's pathetic.

If the owners would have make a proposal similar to the NFL deal this lock-out would be over.

 

[DuklaNation]

I do believe that a huge reason for the terrible tv deal they got was due to the labor uncertainty.

Poor ratings is 95% of it.

 

[dakota]

Yeah the NBA is a good model for a CBA but it's not a cap, it's a luxury tax!

Its a soft cap... you can read more about how it works

http://members.cox.net/lmcoon/salarycap.htm#1