Things might get interesting.
Full fledged free agency???
I’m not surprised to see speculation about this issue. Back in late November, John Shannon suggested that more than a few agents were talking about “breach of contract and the OHL.”
There is a history to this, if anyone cares, dating back to 1974 and John Tonelli, a member of the Toronto Marlboros who legally broke his contract with the club to sign with the WHA.
The Marlboros tried in court to stop him but lost.
Why did they lose? It’s all about Ontario contract law and minors.
Generally speaking, minors are legally bound by contracts UNLESS the terms are not beneficial to the minor.
In 1974, Tonelli turned 18, wanted to turn pro, and was easily able to demonstrate to an Ontario Superior Court judge that the contract he signed with the Marlboros when he was a minor was not “beneficial” to him.
Ontario case law is fairly clear: a contract can only be repudiated by the minor before or shortly after he/she reaches the legal age of majority. That’s what Tonelli did, and he legally walked away.
Subsequent to the landmark Tonelli legal ruling, major junior hockey leagues changed things to prevent any other players from doing the same thing.
The OHL has ensured that there are clearly spelled out benefits being passed both ways, which means minors are now provided with “beneficial” contracts. For instance, clubs now agree to pay for a player’s post-secondary tuition, pay for the player’s room and board while a member of the team, provide professional training and quality coaching, and a bunch of other things that were not part of Tonelli’s contract.
This is where the (potential) problem is today. OHL teams are not providing ANY of these benefits to the players. In theory, based on the Tonelli ruling 47 years ago, players would be able to repudiate their standard player agreements because they are not “beneficial” to them.
The issue is not who is or is not to blame for what amounts to a cancelled season. Rather, the issue is “does the player clearly BENEFIT” from the contract.
I don’t expect too many, if any, players and agents to go down this road and actually repudiate the standard player agreements.
But it’s not theoretically impossible.