Quote:
Originally Posted by Sofa GM
The NHL is going to have to do something here in the near future or there is going to be a big problem (there already is a problem). It used to be that for the most part players were very loyal to the teams that drafted or traded for them outside of issues with the coach or other players. And this of course is assuming that the pay is equal which I think in todays NHL is pretty much the case. Now players want to leave cause they want to live in different cities, where the tax breaks are better etc. What this will translate to long term is there will no longer be teams in Calgary, Winnipeg, Ottawa, Edmonton, Buffalo, etc.
The NHL needs to do a few things to help get some parity back if the landscape is changing like this. A good place to start would be compensatory picks. If a player decides he wants to leave his team as a UFA if there has been an equal offer in place then that team should be awarded a compensatory pick based on the production of that player. In the latest version of Gaudreau leaving and based on his production the Flames should be awarded a first round pick (at the end of the round) as compensation for him walking.
The other thing that needs to be looked at is some equalization around the taxation of players in different markets. How can higher tax markets compete with those such as Florida where the tax rates are significantly lower. It isn’t coincidence that Tampa Bay has gone to three straight Stanley Cup finals and the Florida Panthers won the Presidents Trophy. In my opinion if there is a a 5-10 % overall benefit for a player to play for certain teams (ie Tampa/Florida) than those teams should have 5-10% less cap space to work with. Teams in higher tax locations would then be afforded the luxury of paying slightly more for players to keep the take home for the player the same.
Of course I expect nothing to happen until when Edmonton loses Draisatl and McDavid or when Matthews walks on Toronto. But I do believe it is something that we will see in the future.
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There is going to be more of this not less
Players are going to push for earlier and more flexible free agency
Look to the nba for what the future looks like
It will get a lot more attention though when matthews walks from the leafs