[News] 4 year CBA Ratified. MOU released

[Canada 02]

great informative tweet from Pike

https://twitter.com/user/status/1943726662782513491

[getbak]

The playoff cap article is quite long, but the gist of it as I can see:

A team's active 20 man roster for any playoff game must be cap compliant. The cap calculation will also account for buyouts, retained salaries, and buried salaries. It will not include performance and games played bonuses, but will include signing bonuses.



If a player was acquired in a retained-salary transaction, his full season's salary will be counted against the playoff cap, excluding the percentage that was retained. However, if the team that retained the salary makes the playoffs, only the amount they retained against the cap after the trade will count against their playoff cap.

For example: A player with a $10 million cap hit is traded at the halfway mark of the season and his original team retains 25% of the salary in the trade. If both teams make the playoffs that season, the player's playoff cap hit for the team that acquired him will be $7.5 million ($10 million minus 25%). The team that traded him will also have a dead cap hit during the playoffs of $1.25 million (half of 25% of $10 million because they only retained the salary for half the season).

[getbak]

The new draft rights rules will take effect with players drafted in 2027.

[Freeway]

This "getbak" person keeps finding little details I missed!

[Freeway]

Originally Posted by getbak

The playoff cap article is quite long, but the gist of it as I can see:

A team's active 20 man roster for any playoff game must be cap compliant. The cap calculation will also account for buyouts, retained salaries, and buried salaries. It will not include performance and games played bonuses, but will include signing bonuses.



If a player was acquired in a retained-salary transaction, his full season's salary will be counted against the playoff cap, excluding the percentage that was retained. However, if the team that retained the salary makes the playoffs, only the amount they retained against the cap after the trade will count against their playoff cap.

For example: A player with a $10 million cap hit is traded at the halfway mark of the season and his original team retains 25% of the salary in the trade. If both teams make the playoffs that season, the player's playoff cap hit for the team that acquired him will be $7.5 million ($10 million minus 25%). The team that traded him will also have a dead cap hit during the playoffs of $1.25 million (half of 25% of $10 million because they only retained the salary for half the season).

NVM, disregard, I read it wrong.

[getbak]

Originally Posted by Freeway

NVM, disregard, I read it wrong.

Yeah, I had to re-read it a couple of times to figure out what they're getting at.

[getbak]

For the Emergency Goalie rule, he can be employed by the team in another role, but...

In order to be eligible to serve as a Club's Emergency Goaltender Replacement, an individual must not:

• have played an NHL Game under an NHL SPС;
• have played in more than 80 professional hockey games;
• have played professional hockey in the prior three (3) seasons;
• have another current contractual obligation that would preclude the ability to serve as the Club's
• Emergency Goaltender Replacement; and
• be on the Reserve List or Restricted Free Agent List of an NHL Club.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by getbak

For the Emergency Goalie rule, he can be employed by the team in another role, but...

So...what you're saying is that the Pocket Dawg vendor who plays beer league on weekends is a perfectly serviceable EBUG?

He's already in the building...

[getbak]

Originally Posted by Locke

So...what you're saying is that the Pocket Dawg vendor who plays beer league on weekends is a perfectly serviceable EBUG?

He's already in the building...

Apparently. It does require the team to provide the player's qualifications to the league and he must be approved, so the Pocket Dawg vendor would likely need to have played high-level hockey somewhere in his past.

[Freeway]

Originally Posted by getbak

Yeah, I had to re-read it a couple of times to figure out what they're getting at.

Acquire a player? It's the full-season cap hit, minus retention, but only if he plays.


Retain some salary? It's the pro-rated retention hit, no matter what.

[getbak]

Another thing they've added that I haven't seen reported anywhere is a new Midseason Professional Try-Out agreement.

This will have a maximum length of 10 days and allow a player to try-out for a team for the purposes of earning an NHL contract. He will not be eligible to play any games during the try-out.

If he is offered a contract by another team during the tryout period, the team he signed the PTO with will have the right to match the offer.

[sureLoss]

Interesting mid-season Professional Try Out in the MOU:

Players can sign a PTO that lasts up to 10 days during the season.
Midseason PTO players are not eligible for NHL games.
Team that signs the player to a PTO has right of first refusal if the player is offered a contract from another team during the PTO.

[getbak]

Nothing in the MOU seems to apply the changes retroactively, so it would appear that the new maximum contract lengths won't kick in until September 15, 2026.

This means that Andersson (and any 2026 UFAs) will still be able to sign 7-year contracts from July 1 - September 14 next year (and 8-year extensions prior to July 1).

It should also mean that players whose contracts expire July 1, 2027 will be able to sign 8-year extensions next summer prior to September 15.

[getbak]

A few other tidbits I noticed (confirming many things that were already reported):

• European players signing their first NHL contract at age 25 or older no longer require one-year ELC (aligns with the rule for North American players).
  
  
• Each team will be able to send a maximum of one 19 year-old junior player to the AHL without first offering him back to his junior team (subject to agreement with the CHL).
  
  
• Deferred salary contracts cannot be signed after September 15, 2026.
  
  
• NHL minimum salary will increase $50,000 per year for the 4 years of this agreement from $850,000 to $1,000,000 (currently $775,000).
  
  
• Performance bonuses for veteran players adds condition that will allow players who spent the final 70 days of the previous regular season on IR and who didn't play more that 2 playoff games to sign a one-year contract with performance bonuses. Previously, this only was only allowed if the player spent a minimum of 100 total days of the previous season on IR.
  
  
• There must be at least 75 in-season days between salary-retained transactions on the same contract. No more double-retained transactions on the same trade.
  
  
• Signing, Roster, and Reporting bonuses are limited to 60% of the total compensation for the contract.
  
  
• Front-loaded contracts can't vary year-over-year by more than 20% of the first year's total compensation. The lowest total compensation in any year of a front-loaded contract can't be less than 71% of the highest.
  
  
• All players are entitled to their own hotel rooms on road trips. No longer limited to veterans.
  
  
• Sponsorship rules removes restrictions on endorsing alcohol and adds restrictions on endorsing cannabis products.
  
  
• Teams will play a maximum of 4 preseason games, and players who have played more than 100 NHL games (including games dressed for goalies) will not play in more than 2 preseason games.

[Freeway]

Originally Posted by getbak

Nothing in the MOU seems to apply the changes retroactively, so it would appear that the new maximum contract lengths won't kick in until September 15, 2026.

This means that Andersson (and any 2026 UFAs) will still be able to sign 7-year contracts from July 1 - September 14 next year (and 8-year extensions prior to July 1).

It should also mean that players whose contracts expire July 1, 2027 will be able to sign 8-year extensions next summer prior to September 15.

I have asked the league about this.


(Is the distinction what year the contract begins, e.g., 2026-27 or later, or when the deal is agreed to, e.g., before the Sept. 16, 2026 CBA start date?)

[Parallex]

Originally Posted by getbak

[*]Sponsorship rules removes restrictions on endorsing alcohol and adds restrictions on endorsing cannabis products.

Squares.

[Scroopy Noopers]

Originally Posted by Parallex

Squares.

No problem with gambling though…. Stupid.

[FBI]

A few things you can COUNT on at CP:

getbak reading all the boring stuff and knowing all the details about CBA and obscure NHL things
Sandman (& cral) knowing everything about all the prospects
hwy19man knowing everything about the schedule
sureloss knowing any news before anybody else does
gaskal gathering edmonton tears
scorpion knowing everything about calgary radio hosts
royle,sec,and diss knowing about trades before they happen
3 or 4 regular trolls
the rest of us dying for any flames tidbits in the long summer

[indes]

Gambling endorsements only!!

[Locke]

Originally Posted by getbak

A few other tidbits I noticed (confirming many things that were already reported):

• European players signing their first NHL contract at age 25 or older no longer require one-year ELC (aligns with the rule for North American players).
  
  
• Each team will be able to send a maximum of one 19 year-old junior player to the AHL without first offering him back to his junior team (subject to agreement with the CHL).
  
  
• Deferred salary contracts cannot be signed after September 15, 2026.
  
  
• NHL minimum salary will increase $50,000 per year for the 4 years of this agreement from $850,000 to $1,000,000 (currently $775,000).
  
  
• Performance bonuses for veteran players adds condition that will allow players who spent the final 70 days of the previous regular season on IR and who didn't play more that 2 playoff games to sign a one-year contract with performance bonuses. Previously, this only was only allowed if the player spent a minimum of 100 total days of the previous season on IR.
  
  
• There must be at least 75 in-season days between salary-retained transactions on the same contract. No more double-retained transactions on the same trade.
  
  
• Signing, Roster, and Reporting bonuses are limited to 60% of the total compensation for the contract.
  
  
• Front-loaded contracts can't vary year-over-year by more than 20% of the first year's total compensation. The lowest total compensation in any year of a front-loaded contract can't be less than 71% of the highest.
  
  
• All players are entitled to their own hotel rooms on road trips. No longer limited to veterans.
  
  
• Sponsorship rules removes restrictions on endorsing alcohol and adds restrictions on endorsing cannabis products.
  
  
• Teams will play a maximum of 4 preseason games, and players who have played more than 100 NHL games (including games dressed for goalies) will not play in more than 2 preseason games.