CBA (Common sense! Bettman Angry)

This is the lastest report issued by NHLPA executive director Don Fehr. The NHLPA submitted an alternative proposal to the owners that it believes is fair to both the players and the owners, and tries to make an honest attempt to help the smaller market teams that are in severe financial trouble.  The player’s first proposal  will allow the game to grow. This rather open gesture is attempting to fix the cash problems the league has, while leaving the secondary issues off the table.

Players compensation would grow at fixed rates which would result in player compensation being reduced by potentially more than $800 million over the next three seasons (depending on revenue growth). While the owners would like to ask the players to lose a quarter of their pay(again), this significantly simplified revenue sharing system specifically designed to help clubs in need of assistance. This could only stabilize the league, as half the teams are in trouble.

Increased flexibility for teams. This will help GMs to put their teams together including awarding extra draft picks for teams in trouble and allowing teams to trade dollars and players and in limited cases, It would also balance out on another level allowing a  small amount of teams to go over or under the salary cap.

Under the NHLPA proposal, at the end of three years, the players would have an option for a fourth which would ‘snap-back’ to the current agreement.

In essence, the players are proposing to partner with the financially stronger NHL owners to bring stability to the industry and assist those clubs that are less financially stable. OK, owners. The players want to save the league from itself(vis-a-vie, YOU!). Now you can take this as a model blueprint for you to help the players make a league that in time could compete with the MLB or the NFL. Or, you can shut down your minds, think with your wallets, and have a lockout. What’s the harm in that? The odds of you actually destroying the league while Bettman grabs Nero’s fiddle and plays a delightful selection of the classics while blaming the players.

On one side, thirty governors….some of them who like this plan as a building block to a good CBA.  On the other