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CHL Minimum Wage Litigation Receives Boost

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The class action lawsuit by former and current Canadian Hockey League players against the CHL for failing to pay players minimum wage received a boost this week. TSN’s Rick Westhead reports that the lawyers for the players obtained the standard player contract for the QMJHL prior to 2013 that supports the contention that players were employees rather than amateurs.

The language used in the QMJHL SPC refers to “employment” and “supervision and control of the club,” which usually indicates employment rather than amateurism. The contract also states that players receive weekly salaries, and that certain clauses detail how a player may lose salary due to a suspension. The argument is that this language is more indicative of an employee-employer relationship than an amateur relationship.

The basic premise of the lawsuit is that players should have been paid at least minimum wage while playing for the junior clubs. The clubs’ counterargument is that players were merely amateur students and not employees. The crux of the issue will be whether the players were treated like employees, regardless of what titles they were given.

 

St. Louis Blues Practice Facility Development Temporarily Halted

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As an update to our previous story on the St. Louis Blues’s practice facility controversy, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that the St. Louis County Council voted 4-3 last night to pause construction of the new venue. The planned facility would be located in Creve Coeur Lake Memorial Park, about 20 miles from downtown St. Louis. According to the planning documents, the main practice facility will have three NHL-size indoor ice rinks and one NHL-sized covered outdoor rink.

Part of the reason for the delay is that the developers were supposed to gain U.S. federal parks approval before developing on land funded by federal park money. Last week, however, construction crews started grading the land—bulldozing, cutting down trees, etc—without the necessary federal approval. Organizers initially said that this work was unrelated to the practice facility development, but city permits expressly stated that the work was for constructing an ice rink.

The other reason for the delay is cost overrun. The initial project was estimated at $59.3MM but is now up to $66MM. Council members are frustrated at the misrepresentation and lack of disclosure by the developers, and now plan to delay issuing permits until further notice.

It does not seem like the county is against the facility itself, but would like more transparency as to what is actually going on. Public stadium (and arena) financing is always a controversy-tinged subject, and this facility is no different.

 

Agent: Athanasiou’s KHL And NHL Offers Very Different

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Ansar Khan of Mlive reports that still-unsigned RFA Andreas Athanasiou’s agent told Mlive that there is a “considerable difference in the amount of money” between offers from the Detroit Red Wings and KHL clubs. Athanasiou is coming off his ELC and looking for a significant raise.

Last season Athanasiou scored 18G and 11A in 64 games in just his second NHL season. The year before he potted 8G and 5A in 37 games, while splitting time with Detroit and its AHL affiliate Grand Rapids Griffins.

Previous reports indicate that Athanasiou is considering signing in the KHL if he cannot obtain a satisfactory contract in the NHL, but some think the KHL threats are mere posturing. Red Wings GM Ken Holland said that the team has made multiple offers based on who the organization felt were comparable player contracts. Detroit also faces a cap crunch that makes things even more difficult. Right now the Red Wings exceed the salary cap by approximately $3MM, though will gain around $3.9MM once the season starts and the team places injured Johan Franzen on LTIR.

New Practice Facility For St. Louis Blues In Political Controversy

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The St. Louis Blues find itself in some hot water this week as a proposed practice facility potentially runs afoul of U.S. federal conservation laws. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Stephen Deere reports that the St. Louis County Council may attempt to delay issuing permits to the project.

The practice facility is proposed to be built in Creve Coeur Lake Park, MO, about 20 miles from the St. Louis Blues’ Scottrade Center. But because federal funds from the Land and Water Conservation Fund were used to develop part of the park, any future development must receive approval from the National Park Service. The developers are still waiting for approval as state and federal officials review environmental assessments.

The Post-Dispatch’s Tony Messenger reports that developers have begun bulldozing and grading the proposed site, despite not receiving the required approvals. Messenger writes that county officials state that the work is unrelated to the practice arena development, but city permits authorizing the work list the purpose as “Construction of an Ice Center.”

 

Calgary Flames Sign Brett Kulak

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The Calgary Flames have signed defenseman Brett Kulak to a one-year, two-way deal worth $650K at the NHL level, reports Sportsnet’s Pat Steinberg. Kulak was a restricted free agent coming off his three-year entry-level contract this offseason.

Kulak—drafted in the fourth round of the 2012 NHL draft by the Flames—has bounced between the Flames and its AHL affiliate Stockton Heat. Last season Kulak played 21 NHL games and earned 3 assists. In 22 AHL games he scored 2 goals and 8 assists.

Kulak will compete for one of the last defensive spots open on the Flames’ blueline. Right now the team has five defensemen signed for at least three more seasons, and a sixth in Matt Bartkowski on an expiring deal. If Kulak wants to earn a raise next season, he’ll have to fight his way into the lineup.

The signing leaves the Flames with two RFAs left to sign—forward Sam Bennett and defenseman Tyler Wotherspoon. The team has approximately $7MM in cap space to fit in those two players before the season starts.

 

Connor Brown Still Unsigned As Training Camp Approaches

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The NHL season looms ever closer, but a key part of the Toronto Maple Leafs youth movement remains unsigned, reports the Toronto Star’s Kevin McGran. Breakout player Connor Brown is still an unsigned restricted free agent after finishing his ELC this past season.

Expect Brown to get a significant raise from his three-year ELC playing him $2.775MM over three years. In his first full season, Brown put up 20G and 16A in 82 games. The problem is that the Leafs are hard up for cap space. The team had to use the rarely-invoked offseason LTIR to fit in all their contracts. They should have some space come puck drop, but every dollar is important going forward for this organization.

Brown is not alone, however. Forwards David Pastrnak, Alexander Wennberg, and Bo Horvat all remain unsigned. Many pundits assumed that all parties were waiting for the Edmonton Oilers to come to terms with Leon Draisaitl to set the market. Now that Draisaitl is locked up—8 years at $8.5MM a year—more RFAs should sign with their teams.

Islanders Pressured To Return To Nassau Coliseum

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The New York Islanders are being pressured by Mikhail Prokhorov—owner of the Isles’ current home the Barclays Center—to play more games at Nassau Coliseum, reports Josh Kosman of the New York Post. The Islanders moved from Nassau Coliseum to the Barclays Center after the 2014-15 season.

The reason for the pressure is that the previous owner of Nassau Coliseum promised local officials that a hockey team would play in the arena. Despite new ownership, the town of Uniondale, N.Y. could hold Nassau Coliseum in default of its obligations.

When the Islanders left Nassau Coliseum the arena only held around 13,000 people, and it is doubtful whether it has significantly increased capacity. The Islanders do have a pre-season game in the arena this year, but nothing else is scheduled so far.

Complicating matters is that the Islanders are in negotiations with Prokhorov over its tenancy at the Barclays Center. Prokhorov wants to reduce the amount he pays the team for its games, and the team wants more flexibility to opt out of any contract.

Five Key Stories: 8/13/17 – 8/20/17

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Another slow week during the August NHL doldrums. Most experienced hockey insiders use this time to vacation without worrying about breaking news. Nevertheless, PHR is here to report on all the news, all the time. Despite the doldrums, the hockey world saw one of the most anticipated summer signings, injuries, NCAA free agents, and a new AHL team. Check out the five most important stories below:

Leon Draisaitl Signs 8-Year / $68MM Contract with the Edmonton Oilers
Leon Draisaitl, a restricted free agent this summer, agreed to an eight-year, $68MM contract with the Edmonton Oilers. That deal will pay Draisaitl an average of $8.5MM a year. The contract makes Draisaitl one of the highest paid players in the league, coming in tied for the 10th-highest cap hit in the league next season.

KHL Signings: Alexey Marchenko, Marek Mazanec, and Dwight King
This week saw three NHLers sign KHL deals. Marek Mazanec goes from the Nashville Predators to HC Slovan Bratislava. The signing was unusual because Nashville and Mazanec agreed to a two-way, $650K contract earlier this summer. Dwight King signed with Avtomobilist after finishing last season with the Los Angeles Kings and Montreal Canadiens. Finally, former Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Alexey Marchenko is rumored to have signed with CSKA Moscow after being unconditionally waived by the Maple Leafs.

Injuries: NYI Shane Price and NJD Travis Zajac Out for Months
The Metropolitan Division lost two players to significant injuries this week. The New York Islanders lost forward Shane Prince for four-to-six months after Prince underwent ankle surgery. Prince was poised to step up this season after showing elite offensive ability in the AHL. Across the state line, the New Jersey Devils lost star forward Travis Zajac to a torn pectoral muscle. Zajac underwent surgery this week and will also be out four-to-six months. This is a huge blow to a team looking to build on drafting the first overall pick.

Will Butcher Becomes NCAA Free Agent
As expected, Will Butcher declined to sign with the Colorado Avalanche—the team who drafted him—and became an unrestricted free agent. Butcher most recently won the Hobey Baker award for best men’s NCAA hockey player. While Butcher will not garner as much attention as Jimmy Vesey and Justin Schultz, he has already met with numerous teams seeking his services.

Matt Cullen Signs with the Minnesota Wild
Stanley Cup-winning Matt Cullen signed a one-year deal worth $1MM (plus $700k in performance bonuses) with the Minnesota Wild. Cullen had been reportedly deciding between the Wild and Penguins, but eventually decided to return home to Minnesota and forego his shot at a “three-peat” with Pittsburgh. 2017-18 will mark his 20th season in the NHL, and he remains a very effective two-way center. Despite playing some of the lowest minutes of his career, he registered more than 30 points for the 13th time, and continued his career-long streak of winning more than 50% of his draws. He’ll likely slot into the fourth-line role in Minnesota, but will provide ample depth behind the star-studded forward group.

 

PHR Originals: 8/13/17 – 8/20/17

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Each week Pro Hockey Rumors supplements its news articles with original pieces from our writers. This week brought us excellent and in-depth articles on a variety of prescient topics, including salary cap deep dives, free agent profiles, and future prognostications. Check out the best of the best below:

Salary Cap Deep Dives
Our writers continued with our salary cap deep dive series by previewing the Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Tampa Bay Lightning, and the Washington Capitals. The Maple Leafs will be tight to the cap in the coming future, the Caps may lose a valuable defenseman or goaltender, GM Steve Yzerman has worked magic in Tampa Bay, and the Bruins are set to rebuild on the fly. Check out each of them here:

Boston Bruins
Tampa Bay Lightning
Toronto Maple Leafs
Washington Capitals

An Early Look at the 2018 Draft Class
This article breaks down five of the likeliest players to headline the 2018 NHL draft class. Swedish prospect Rasmus Dahlin leads the pack with his Erik Karlsson comparisons, but the creative hands of Andrei Svechnikov could garner more attention as the Russian plays for the OHL Barrie Colts. Joe Veleno, Adam Boqvist, and Brady Tkachuk round out the group.

The Oldest NHL Rosters Going Forward
Seth Lawrence looks at the three oldest NHL rosters going into the 2017-18 NHL season and dissects what each team needs to do to remain (or become) successful. While an older team is not necessarily a detriment, it does imply that the team has few young players playing meaningful roles. In a salary cap era, successful teams need productive players on cheap contracts to maintain competitiveness.

Upcoming UFA Goaltenders With Something to Prove
Next year’s goaltending UFA crop may lack star power, but it does contain many interesting potential rehabilitation projects. This season provides those pending UFA goaltenders with an opportunity to turn things around and show teams that they are worth more than their current reputation belies. Whether it’s a former starter regulated to backup duties, or an aging veteran with just enough left in the tank, the following goaltenders can significantly improve their stock going into unrestricted free agency.

Comparing Distances Between NHL and AHL affiliates
This article breaks down how far each team’s AHL affiliate is from its parent club. Some teams have a local AHL club in the same city, while others have teams over 1,000 miles away. Having a relatively local AHL affiliate provides ample benefits for an NHL club. Having coaching staff in the same vicinity allows the NHL and AHL club to more seamlessly instil a organization playing system, and reduces travel issues when recalling or reassigning players. But not every team enjoys that benefit.

Free Agent Profile: Lauri Korpikoski
Unrestricted free agent winger Lauri Korpikoski hasn’t been able to build upon the offensive potential he displayed earlier in his career with the Coyotes but he has still successfully carved out a bottom six niche role over the past few years.  Despite being a safe bet for around 20 points in a lower spot in the lineup, he has yet to land somewhere for 2017-18.

Czech Republic Could Have Olympic Edge With Unsigned Players
With the NHL not allowing its players to play in the 2018 Winter Olympics, the playing field is suddenly much more level for less historically-dominant nations. One nation—the Czech Republic—seems to be in positions to best take advantage due to key unsigned free agents. Jaromir Jagr, Milan and Zbynek Michalek, and others could turn the Czech Republic into the most talented team in the tournament.

St. Louis Blues Prospect Undergoes Surgery, Out Until December

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The St. Louis Blues announced today that prospect goaltender Luke Opilka underwent successful surgery to repair a torn left hip labrum. Opilka had been dealing with the injury throughout last season with the OHL Kitchener Rangers. The Blues expect Opilka to be out until December 2017.

This is the second hip surgery for Opilka. He underwent hip surgery last offseason in an attempt to help him in the long term. Opilka came back and put up a 3.51 SV% and a .889 GAA in 31 games for Kitchener.

The Blues drafted Opilka 146th overall in the 2015 NHL draft. It was unclear whether Opilka would remain in the OHL as an over-ager, or make the transition to the AHL. Unfortunately, the Blues do not have a full-time AHL affiliate until 2018-19. The Blues did call call Opilka up from the OHL during the Blues’ playoffs last season, but the young goaltender did not dress for any games. His presence was more for practice fodder and to give the NHL goaltenders a rest.

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