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Vancouverites celebrate after hub city bid collapses; NHL presses on |
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The Hub City drama came to an end in Vancouver on Thursday, when the Canucks issued a statement that confirmed they were out of the running.
By the time it was all said and done, it seemed like our region was breathing a sigh of relief. B.C.'s Covid-19 case numbers have gone up slightly over the past couple of weeks but overall, they remain low while cases skyrocket in many other regions.
Farhan Lalji summed up the mood very effectively:
As for the details of the "snag" that derailed the bid, it basically came down to this:
To put it another way: As I understand it, in B.C., when somebody tests positive, their "close contacts" are asked to self-isolate for 14 days to see whether or not they've contracted the virus. So — if a player was to test positive during the tournament, it makes sense that his teammates and opponents would be considered 'close contacts,' right? And if they're self-isolating, then obviously games can't be played.
I can see how the NHL wouldn't love that idea, given the commitments that they have to make for scheduling and satisfying their TV partners — and just trying to get the tournament completed in a timely fashion. That being said, the isolation strategy makes sense to me — but I guess health authorities in other regions see things differently. Of course, those regions haven't contained the virus the way that we have here in B.C., while following Dr. Bonnie Henry's guidance.
So — Pierre LeBrun is reporting on Friday that the pressure is now on the players to make a decision between Edmonton and Toronto, where authorities apparently have given their full approval to the NHL's plan.
We're two weeks away from the targeted July 10 opening date for training camp, which explains the time crunch. But I'm a little surprised that the league is hoping to settle and announce this, when the players still have a long list of other concerns surrounding their return to play.
As I posted in the comment thread yesterday, Larry Brooks of the New York Post dropped an article on Thursday that contained numerous details of the CBA extension that the NHL and the Players' Association have been working on, to try to smooth out the financial challenges that are facing both the owners and players due to the substantial revenue loss that has been triggered by the pandemic.
Brooks' story has been updated since it originally posted on Thursday. It now also includes reaction to Artemi Panarin's strong comments on social media about his concerns over escrow.
The whole article is worth a read. Brooks is reporting that the entire membership of the Players' Association — some 700+ players — will each vote individually on the return-to-play package and CBA extension, which would include a flat salary cap in the neighbourhood of $83 million for the next few years and a de-linking of player salaries and league revenues that would effectively end the 50/50 split that was established after the 2012-13 lockout.
Elliotte Friedman's details over on Sportsnet are slightly different.
He has the Cap closer to the current $81.5 million — and a 10 percent salary deferral by players next season. The idea there is that players will eventually receive all their money, and that by deferring part of their 2020-21 salary, they'll get more of it because it'll be paid out at a time when escrow will be less than what it is next season.
Friedman says the agreement states that escrow will be capped at 20 percent for next season, which would be artificially low even if the league is able to complete the playoffs and collect the revenue that would come from TV partners and sponsors, and through merchandise sales.
But he makes a key point that's different from Brooks. He says that the 50/50 split will remain intact, even though players will collect more than their allocated 50 percent in the short term. "From an ownership perspective, every dollar owed the teams on the 50-50 revenue split will be repaid over the balance of the CBA," Friedman writes.
There isn't much time to decide. And many players, including Europeans, are in the process of returning to their team cities to prepare from training camp.
Friedman confirms that the player vote would need 50 percent plus one to pass — and brings up the fact that the NFL ratified its new CBA after a very tight vote earlier this year, which saw a number of the league's top stars voting no.
Friedman suggests that the NHL vote could be just as close. With concerns over health issues stacked on top of all the financial considerations, individuals could find plenty of different reasons to vote no. In addition, not all hockey players are created equal. The proposal is going to look a lot different through the eyes of a family man with four kids and $50 million already in the bank compared to a fourth-liner on a league-minimum deal — or an impending UFA who's trying to set himself up for his next big payday.
I feel like I've said this a lot over the last few months — once again, more questions than answers.
So I'll close with two other points — one of which is just slightly more concrete.
Don't forget that the Draft Lottery is airing at 5 p.m. PT tonight on Sportsnet — and as of now, the Canucks have a chance to have a chance to be one of the winners.
Yes, the repetition is intended. We should be watching for Bill Daly to reveal one of the "Placeholder" cards among the top three. If that happens, the Canucks and the other 15 teams in the qualifying round will each get a one-in-eight crack at that pick if they lose their best-of-five series and don't advance to the "real playoffs."
Also — after Daniel & Henrik Sedin got a new Canucks team award named after them this week, I like this idea a lot, too:
Vancouver Canucks Blogger • 
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