By: (AP) A 36-member panel of top executives, players, and other experienced hockey personnel has proposed allowing no more than one player per team to earn more than $5 million a year as part of a plan to end the NHL labor lockout.
The informal group was assembled by The Eagle-Tribune of Lawrence, Mass., which published details of the proposal on Tuesday as part of a series it published looking at the lockout. It forwarded what it called the "initiative" to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and NHL Players' Association executive director Bob Goodenow.
Telephone messages left Wednesday with the league and the union were not immediately returned.
The NHL is sticking to its proposal for a salary cap and has rejected the union's offer to reduce each player's salary by 24 percent. The league board of governors is scheduled to meet Jan. 14.
The newspaper said the initiative "would bring a measure of cost certainty but preserve the market." It did not identify the members of the group.
Currently, the NHL does not have a salary cap in place.
One key element of the plan is a "tier system" which would allow teams to sign players in six categories -- one "franchise player" per team with no limit on his salary, and 27 players in five categories with different pay scales. No more than four players per team could earn $5 million a year and a maximum of seven could earn up to $3 million, the newspaper reported.
The panel was part of a five-month study that resulted in the newspaper's three-part special report on the lockout.
The group included hockey executives with at least 10 years of experience in the business, players, former players, union officials, veteran sports agents, coaches, lawyers, and longtime media analysts.
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here