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NHL Transactions and Such
- Thread starter TheRob
- Start date
Gilbert Brule signs with Columbus
Will be nice to see what he can do in the NHL...
Will be nice to see what he can do in the NHL...
Brule signs on with Blue Jackets
TSN.ca Staff
10/3/2005 4:20:55 PM
Gilbert Brule will make his NHL debut Wednesday night against the Washington Capitals after coming to terms on a contract.
Brule beat the 5pm et deadline to sign a new deal on Monday, signing an entry level contract worth the maximum $850,000 in base salary and the potential to earn as much as $400,000 per year in bonuses.
Bruel led the Blue Jackets in scoring in the pre-season with five points, tying him with Nikolai Zherdev. He also tied for the team lead in goal scoring with two goals in six games.
Brule tallied 39 goals and 87 points with 169 penalty minutes in 70 games with Vancouver last season, finishing fifth in the WHL in goals and third in points. He was named to the WHL First All-Star Team and was the 2004-05 Canadian Hockey League Scholastic Player of the Year.
Ouch. This deal for the players is not looking good.
TSN.ca Staff
10/6/2005 5:41:36 PM
In the midst of the giddiness of a Renaissance hockey season that is only two days old, there is no escaping the harsh economic reality of the new NHL.
And for members of the NHL Players' Association, it can be summed up in one word: escrow.
TSN has reviewed opening-day NHL team payrolls and player salaries and has determined that when the players get their first pay cheque of this season on Oct. 15, at least 10 per cent of their salary, and perhaps more than that, will be withheld in an escrow account to ensure the league does not overspend on player costs.
For an NHLPA membership that is currently fractured over the appointment of executive director Ted Saskin as Bob Goodenow's replacement and embroiled in great controversy, the potential loss of at least 10 per cent of their salary -- over and above the 24 per cent salary rollback that was conceded during the lockout -- is not likely to be well received.
That is the bad news.
The good news, potentially anyway, is that the actual amount of salary the players will have to forego won't be fully and actually determined until the end of the year, when league revenues for this season are calculated. If the revenues are greater than budgeted, which is not out of the question given the seemingly strong bounce-back factor for the NHL in the early going, the financial blow to the players will be softened somewhat. If revenues are as projected, or less, the players will have to dig even deeper into their own pocket to pay back the owners for spending more than the designated amount of revenue.
This, obviously, is a something of a complex financial issue, although the actual formula for determining what percentage of player salaries will go into escrow is fairly basic.
When the league set a team salary cap of $39 million and a salary floor of $21.5 million, it was determined by the league that it didn't want to spend any more, on average, than the mid-point between the floor and the ceiling. So it decided the first escrow amount would be determined using the that midpoint, which has been given the label, Aggregated Adjusted Midpoint. It is $30.5 million.
The new CBA spells out very clearly that the league this season is not permitted to spend more than an average of $30.5 million per team, or a total of $907.5 million (30 x $30.5 million) on salaries. Any amount spent on salaries over and above that, must be be paid by the players back to the league. The mechanism for doing this is the escrow account. Based on the actual dollars being spent on player salaries, four times during the year the league and the NHLPA calculate what percentage of the players' pay cheques should be withheld. At the end of the year, when the revenue is determined, the final calculation of what's owing from the players to the league can be made.
In order to determine the first escrow rate, TSN tallied up the amount the 30 teams are spending on players' salaries, based on the opening-day rosters. While that precise number is difficult to get because of issues like unearned performance bonuses etc., it is clear the 30 NHL teams are spending well in excess of the Aggregated Adjusted Midpoint of $907.5 million. In fact, TSN's opening-day salary research indicates the excess spending is at least $110 million higher than the $907.5 million cap or ceiling, an aggregate total of at least $1.0175 billion. In order to balance that "over-spending," the players owe the league at least $110 million and it translates into a minimum 10 per cent withholding on their pay cheques for the first quarter of the season.
If that "over-spending" goes up or down during the second, third or fourth quarters of the year, the escrow rate will be adjusted accordingly.
But, for now, it's into double digits and the players' post-lockout disposable income is certain to take a substantial hit.
TSN.ca Staff
10/6/2005 5:41:36 PM
In the midst of the giddiness of a Renaissance hockey season that is only two days old, there is no escaping the harsh economic reality of the new NHL.
And for members of the NHL Players' Association, it can be summed up in one word: escrow.
TSN has reviewed opening-day NHL team payrolls and player salaries and has determined that when the players get their first pay cheque of this season on Oct. 15, at least 10 per cent of their salary, and perhaps more than that, will be withheld in an escrow account to ensure the league does not overspend on player costs.
For an NHLPA membership that is currently fractured over the appointment of executive director Ted Saskin as Bob Goodenow's replacement and embroiled in great controversy, the potential loss of at least 10 per cent of their salary -- over and above the 24 per cent salary rollback that was conceded during the lockout -- is not likely to be well received.
That is the bad news.
The good news, potentially anyway, is that the actual amount of salary the players will have to forego won't be fully and actually determined until the end of the year, when league revenues for this season are calculated. If the revenues are greater than budgeted, which is not out of the question given the seemingly strong bounce-back factor for the NHL in the early going, the financial blow to the players will be softened somewhat. If revenues are as projected, or less, the players will have to dig even deeper into their own pocket to pay back the owners for spending more than the designated amount of revenue.
This, obviously, is a something of a complex financial issue, although the actual formula for determining what percentage of player salaries will go into escrow is fairly basic.
When the league set a team salary cap of $39 million and a salary floor of $21.5 million, it was determined by the league that it didn't want to spend any more, on average, than the mid-point between the floor and the ceiling. So it decided the first escrow amount would be determined using the that midpoint, which has been given the label, Aggregated Adjusted Midpoint. It is $30.5 million.
The new CBA spells out very clearly that the league this season is not permitted to spend more than an average of $30.5 million per team, or a total of $907.5 million (30 x $30.5 million) on salaries. Any amount spent on salaries over and above that, must be be paid by the players back to the league. The mechanism for doing this is the escrow account. Based on the actual dollars being spent on player salaries, four times during the year the league and the NHLPA calculate what percentage of the players' pay cheques should be withheld. At the end of the year, when the revenue is determined, the final calculation of what's owing from the players to the league can be made.
In order to determine the first escrow rate, TSN tallied up the amount the 30 teams are spending on players' salaries, based on the opening-day rosters. While that precise number is difficult to get because of issues like unearned performance bonuses etc., it is clear the 30 NHL teams are spending well in excess of the Aggregated Adjusted Midpoint of $907.5 million. In fact, TSN's opening-day salary research indicates the excess spending is at least $110 million higher than the $907.5 million cap or ceiling, an aggregate total of at least $1.0175 billion. In order to balance that "over-spending," the players owe the league at least $110 million and it translates into a minimum 10 per cent withholding on their pay cheques for the first quarter of the season.
If that "over-spending" goes up or down during the second, third or fourth quarters of the year, the escrow rate will be adjusted accordingly.
But, for now, it's into double digits and the players' post-lockout disposable income is certain to take a substantial hit.
suburbanator
Well-Known Member
Good, I have him in my pool...
