If you’re an NHL player, the chances are that based upon the salary cap, you’ll be playing the last 12-13 games of the season for free, part of givebacks into the system. According to Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe:[B]ased on the numbers bandied about by NHL general managers last week in Naples, Fla., as well as calculations offered by the Players Association, the players must prepare to surrender 13-15 percent of their overall salaries. For a guy like Zdeno Chara, on the books for $7.5 million a year, that's a haircut upward of $1.125 million. As trips to the barber shop go, that's much pricier than a "boy's regular."[…]Another way to look at this is that 15 percent of an 84-game schedule amounts to 12-13 games. Essentially, the players are working the final month of the regular season pro bono. For the few clubs with no hope of securing a playoff spot, they really have to find some magic to summon inspiration now that they're pla...
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Wait, is this legal? I admit I'm not aware of what kind of collective bargaining agreement the NHL and NHLPA have, but if players are under contract, does the NHL's teams really have the right to just decide not to pay the last 13-15% of your salary? I mean, I know players are filthy rich and all, but are we sure?
