The Politics of Free Agency in the NHL
With NHL free agency beginning July 1st, one question that’s already emerged is whether or not the drawing pool this year is a dud. It wouldn’t be the first time, and it won’t be the last—but with changing NHL regulations as well as trends in contracts, free agency is affecting the NHL for better and worse.
One thing’s clear—it’s not a good time to be fishing for offensive players, especially not in the free agency. Pickings are slim, with both Patrick Marleau and Thomas Plekanec resigning with their own clubs last week. That leaves only one top offensive talent for the picking, winger Ilya Kovalchuck.
For teams in dire straits and desperately in need of an offensive facelift, that makes things a bit more difficult.
In fact the downturn in free agents this year coincides with a recent trend in the NHL where for the past few seasons more and more long-term contracts have been signed, with higher scoring stars getting the majority of them. While 2010 was viewed not long ago as the free agent class of talents such as Columbus Blue Jackets star Rick Nash and high-profile restricted free agents Jonathan Toews, Nicklas Backstrom and Patrick Kane, they all signed lengthy deals before summer and stayed where they were.
In fact, of the top-30 scorers in the NHL last season, there is only one headed to free agency on July 1st: Kovalchuk. Of the remaining 29 players, 18 are signed until 2013-2014 or beyond, with stars like Alexandre Ovechkin booked in until 2020.
The proof of players staying with teams is in the numbers: 24 of 29 of those top scorers remain with the team that originally signed them. That makes Kovalchuk a bit of an individual, meaning that he is the only one who was willing to turn down a long-term, lucrative deal.
The lack of player movement out of free agency is a response to the NHL’s new collective agreement, where players are allowed to become free agents as young as 25. In other words, teams with stars such as Ovechkin and Crosby have persuaded them to sign long-term contracts in a bid to keep them away from free agency—and the numbers show it’s working.
One NHL source said Tuesday: “Players in the old system didn’t sign eight and nine year deals. In fact, they were derided if they signed those deals because the market was escalating so rapidly [without a salary cap].”
The situation has almost turned on its head today. In the end, the result is that you get a system which works well for teams that drafted a lot of talent, because they get to hold onto it for longer, but others teams in dire need of player refreshments are seriously hurt in bids of free agency, because the talent simply isn’t in the pool any more.
Take a team like the Toronto Maple Leafs: they need offensive players like a fish needs water, having finished last season almost at the bottom of the scoring list. And yet while Toronto has $52 million (U.S.) committed under next season’s $59.4 million cap, only $15 million has been put aside for forwards.
Leafs GM Brian Burke has suggested that he may pass on the free agency bid and attempt to revamp the team through trade, bringing veterans rather than newbies into play.
“You can’t count on free agency to solve all of your problems,” he recently said.
Instead the Leafs are hoping to move salary.
“That’s another opportunity for us,” said Leafs Assistant GM Dave Nonis. “One of the reasons you don’t want to go out and sign players [on July 1st] is that, even though they may help you, you don’t want to overpay them because that takes away opportunity.”