NHL players arming for another lockout under commissioner Gary Bettman

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Ryan Hall
August 27, 2024 (9:53 PM)

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The current NHL collective bargaining agreement will expire after the 2025-2026 season and it appears NHL stars are arming themselves for war by protecting their money with lockout protected contracts.

Labour disputes have been the norm in the Gary Bettman era of the NHL where there have been 3 lockouts in his thirty plus years at the helm. Their last dispute was settled in 2012-2013 and both sides have enjoyed little to no labour trouble as the agreement was renewed just a few years ago.

But with the market changing and the economics changing throughout the world, NHL players have been arming themselves with contracts that are protected from lockouts. Many NHL stars have used signing bonuses to protect their money in the event of a long-protracted lockout.

Since the last lockout, several teams have been added to the league including the Seattle Kraken, Vegas Golden Knights and now the relocated Utah hockey team from Arizona. It's likely players would like a bigger portion of the revenue sharing as the league continues to climb out of the COVID-19 pandemic era.

With the stars protected, it's the secondary players and the rookies that will face the economic hardship as a lockout during the season will freeze their salaries. With no negotiations on the horizon, it's likely we won't see any major talk of negotiations until after this coming season's over.

In the meantime, players that are ready to sign long term deals will likely continue to ask for signing bonuses which will allow them to be paid in a lump sum on a certain date.

Source: TSN.ca

NHL players preparing for labour uncertainty with lockout-protected contracts