The NHL Players’ Association has responded to the NHL’s Tuesday CBA proposal with several different offers of their own, and according to various reports from media camped out in the lobby of the NHLPA’s Toronto offices. There are conflicting reports on just how many offers the union has made; some say four, others three.
NHL lockout 2012: NHLPA presents several offers, all call for gradual decrease to 50/50 split according to reports
The NHLPA has proposed four different CBA solutions Thursday, and all called for a “gradual” decrease to a 50/50 revenue split.
Bruce Bennett
David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports that in all of the NHLPA’s proposals, the union has asked for a “gradual step” down to a 50/50 split of hockey-related revenue. In Year 1 of the new CBA -- the 2012-13 season -- the union has proposed a 54/46 split in their favor, with the number slowly dropping to 50/50 before the end of the deal.
That’s a change from the NHL’s proposal, which called for an immediate drop to 50/50 in Year 1. The old, expired CBA gave the players a 57/43 split, and the NHL had offered a “Make Whole” solution in their proposal that would have paid players back with deferred payments over the remainder of their contracts.
The players’ balked at this idea, however, saying that the dollars would have come out of the players’ share in later years. NHLPA chief Donald Fehr said that it wasn’t owners paying players, but instead “players paying players.”
The good news? The sides seem to be working on the same page for the first time since negotiations began in July.
We’ll keep you posted as meetings continue. Follow along with our StoryStream for full CBA coverage.
See More:
More in: NHL lockout is over!
