The NHL is seeking financial concessions in the form of a 13 percent deferral on 2020-21 pay from players as an opening gambit in Return to Play negotiations for the 2020-21 season, multiple sources have told The Post.
It is unclear how the NHLPA, which agreed to a 10 percent deferral in the six-year collective bargaining agreement extension agreed upon by the parties just over four months ago in early July, will respond. Escrow will be capped — and set — at 20 percent for the season.
It is also unclear whether the request represents an ultimatum or if it is the board’s initial position for a negotiation apart from the season’s format and pandemic-related protocols. The original 10 percent deferral is due to be repaid in three equal installments (without interest) in October of 2022, 2023 and 2024.
While the CBA Memo of Understanding effectively rules out prorating for the season, it does state: “The parties also agree to continue discussions regarding the possibility of allowing Players and Clubs to negotiate additional deferrals on a case-by-case basis.”
That seems kind of odd, doesn’t it? Some allegedly distressed organization might be permitted to ask its top player to defer money on his own? But this ask is not that. This would be uniform and league-wide, if the players defer the additional 13 percent, they would be guaranteed 61.6 percent of their pay for 2020-21, with 23 percent due to be returned at later dates.
If the league remains fixed on a starting date on or around Jan. 1, as still appears to be the case, then movement between the league and the players association is required sometime soon. The league is prepared for a 14-day training camp to precede the regular season, which likely would consist of between 48 and 60 games.
If camps begin the second or third week of December (the seven clubs that did not participate in the summer tournament will be granted additional time on the ice), travel plans and protocols must be established within the next couple of weeks.
Negotiated realignment, regional play and a baseball-type schedule are anticipated for the season once the league and players settle on an economic framework for 2020-21. It still remains possible that the NHL could open the season in four centralized hub cities as the pandemic continues to rage across the US and Canada.