NHL approves new Kovalchuk contract
Hockey Betting Lines
09/03/2010 -
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ilya Kovalchuk will finally join the New Jersey Devils after his re-submitted contract was reportedly approved by the National
Hockey League.
Additionally, according to TSN of Canada, the league and the NHL Players'
Association reached an agreement on an amendment to the rules that govern
long-term contracts. A report from The Record in New Jersey states that new
guidelines will be implemented regarding how the salary cap hit would be
calculated for long-term deals that go beyond the ages of 35 and 40.
Kovalchuk's initial 17-year, $102 million deal with the Devils was rejected by
the league on the grounds that it circumvented the league's salary cap. The
deal was front-loaded so Kovalchuk could have earned as much money as possible
while providing the lowest possible cap hit for the team.
The NHL Players' Association filed a grievance on Kovalchuk's behalf, but an
arbitrator ruled in favor of the league. His second deal is worth a reported
$100 million over 15 years, which provides an annual cap hit of $6.66 million.
The rejection of the contract provided much debate throughout the league in
terms of "lifetime" contracts given to players that have helped reduce the
yearly salary cap hit. Several players in previous years signed deals that
took them past 40 years of age and saw the annual salary dip below $1 million
in the final years of the contract.
Because of the league rules on player contracts after the age of 35, it was
conceivable that someone could retire before the deal had expired, wiping
the contract off the salary cap. This rule allowed teams to sign players to
front-loaded contracts to benefit both the team and player.
With the new guidelines in place regarding long-term deals and the CBA
negotiations that will occur in the next few years, it is likely that
Kovalchuk's contract is the last of its kind. Additionally, according to the
report in The Record, similar contracts that have been signed previously will
not be affected by the new rules.
Kovalchuk's deal will reportedly take the team about $3 million over the
salary cap with 21 players under contract, and the Devils will have to get
under the $59.4 million cap before the beginning of the season while adding
two more players to the roster.
Kovalchuk posted 41 goals and 85 points in 76 games last season, 10 goals
and 27 points coming in 27 games with New Jersey. In a five-game first-round
playoff loss, the 27-year-old added two goals and six points.
In 621 games since entering the league in 2001, the Russian star has
accumulated 338 goals and 642 points with Atlanta and New Jersey.
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NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.
That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.
A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."
It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.
The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.
So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."
Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't.
Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.
Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.
Seriously.
The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.
The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.
Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."
The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.
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