tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435571560723564995.post6049724538054693799..comments2023-06-01T21:15:57.354-11:00Comments on The H Does NOT Stand For Habs: Big Fat CheatersJ.T.http://www.blogger.com/profile/00012075493503316318noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435571560723564995.post-65049464092611171832009-08-08T16:15:06.644-11:002009-08-08T16:15:06.644-11:00I'm not trying to say hat because it's leg...I'm not trying to say hat because it's legal it's good. I offered a couple reasons why it might be good. However, the fact that it is legal and a fairly legitimate technique (that the NHL should have foreseen, quite frankly) means calling anyone a cheater is at least a step too far.Shanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09720024916714288188noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435571560723564995.post-76196036158866089132009-08-05T11:44:20.162-11:002009-08-05T11:44:20.162-11:00To summarize Shan's comment: if something is l...To summarize Shan's comment: if something is legal, it must be good. Having said that, he leaves a couple of hints that even his own argument is unsatisfactory. I will try to fill in the blanks.<br /><br />Why regulate? The idea is to be equitable with everyone who participates in a particular society. A benefit is offered, but it is restricted and the participants must make certain sacrifices. <br /><br />The salary cap, like any regulation, is only worthwhile if it is effectively enforced. If this loophole is not a clear violation of the agreement, then you should not expect swift and visible punishment.<br /><br />Even better than enforcement is to have players who are internally motivated to behave with charity and courage (to paraphrase C.S. Lewis). Since modern hockey players, like the rest of the population, cannot agree on a moral standard, they will continue to degrade each other. This can be seen on and off the ice.<br /><br />The NHL will try to fill this loophole with more regulation, and it will repeat this process every time someone tries to exploit some other aspect of the current agreement.<br /><br />Shan is right to say that this is nothing new and that we should not be surprised. However, I would say that while we should not surprised, we can be disappointed.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3435571560723564995.post-73462586930563333212009-08-04T14:09:32.105-11:002009-08-04T14:09:32.105-11:00This is hardly news for us to get up in arms about...This is hardly news for us to get up in arms about it now. Unless there was collusion, it's perfectly fair. The NHL would've reacted to it before had this type of contract really been unethical in itself. If Zetterberg gets paid $7M a year for most of the contract, but they only take a $6M cap hit, they shaved $1M off the cap, right? It's not like there's unlimited savings potential here. They still have to take a big cap hit on a big player. The question is, why ISN'T Bob structuring contracts this way? For shorter term contracts, it's not as effective for them to have the huge dropoff because they can't realistically hope the player will be done and not play that cheap season. Meaning this type of thing will be something reserved for players you know you want to retain for a long time. And if there's an incentive for teams to produce longer term contracts and keep great players on their team, that's probably better for the NHL in terms of fans being able to become attached to the players wearing their team sweaters. It just needs to be regulated well enough that players aren't secretly setting their retirement dates a decade in advance. If teams all do this, the cap will still be fairly regulatory (assuming you can't tack 4 or 5 artificial seasons of dropped pay to lower the average, but I'm sure the NHL would deal with something so outrageous). But even then, if teams all shave a million dollars or so off their cap hits, but have to take on long contracts to do it, it won't be a bad thing. Let me know if there's a factor I'm missing here. <br /><br />If it IS a problem though, you have to wonder why the NHL didn't have the foresight to prevent this when they instituted the cap.Shanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09720024916714288188noreply@blogger.com