How Does the NHL Free Agency Work? |Snap Shots Episode 49

0:00 Speaker 1: Hello Bruins fans, It's been a minute since we've had

0:03 Speaker 1: a snapshot. This is a special little episode for you

0:07 Speaker 1: all for free agency. Figure out what is it, how

0:10 Speaker 1: does it work, what does it mean? But also we've

0:13 Speaker 1: got a special announcement our podcast has gone independent and

0:16 Speaker 1: with that we've got a great new option for ad

0:19 Speaker 1: free listening through our Patreon as well as a merch store,

0:23 Speaker 1: So make sure you check it out link in bio

0:26 Speaker 1: and in the show notes. I'm going to play for

0:28 Speaker 1: you now an awesome little video we put together on

0:32 Speaker 1: our socials to help understand what the free agency is.

0:35 Speaker 1: And Maria's got some more info about our patreon as well.

0:39 Speaker 2: Go b's So what is the NHL free agency?

0:45 Speaker 3: How does it work? Well? New contracts are signed every

0:48 Speaker 3: year on July first. When a player's contract expires on

0:52 Speaker 3: June thirtieth, he becomes one of three kinds of free agents,

0:56 Speaker 3: restricted free agents, restricted free agents with arbitration, and unrestricted

1:00 Speaker 3: free agents. These statuses are determined by the Collective Bargaining

1:04 Speaker 3: Agreement or CBA. The CBA is an agreement made between

1:08 Speaker 3: franchise owners and the players Association.

1:10 Speaker 2: It all starts with what's known as the twenty seven rule,

1:15 Speaker 2: if a player is twenty seven years of age or

1:17 Speaker 2: is completed seven accrued seasons, then they are automatically an

1:21 Speaker 2: unrestricted free agent and they can negotiate their next contract

1:24 Speaker 2: anyway they'd like. If the player doesn't meet either of

1:27 Speaker 2: those terms, then they're one of two kinds of restricted

1:30 Speaker 2: free agent. RFAs are defined by the amount of time

1:33 Speaker 2: that they've played professionally their age by June thirtieth, in

1:37 Speaker 2: the age they sign their very first or entry level contract.

1:41 Speaker 2: But wait, what's an accrude season versus a pro season

1:45 Speaker 2: and how are they different? Well, accrued seasons are used

1:48 Speaker 2: in the twenty seven rule. A single accrued season is

1:52 Speaker 2: defined as forty games rostered for skaters in thirty games

1:56 Speaker 2: rostered for goalies. Pro seasons are used to determine if

1:59 Speaker 2: an r is eligible for arbitration. A pro season is

2:03 Speaker 2: defined as a minimum of ten games played in any

2:06 Speaker 2: kind of pro league like the NHL, AHL, KHL, or SHL.

2:10 Speaker 2: The number of pro seasons needed to become an RFA

2:13 Speaker 2: with arbitration rights depends on the player's age when he

2:16 Speaker 2: signed his first contract. Players who are between ages eighteen

2:20 Speaker 2: and twenty have to play at least four pro seasons,

2:24 Speaker 2: three seasons for those who signed at twenty one, two

2:26 Speaker 2: seasons for twenty two and twenty three year olds, in

2:29 Speaker 2: one pro season for those who sign at twenty four

2:31 Speaker 2: or older. If a player hasn't met these thresholds, then

2:35 Speaker 2: they are an RFA in must accept the qualifying offer presented.

2:39 Speaker 2: If they do meet these thresholds, then they have arbitration rights,

2:43 Speaker 2: which means they can actively negotiate their next contract, and

2:47 Speaker 2: if there is a disagreement, they can request a mediator

2:49 Speaker 2: to assist in negotiations. Players who opt to hold out

2:53 Speaker 2: as an RFA must have a contract by December first

2:57 Speaker 2: of that year in order to play in that put

2:59 Speaker 2: timeticular NHL season. All RFAs expect to receive a qualifying offer.

3:05 Speaker 2: This is the franchise deciding to hold on to the

3:08 Speaker 2: free agent's playing rights. All QoS must be at least

3:11 Speaker 2: one year in length, increase the player's salary by a

3:14 Speaker 2: certain percentage based on the previous contract's total value, and

3:18 Speaker 2: preserve the one way or two way clause from the

3:20 Speaker 2: previous contract. If an RFA with or without arbitration is

3:25 Speaker 2: not presented with a qualifying offer, they automatically become a UFA.

3:30 Speaker 2: Hope this helps make sense of the NHL free agency.

3:32 Speaker 2: Who are you keeping an eye on this year?

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