hockey's business and legal

Hockey’s Business and Legal Updates February 19 Through 25 with Winnipeg Jets Future in Question

Alec Roberson

It’s that time again when we take a look at what’s been happening in hockey’s business and legal world. Once a week we cover the big and not so big stories in this arena. We also include a featured story of the period. Let’s take a look at what has been happening this period.

Hockey’s Business and Legal News

OHL Investigating Sudbury Wolves for Placing “Bounty” on Opposing Player

The OHL is investigating a possible “bounty” placed on Kashawn Aitcheson of the Barrie Colts by the Sudbury Wolves. In a game between the two teams, Aitcheson laid a big but legal hit on a Wolves player. After some additional fighting in that one, the two teams met again a few days later. However, the Wolves did not dress Aitcheson in the second one after word got out that Sudbury had put a “bounty” on him. The OHL is investigating this report and had nothing further to say.

Watertown Council Votes to Approve Lease, Paving Way for New NAHL Team

In last period’s hockey’s business and legal updates, we discussed that the NAHL was potentially expanding to Watertown, South Dakota. A vote by the Watertown City Council on approving the lease for the new team to play at the newly constructed Prairie Lakes Ice Arena passed this week. This means that one big step for the new NAHL team is in the books. The NAHL has to approve the ownership group but has approved this lease agreement, which is a good sign.

Sault Ste. Marie Sued for Injury Mishandling and Racial Harassment

Former Sault St. Marie Greyhounds goalie Tucker Tynan filed a lawsuit against the Greyhounds in Ontario related to their mishandling of an injury he suffered while playing. In addition, the lawsuit provides allegations of racial harassment and other derogatory statements directed at Tynan during the events surrounding his injury. Allegedly, he was injured during a game in 2022. He then requested additional medical attention that was denied. When expressing his pain and desire for additional attention, members of the team’s staff allegedly responded with racial slurs and other derogatory statements. In addition, they allegedly forced him to play through the injury.

Since the matter is now in court, the OHL responded they would not be launching their own investigation. With more of these stories coming to light, conflicts of interest in medical attention to players and harassment related incidents will come with increased scrutiny.

Arizona Coyotes Place Adam Ruzicka on Waivers with Plan to Terminate Contract

The Arizona Coyotes placed Slovakian forward Adam Ruzicka on waivers with plans to terminate his contract. This came after a social media post appeared to show Ruzicka close to a white substance resembling cocaine on the counter. Unilateral contract terminations are generally only allowed if the player materially breaches the contract. This would include violating specific team policies and other “morality” issues. We previously explained the “material breach” clause in an article here. Before termination, the player must be placed on waivers under the NHL CBA.

What this does show, however, is that there does not appear to be consistent treatment of players when it comes to these issues. Evgeny Kuznetsov was also suspended a few years ago due to supposed cocaine use but returned to the Washington Capitals. We previously took a look at a situation involving Brendan Leipsic as well when his contract was terminated due to a social media post and compared it to Kuznetsov here. Regardless, the decision is up to the team and considering that Ruzicka is not a top player, his contract will likely end.

Hockey’s Business and Legal Updates Featured Story: Winnipeg Jets Attendance Issues Causing Uncertainty

In this period’s hockey’s business and legal updates featured story, reports surfaced that Winnipeg Jets Chairman Mark Chipman stated that the future of the team could be in jeopardy if attendance doesn’t approve. The Jets are averaging the second lowest attendance in the league. In fact, the only team they are beating are the Arizona Coyotes who are playing in a college arena housing less than 5,000 spectators. While television deals are a major source of revenue for the league, hockey is certainly an “in-person” sport that relies heavily on game attendance for revenue for teams. Not only for the individual teams, but it affects “hockey related revenue” which in turn directly affects the salary cap each year. We previously took a look at this in an article here.

To have consistent attendance, teams rely on season ticket holders. Winnipeg’s season ticket holders have decreased 27 percent in three years from approximately 13,000 to just under 9,500. This is a major concern. Even though the team has been performing well, both the team and the league see these attendance issues as major problems. With other cities pushing for NHL teams, Winnipeg may once again be on the hot seat.

Post image attribution: By: US Mission Canada, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Alec Roberson

Alec Roberson grew up in coastal North Carolina, taking a somewhat unconventional path to hockey. With hockey being almost nonexistent in that area, Alec found his passion for the game following the success of the Carolina Hurricanes in 2001 and 2006 and later played club hockey in college. After going through law school and practicing for some time, he now continues his love for the game through writing. Find him on twitter @roberson_alec

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