Fine, have it your way. I'd rather have the NHL get tough and knock the market value of guys like Nik Kulemin back under 2 mil per season, if possible. For the health of so many of the teams. There are so many guys like Kulemin who have never won a thing in the NHL, but you guys say they are worth fighting for. I disagree. So be it.

p.s. For the record, I like Kulemin. I just think he's overpaid. And I think most (not all) players like him are similarly overpaid. In 20 years, we won't even remember those guys played in the league. And yet they have become multi millionaires, set for life, off the wages of people like you and me. How special are they really, to deserve that...

I've always said stop overpaying the mediocre players. Sign some AHL players at a cheaper rate for similar production. Watching the Rochester/Toronto game tonight on SN, the quality of the game isnt that much different than the NHL. If anything some of the games seem more exciting from a fan's perspective (maybe because the offense is slightly better?).

I totally agree with that.

Sign AHL/European guys at a much cheaper rate and the quality of play will make it justifiable.

Im also a big fan of AHL/Euro guys getting their chance in the NHL and making the best of it.

I don't think you are being rationale here. I disagree with you and I had a pretty long paragraphed typed out.....re-read it; didn't make much sense. It's late, but I'll get back to this tomorrow. Good discussion though.

How about taking up a book on basic free market capitalism? The market decides the going rate. The market is supply and demand. If players of Kulemin's skillset is in a certain demand and there is a certain supply, then he will get what the market dictates for those factors. It's that easy.

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GO WINGS!

12 team H2H dynasty, most categories under the sun, incl. hits/blocks. Main team, farm

C: Kopitar Backstrom Stepan Cammalleri Little Bolland Laich Johnson
LW: Parise Lupul Erat McDonald Martin Silfverberg Nyquist Schwartz Morin Nieto Conacher
RW: PKane Doan Pominville Nash Clowe Lupul Rinaldo Stafford Rattie Stone Chiasson Ritchie
D: Green Suter Seabrook Dillon Beauchemin Schenn Letang Schultz Hamilton McNabb Rielly Harrison
G: Bryzgalov Pavelec Holtby Neuvirth Nihlstorp Lack CalPickard Andersen Stalock Sateri Eriksson
IR: Halak

Except player's salaries are already artificially kept lower through a salary cap.

As a slight non sequitur:
This theory makes the Gomez deal seem so much worse. Maybe the next CBA will be Sather-proof.

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Okay, so maybe nobody likes a cynic, but everybody f**king hates those perky optimists!

... and anyway, I make a damn good cynic.

I think that there is some sort of universal law that states that all truths must, by their nature, make Gomez' Salary look worse.

This is a completely irrelevant tangent. So the market dictated that Kulemin should get paid what he gets paid. Yeah, that's true.
I'm saying he's overpaid.
One does not contradict the other.
The market says Crosby should get paid what he gets paid. I'm saying he's underpaid.
Again, both of the statements can co-exist. If you want to say I'm calling the internal NHL free market out of whack, ok then.

With a 5 year max on contract years, and no salary cap, Crosby would get 20 mil per season. Easily. With a salary cap, he could get around 12-15. He's worth it. And that would push down contracts for people nobody pays to watch anyway (e.g. Kulemin). That's all I'm saying.

With a CBA, contract limits, salary caps etc the NHL is NOT a free market so don't bother wasting money at amazon looking for a book on the topic.