Breaking Down the Recent Antitrust Lawsuit against the CHL, NHL, Etc.
A new Antitrust lawsuit has been filed in New York against the CHL, NHL, and other Major Junior Leagues. The lawsuit makes some disturbing claims that these hockey leagues “treated players like disposable objects”, exploited “teens pursuing their dream of playing in the NHL”, and used the system to draft and control teenage hockey players like a “hockey cartel”.
Image Credit: Wikipedia
It seems that the complaint mainly stems from the conditions under which the players are forced to play and the lack of control these young players have over their careers. The plaintiffs of the suit allege that these young players are given no say in who they play for when joining these leagues and they are only paid a salary of $250 a month for their services. It is also implied that these leagues colluded in order to keep the amount they pay the players so low and increase profits for these leagues.
Image Credit: The Hockey News
While many of these allegations are leveled against the CHL and other Major Junior Leagues, the lawsuit outlines that the NHL also played a role in this alleged racket. This was through NHL teams financial support of these CHL teams and the existence of the NHL-CHL Transfer Agreement.
Image Credit: CHL.com
When asked for comment the CHL said that it was only made aware of the complaint Wednesday and that it cannot "comment as to the legitimacy of its contents" until it can thoroughly review the document. As of the writing of this article, it does not look like the NHL has responded to these accusations.
It is important to remember that none of these accusations have been tried in a court of law so it is impossible to accurately determine their validity, but it is clear that NHL, CHL, and other Major Junior Leagues need to address the concerns of young players in the near future.
