"Okay," Marvin Miller told the baseball owners, in so many words. "You guys drive a hard bargain. You aren't about let your players go on the open market. You've got me on that one. So how about throwing me a bone? How about every off-season we let just a few veterans become free agents? Just a few of them. Let's say, guys who have been around for more than six years?"
Miller crafted his compromise carefully. He knew scarcity was the key. Every commodity, from oil to oranges, rises in price during a shortage. So it follows that the bidding for a second baseman will be more vigorous if there aren't a lot of second basemen available. Miller also knew that all players would benefit from the system, because other salaries would gradually come into line with the new standards set by free agent contracts. A rising tide lifts all boats, as they say. To this day it works like a charm.
As of June, 2003, embarrassed NHL teams claim to have learned their lesson, and swear that the free-spending days are over. Many teams are reportedly desperate to unload expensive mistakes, with stars like Jaromir Jagr, John LeClair and Keith Tkachuk said to be available to anyone interested in taking on their massive contracts.
The sudden show of restraint has nothing to do with fiscal prudence or common sense, and everything to do with the expiration of the NHL's collective bargaining agreement in 2004. With the future so uncertain, teams are wary of holding too many big contracts.
If NHL owners really want "cost certainty" as NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman calls it, they should forget self-restraint, salary caps, payroll taxes, revenue sharing and other such schemes. They should simply negotiate a deal with the players that includes greater freedom of movement. Declare every player a free agent at the end of his contract, regardless of age or experience. That would turn signing season into a buyer's market and keep salaries at a more modest level.
But it is hard to imagine the players agreeing to that scenario, because under the current free agent system they hold all the cards. If 35 everyday centres were available in 2002, would any team - even the clueless Capitals - have offered $25-million to Robert Lang or $45-million to Bobby Holik? If scoring wingers aplenty were on the market in 2001, would any team have talked itself into offering Donald Audette $3-million a year? Marvin Miller knows the answer to those questions.
Previous page: Part One - How the NHL free agents cashed in.
