How Rookie Contract Limits are Hurting NHL Teams

Rookie contracts are hurting NHL teams because young players have the opportunity to make more money after they are drafted by playing in leagues such as the KHL than coming to the NHL right away and signing an entry-level-contract (ELC).

Under the previous CBA, any player from the last two drafts could earn a maximum salary of $925,000, but that number could grow if players earned certain bonuses, according to Capgeek.

There's no guarantee that the next agreement would also follow these guidelines, but if the NHL was smart, it would raise the maximum salary figures for players on entry level contracts (ELCs).

When we learned that the NHL's most recent CBA proposal included shortening ELCs from three years to two years (via ESPN's Pierre LeBrun), it was a step in the right direction for rookies because they would only be on an entry level wage scale for two seasons.

However, if they are paid using the same entry-level salary scale included in the last CBA, prospects will still be hesitant to join the NHL when ready. In the next CBA, the maximum salary that can be earned on ELCs should be raised a little bit and performance bonuses should remain the same.

If NHL teams want to have their top overseas prospects come to the NHL as quickly as possible so general managers can build championship rosters, the league and its players must make sure that rookie contracts allow young players to make more money.

There's no reason why a league that generates $3.3 billion in revenue can't make rookie contracts a little bit more competitive to what overseas leagues offer. A lot of rookie and sophomore players are making huge impacts on their NHL team's success, but many of them are underpaid.

For example, Boston Bruins forward Tyler Seguin, who led the team in points during his second year in the NHL, had a base salary of just $900,000 for the 2011-12 season (Although, it should be mentioned that performance bonuses did give Seguin the chance to make an additional $2.65 million last season, per Capgeek).

The NHL must give European players an incentive to start their career in North America. If this doesn't happen, teams may be less willing to use high draft picks on European players because they don't want to wait three, four or even five years for them to come to the NHL.

General managers are going to have a tough time rebuilding their teams through the draft if European prospects have no financial incentive to come to the NHL.

The best hockey talent in the world should play in the best league, which is the NHL, but it's easy to understand why young players sometimes choose to play where they can make the most money. Many of us would probably do the same.

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Nicholas Goss is an NHL Lead Writer at Bleacher Report. He was also the organization's on-site reporter for the 2011 Stanley Cup Final in Boston. Follow him on Twitter.