Put it this way… the causal connection between the movement to end unpaid internships and this- it’s pretty strong. The NCAA is in process of losing similar cases. That’s why I’d say it’s pretty much destined here.
One possible fix IS to professionalize the CHL. This would be inclusive of the ability to sell players up when they’re still under contract. After all, how else do you think 10 somewhat professional levels of soccer exists in England? Or, at least you invite the kids into a broader union and, in the name of the smaller markets, many protections can be negotiated. Leagues in North America have a track record of being able to pull that off rather regularly.
Agreed.
Obviously, this particular New York court filing might have defects. It’s a class action and could fail to gain certification. There could be jurisdictional flaws or the court might have a problem with the representative plaintiffs. Lots of different moving parts.
But you are quite correct that, eventually, the US courts are likely going to treat major junior hockey the same way they’ve recently treated the NCAA.
In the landmark NCAA v. Alston case, the US Supreme Court’s unanimous decision was authored by Justice Neil Gorsuch, who outlined the court's rationale to flatly reject the NCAA's request for “immunity from the normal operation of antitrust laws."
But it’s the concurring opinion of Justice Kavanaugh that really provides insight into the Court’s thinking.
A few doozies from Kavanaugh’s concurring opinion:
“Nowhere else in America can businesses get away with agreeing not to pay their workers a fair market rate on the theory that their product is defined by not paying their workers a fair market rate.”
On the NCAA’s claim of amateurism: “Such innocuous labels cannot disguise the reality: The NCAA’s business model would be flatly illegal in almost any other industry in America."
There’s much more:
“All of the restaurants in a region cannot come together to cut cooks’ wages on the theory that 'customers prefer' to eat food from low-paid cooks. Law firms cannot conspire to cabin lawyers’ salaries in the name of providing legal services out of a 'love of the law.' Hospitals cannot agree to cap nurses’ income in order to create a 'purer' form of helping the sick. News organizations cannot join forces to curtail pay to reporters to preserve a 'tradition' of public-minded journalism. Movie studios cannot collude to slash benefits to camera crews to kindle a 'spirit of amateurism” in Hollywood. Price-fixing labor is price-fixing labor. And price-fixing labor is ordinarily a textbook antitrust problem because it extinguishes the free market in which individuals can otherwise obtain fair compensation for their work.”
If you’re the CHL, none of the above is good news for you.
But it’s not a death knell, either.
The CHL has new leadership. The president, Dan ManKenzie, started in late 2019. He comes from the NBA.
The new commissioner of the Quebec-Maritimes League, Mario Cecchini, began less than a year ago. He brings to the league vast experience in sports and media.
Today, February 15, is day #1 for new WHL commissioner Dan Near, who comes to the league from Adidas.
Current OHL commissioner David Branch is (mercifully) leaving the job at the end of this season. No word yet on his replacement, but I’d expect someone with a background similar to Cecchini and Near.
For a combined 106 years, Gilles Courteau (age 67, ran the Q for 37 years), Ron Robison (age 69, ran the WHL for 24 years) and Dave Branch (age 76, ran the OHL for 45 years) ran the CHL like a family compact.
Now, it’s younger blood and possibly fresher thinking. Can these newbies identify and pursue opportunities, or will they cling to the legally iffy structures of the past?
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