Every summer, some players in every
league will see their contract expire and as such they become Free Agents. They are
then free to negotiate with any interested party and sign a contract with any team.
As a General Manager, this can be one of the busiest times of the year. Not only will
you have had to negotiate deals for players you wish to keep, but you will likely be
targeting free agents who will improve your team, and also may be attempting to
thrash out deals with holdout players on your own roster. In the NHL™ there are various types of free agents:
Group Two (II) – Restricted Free Agent (RFA)
Players are eligible for Group Two Free Agency if they meet the following criteria:
First Contract Signed (Age) -------- Eligible After
18-21 -------------------------------------------- 3 years professional experience
22-23 ------------------------------------------- 2 years professional experience
24+ -------------------------------------------- 1 year professional experience
Group Two Free Agents will have received qualifying offers from their team. A
qualifying offer constitutes offering the player a minimum amount based on his
previous salary. This minimum amount is dependent on what the player was
previously earning. If his prior salary was $660,000 or less, he is entitled to a 10%
raise in any form of qualifying offer. If his prior salary was greater than $660,000
but less than $1,000,000, he is entitled to a 5% raise in any form of qualifying offer.
If his prior salary was $1,000,000 or more, he must be offered a sum equal to his
previous year’s salary.
Should the player refuse to accept the qualifying offer and become a Restricted Free
Agent, he has two options. He can either hold out and wait for his demands to be
accepted, or be the subject of an Offer Sheet from another team. This Offer Sheet, if
accepted, would result in compensation for the team who own his rights, should
they not decide to match this offer sheet. Compensation will be in the form of Draft
picks, and is dependent on the salary offered to the player. Compensation amounts
are below:
Salary --------------- Compensation
$660,000 or less ----------- None
$660,000 - $1,000,000 --- Third Round Draft Pick
$1,000,000 - $2,000,000 --- Second Round Draft Pick
$2,000,000 - $3,000,000 --- First Round Draft Pick and Third Round Draft Pick
$3,000,000 - $4,000,000 --- First Round Draft Pick, Second Round Draft Pick, and Third Round Draft Pick
$4,000,000 - $5,000,000 -- Two First Round Draft Picks, Second Round Draft Pick, and Third Round Draft Pick
$5,000,000 + -------------- Four First Round Draft Picks
Group Three (III) – Unrestricted Free Agent (UFA)
Players who fall into this category have no restrictions whatsoever – they can join
any team without their former team receiving a penny of compensation.
Players who have accrued a number of seasons becoming free agents at various
ages. These are:
• 2006/07-players who have accrued eight (8) seasons or are 29 years of age or
older at the end of the 2005/06 season.
• 2007/08-players who have accrued seven (7) seasons or are 28 years of age or
older at the end of the 2006/07 season.
• 2008/09 onwards-players who have accrued seven (7) seasons or are 27 years of
age or older at the end of the previous season.
Group Five (V) – Player’s Choice
Group Five Free Agents are players who have played ten seasons in professional
hockey (NHL™ or minors), have earned less than the League average, and have
been tendered a qualifying offer. These players have the right to elect once in their
NHL careers to become an Unrestricted Free Agent (Group V). The player has until
July 10th to decide. Should a player choose to become a UFA and then fall back
under Group V qualifications at a later stage in his career, he will become a Group II
Free Agent.
Should the player not decide to become a Group V UFA, he becomes a Group II
Free Agent and as such falls under such criteria as described above.
Group Six (VI) – Unrestricted Free Agent
Group Six Free Agents are players aged 25 or over and who have completed three or more professional seasons, and in the case of defensemen and forwards have
played less than 80 regular season and playoff games, and goaltenders with less
than 28 regular season and playoff games. Players who qualify into these criteria
have the same liberal movements as a Group III UFA.
Добавлено (03.12.2008, 16:04)
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это в мануале написано. можно было бы и на русский перевести, но слишком много. и так всё понятно.
