The NHL free agent blitz

So the summer is officially underway, and the National Hockey League has held is annual entry draft and now we're in day 2 of the Free Agent Frenzy. Many people who follow and cover the NHL have been very critical of the $300+ million dollars that has been spent in free agency. The problem that I have with these naysayers is that the NHL, it's player union and it's fans should be celebrating. I have read several blogs and comments on twitter regarding the subject and it always seems to be negative. How can a team, player, fan or writer have anything but good things to say?

Sure, maybe some of the contracts may seem a bit out of whack, or to quote Washington Capitals General Manager George McPhee, "goofy". but the reason teams are giving such long term contracts is two-fold. Every NHL hockey club has a job to do. That job in a nutshell is to provide it's fans with a quality product, sell tickets, earn revenue and connect with it's community. In simple terms every professional team is a business and these teams are in the business to secure talent and ensure their future ability to compete. The current NHL collective bargaining agreement expires on September 15, 2012, and most of what we're seeing is a result of that. No hockey clubs want to have thin rosters when the current CBA expires. They want to ensure that they have several components in place, so that if their is a lockout, strike or lengthy dispute. These clubs are targeting players of a certain age, that fill a role and spending on them.

How can people be critical of teams trying to compete? By adding assets to field a competitive hockey team, these clubs should be lauded, not criticized. It amazed me the level of negativity year in and year out. The agents are somewhat to blame aren't they? They are the people charged with negotiating these contracts, and the owners, general managers and players all work to make it happen.

The NHL is in mid boon. The owners are making money, and in most markets the fans are excited. Struggling markets like Florida and Buffalo are now in position to compete, and it's a result of adding payroll, adding contracts and spending money in free agency. When criticism is warranted I will be right there to provide some, but this is a day that fans of the NHL should be cheering. It goes a long way to prove that labor peace should remain constant and with the troubles of the NBA, NFL and eventual MLB, the NHL is proving to be a model of how to achieve labor peace and secure profits for your franchises.