Thankfully the next NHL Collective Bargaining Agreement doesn’t expire until 2026 but work should begin now on ideas how to revamp the contract rules regarding Restricted Free Agents. There’s always some discourse about how the RFA system should be abolished or elimination of the draft to make every player entering the league unrestricted free agents but nothing that radical needs to happen to give young players who are becoming more and more important in today’s NHL some bargaining power. Here are three rule tweaks which should be considered to benefit the contract system.
No Contract Slides in the AHL
Abolishing contract slides in the minor leagues should be the most critical change players and their agents push for.