We have 6 weeks left in the 2008/2009 NHL season.  Here are the highlights left for the players, coaches, general managers, owners and future hockey hopefuls.  I have broken down a few of the dates and explained what is going to happen and what to expect … and also, what to look for.  I am anticipating July 1st and the RFA/UFA season - do you know where your favorite player is going?  Many people talk about the off season being a slow NHL time … however, keep an eye on the RFA/UFA list (link below) and hang on for the ride!  Beside the NHL Trade Deadline - July 1st and the Free Agency period are my 2nd most favorite non-game NHL time.

April 24-May 10 - IIHF World Championship, Switzerland

May 25-30 - NHL Combine, Toronto

You can view here the 2009 Combine Invite List

The NHL Combine is a downright vigorous and probably the most physical, medical and psychological test these kids have to endure while the try to get into the NHL.  It’s an “Invite Only” party that will help the scouts, coaches and GM’s decide where they put their draft picks and with whom.  This is the second year it is being held at the Bristol Palace hotel in Toronto.  The players are going to have everything tested - agility, stamina, coordination, thinking ability, maturity, their mental state … the only thing they will not have to do is skate.

NHL Central Scouting Director E.J. McGuire told NHL.com there are a number of reasons for not putting the prospects on skates.  First, for the top players, teams likely have seen them multiple times in person or on video already.  Also, there’s the fact that some players, including many with U.S. colleges and high schools, haven’t been on the ice since February, while others will have played in the Under-18 World Championships or just finished at the Memorial Cup, which ends the same week as the Combine.

“Is it fair to the kid whose high school season ended in February to stand next to the kid who (just) played in a championship game?” McGuire asked. “It might be unfair to the Memorial Cup participant if the (high school) kid had just been doing the Combine tests, sprinting five times as week, and not having to practice. That Memorial Cup guy, did he block a shot to win a championship and his ankle is sore?”

Instead, the players are put through their paces in a three-hour crucible which includes events as simple as the sit and reach, push-ups and sit-ups, right through a pair of high-tech torture chambers — exercise bike tests that measure anaerobic fitness and an aerobic-max VO2 test.  This is one test that these kids dread, yet anticipate their entire lives!

June 15 - Last possible day for Stanley Cup finals

Plain and simple … by June 15th we will have the 2008/2009 Champions!

June 18 - NHL awards show at Las Vegas

Are you going?  2009 NHL Awards

June 26-27 - NHL draft, Montreal

New York Islanders get the first pick, Tampa Bay Lightning picks second and Colorado Avalanche get the third pick.  The NHL Entry Draft consists of seven rounds, with each team assigned one pick in each round. Draft picks can be traded at any time and as we all know, most of those picks have been traded or pawned for position or players.  The 2009 NHL draft order has not completely been set (we’ll know by June 15th) - there is a running list on Wikipedia regarding the 2009 NHL Draft Order

How They Decide The Draft Order:

• The 14 teams that missed the playoffs during the previous NHL season hold the first 14 picks. They draft in order of fewest points to most points, subject to the results of the draft lottery (see below).
• The current Stanley Cup champion picks last (30th).
• The Stanley Cup runner-up picks 29th.
• The other two Conference Finalists pick 28th and 27th.
• Regular-season division winners hold the other lowest positions.
• Remaining teams draft in order of fewest points to most points from the previous regular season.

Why They Hold The Draft Lottery:
The selection order in the first round is subject to a lottery, held among the teams that hold the top 14 picks.  There is only one winning team in the lottery.  That team moves up a maximum of four places in the draft order.  The lottery is weighted to favor the teams with the fewest points.  It was introduced to prevent a weak team from deliberately losing to guarantee itself a high draft pick.

Who Are Eligible For The Draft:
Eligible Players are players who turn 18 by September 15 and are not older than 20 by December 31.  Also, non-North American players over the age of 20 are eligible.  Any North American player who is not drafted by the age of 20 is an unrestricted free agent and all non-North Americans must be drafted before being signed, regardless of age.  Players can also Re-enter the Draft when they are not signed by an NHL team within two years of being drafted, as long as he is 20 years old or younger at the time of the subsequent draft.  Players over 20 become unrestricted free agents.  NCAA players are an exception: NHL teams retain the rights to a college player until 30 days after the player has left college.  Any team that does not sign a first-round draft pick is awarded a compensatory pick in a future draft upon losing the rights to that player and a player who has been drafted a second time cannot re-enter.

July 1 - Free agency signing period begins

Here are the lists of 2009 NHL Free Agents (by team) from Sports City - Restricted Free Agents and Unrestricted Free Agents

Unrestricted NHL Free Agents - As of 2008, any player whose contract has expired can declare himself an unrestricted free agent if he is at least 27 years old or has at least seven years of service as an NHL player.  Between 2005 and 2008, the age of unrestricted free agency declined from 31 to 27.  An unrestricted free agent is free to negotiate and sign a contract with any NHL team.  Teams losing unrestricted free agents do not receive any compensation.  Under the old collective agreement, which expired in 2005, draft picks were awarded as compensation.

Restricted Free Agents are players who are no longer considered “entry-level” but do not qualify as unrestricted free agents become restricted free agents when their contracts expire.  The current team must extend a “qualifying offer” to a restricted free agent to retain negotiating rights to that player.  Players who earned less than $660,000 in the previous season must be offered 110 percent of last season’s salary.  Players making up to $1 million must be offered 105 percent.  Players making over $1 million must be offered 100 percent.  If the qualifying offer is not made, the player becomes an unrestricted free agent.  If the player rejects a qualifying offer, he remains a restricted free agent.

July 5 - Deadline for player-elected salary arbitration / July 6 - Deadline for club-elected salary arbitration

Original post by Clint back in July 2007 - You can read it HERE

Arbitration is a tool that teams and players can use to handle salary disputes. It is only available to restricted free agents with four years of NHL experience. However, this term can be reduced for players that signed their first contract after the age of 20. Teams also have the ability to take their players to arbitration but a team may only take a player to arbitration one time in their career. Furthermore, a team can request no more than an 85% decrease in the player’s salary. Players, on the other hand, can request an arbitration hearing as much as they’d like throughout their professional career.

In arbitration, the player (and their agent) and the team each propose a potential salary and then argue for why they believe that salary to be fair. They base their proposals on things such as the player’s previous statistics, their overall contributions to the team’s success or failure, and the salaries received by other players that are deemed comparable.

A decision is made within 48 hours and at that point the team has the right to accept the arbitrators decision and sign the player to the deal or walk away. If the team walks away, the player becomes an unrestricted free agent and can be signed by any team in the league.

July 10 - Deadline for eligible players to elect Group 5 free agency

Group 5 Free Agents are the rarest of all the groups. A Group V free agent is, in essence, a player with the option of electing Group II status* or unrestricted free agency.  Historically, players have opted for unrestricted free agency.  If a team makes a qualifying offer, the player has until Aug. 5 to elect unrestricted free agency.  If the player chooses not to become an unrestricted free agent, the team which owns his rights will have the option of matching an offer from a new team or draft-pick compensation as it applies to Group II free agents.  If a team does not make a qualifying offer, the player is moved to the unrestricted list.

Qualifying age/experience for Group V players - They must have completed 10 pro seasons or more (NHL or minors, excluding junior hockey), earned less than the league average and received a timely qualifying offer.  These players have the right to elect once in their careers to become unrestricted free agents.  If they elect unrestricted status, then fall under the qualifications of a Group V again, they will automatically be restricted.

*Group II Free Agents - The most restrictive of all groups. Should a Group II free agent sign an offer sheet from another team, the team that owns his rights has the option of matching the offer or receiving compensation in the form of draft picks from the new team. Draft choice compensation is based on the amount offered by the new club. Original clubs must tender a qualifying offer, a minimum amount based on the player’s previous salary, to qualify for matching rights and compensation.

July 20-Aug. 4 - Salary arbitration hearings held

Aug. 6 - Deadline for salary arbitration decisions to be rendered

Tags: NHL Calendar, NHL Draft, Off Season