Elliotte Friedman Reveals NHL Investigating Contract Tampering; Tyler Bertuzzi's Deal With Chicago Involved
This past summer, the Chicago Blackhawks signed Tyler Bertuzzi rather quickly, and now the NHL appears to be investigating the situation.
Tyler Bertuzzi's deal with the Chicago Blackhawks came under plenty of scrutiny this summer, with the deal getting done rather quickly, leading to plenty of speculation that it was done long before it was legally allowed.
Bertuzzi himself admitted during an interview that Nick Foligno, now captain of the Blackhawks reached out to him to come to Chicago, with fans speculating further on the situation.
Now, Elliotte Friedman has noted that the NHL is now investigating situations such as this:
"The tampering warning was interesting. As a player, I'd see it as a necessary evil if you're not going to have the free agency dating period. If I'm going to be deciding what's best for my family and career, I'd rather stealthily make it with some preparation as opposed to a flood of information and take-it-or-leave-it offers on July 1.
What it says to me is the league is looking to punish someone who is overly blatant or not careful (and let's face it, many teams are just as guilty as the agents). But, the league doesn't need a complaint to act. When Toronto signed John Tavares, it was investigated - and cleared - without the Islanders asking."
What it says to me is the league is looking to punish someone who is overly blatant or not careful (and let's face it, many teams are just as guilty as the agents). But, the league doesn't need a complaint to act. When Toronto signed John Tavares, it was investigated - and cleared - without the Islanders asking."
Understandably, this is certainly a tough situation for the league, as it would be very hard for players to get so much information in just one day, so it makes sense that they would like some information before July 1st.
This is what happens with other leagues in North America, as they are given a grace period before free agency to talk to teams and make a more informed decision. TSN's Pierre LeBrun followed up on this report with more information about why the NHL is prioritizing this now.
" As Bill Daly told me afterward, more of a refresher, that the league has not talked about or emphasized the rules around tampering for a few years now and he felt now that it was time and I asked him why it was time and he said that he was, "a little uncomfortable" with some of the commentary in the media reported heading into July 1st last year.
It gave them the impression that there were negotiations before July 1st and he just wanted to remind GMs that you can't do that before July 1st and there are repercussions in terms of fines and/or potential loss of draft picks. So we'll see what impact that conversation from Bill Daly had ahead of next July 1st."
It gave them the impression that there were negotiations before July 1st and he just wanted to remind GMs that you can't do that before July 1st and there are repercussions in terms of fines and/or potential loss of draft picks. So we'll see what impact that conversation from Bill Daly had ahead of next July 1st."
Ultimately, it's unclear right now if any teams will face punishment for the last off-season, but it's becoming very clear that they are looking to crack down on it moving forward.
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