A proposed class-action lawsuit alleges North America’s most powerful hockey leagues are conspiring to limit opportunities for young players.
The claim was filed by Kobe Mohr, a 21-year-old Lloydminster, Alta., man who played for four teams in the Western Hockey League from 2015 to 2020.
The NHL, WHL, Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, Ontario Hockey League, American Hockey League, ECHL and Hockey Canada are listed as defendants.
The WHL, OHL and QMJHL operate under the umbrella of the Canadian Hockey League, which settled three other class action lawsuits in May.
The more recent suit also asks for financial compensation for CHL players, but not only from the CHL.
The suit alleges the defendants participated in “an unlawful conspiracy, arrangement or agreement” to limit opportunities for Mohr and other Canadians to make a living playing pro hockey between the ages of 18 and 20.
The document claims the defendants have created a system where the overwhelming majority of players will never reach the top pro leagues, instead spending years playing for “nominal sums of money, all to the financial advantage of the defendants.”
“This practice creates a system that imprisons young hockey players between 16 and 20,” said lawyer Felix-Antoine Michaud, whose Quebec-based firm filed the lawsuit on Mohr’s behalf.
“The player in Canada doesn’t have the same rights as a European player. A Canadian player doesn’t have the possibility to play in the American and East Coast leagues at 18 or 19 years old. A European player has the possibility to play in these leagues at 18 and 19.
“This arrangement is not legal under the competition act.”
None of the allegations have been proven in court. The lawsuit must be certified by the courts to become a class-action. No statements of defence have been filed.
Different structure in Europe, Russia
The AHL declined to comment, while a CHL spokesman said the league has not received the document.
None of the other organizations mentioned in the lawsuit immediately provided a comment.
Mohr played 265 games in the WHL for the Edmonton Oil Kings, Kamloops Blazers, Kelowna Rockets and Moose Jaw Warriors.
The winger spent the majority of the 2019-20 in the Alberta Junior Hockey League, but appeared in 18 games for the Rockets and Warriors.
The suit states Mohr and players like him are not represented by players’ associations and are not free to organize a group to negotiate a collective bargaining agreement for themselves.
The suit points to the structure of hockey in Europe and Russia, where pro clubs can sign young players to pro contracts and assign them to junior or reserve teams.
“Overall, Canadian-based players that are playing in major junior leagues have substantially less choices and freedom, if any, than European-based players, who have the opportunity to play in the AHL or ECHL before reaching the age of 20 and be paid a salary negotiated by a professional association,” the suit states.
NHL teams pay bonus or “development” money to CHL clubs whose players are drafted, which the suit calls “unlawful arrangements” between the defendants.
“This strategy is to keep the player in the CHL and the CHL wants to keep the player in the league to have the capacity to have this money,” Michaud said.
“The NHL and the CHL have an agreement together saying no player can play in an affiliate league, the AHL or ECHL. The players have no rights. They have no voice under this agreement.”
The trio of lawsuits the CHL recently settled were over claims CHL players are employees subject to employment legislation and were due back wages for minimum wage.
Governments in jurisdictions where CHL teams operate either amended legislation or stated their employment standards didn’t apply to major junior hockey players.
The settlements amounted to a total of $30 million. Class members were compensated based on length of time — full, half or quarter seasons — in their respective leagues.
The CHL has always considered major junior players, who typically range from 16 to 20 years old, student-athletes.
Players get money for out-of-pocket expenses, equipment, billeting and travel costs while on a CHL roster.
They’re also currently eligible for post-secondary scholarships, with each season spent in the league worth one year of tuition, books and compulsory fees.
The WHL, OHL and QMJHL said a combined 956 players collected $7 million in scholarships in the 2019-20 academic year.
VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Canucks announced Tuesday that defenceman Alex Edler will sign a one-day contract in order to officially retire as a member of the NHL team.
The signing will be part of a celebration of Edler’s career held Oct. 11 when the Canucks host the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Canucks selected Edler, from Ostersund, Sweden, in the third round (91st overall) of the 2004 NHL draft.
He played in 925 career games for the Canucks between the 2006-07 and 2020-21 seasons, ranking fourth in franchise history and first among defencemen.
The 38-year-old leads all Vancouver defencemen with 99 goals, 310 assists and 177 power-play points with the team.
Edler also appeared in 82 career post-season contests with Vancouver and was an integral part of the Canucks’ run to the 2011 Stanley Cup final, putting up 11 points (2-9-11) across 25 games.
“I am humbled and honoured to officially end my career and retire as a member of the Vancouver Canucks,” Edler said in a release. “I consider myself lucky to have started my career with such an outstanding organization, in this amazing city, with the best fans in the NHL. Finishing my NHL career where it all began is something very special for myself and my family.”
Edler played two seasons for Los Angeles in 2021-22 and 2022-23. He did not play in the NHL last season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
The sixth-ranked Canadian women will face World Cup champion Spain in an international friendly next month.
Third-ranked Spain will host Canada on Oct. 25 at Estadio Francisco de la Hera in Almendralejo.
The game will be the first for the Canadian women since the Paris Olympics, where they lost to Germany in a quarterfinal penalty shootout after coach Bev Priestman was sent home and later suspended for a year by FIFA over her part in Canada’s drone-spying scandal.
In announcing the Spain friendly, Canada Soccer said more information on the interim women’s coaching staff for the October window will come later. Assistant coach Andy Spence took charge of the team in Priestman’s absence at the Olympics.
Spain finished fourth in Paris, beaten 1-0 by Germany in the bronze-medal match.
Canada is winless in three previous meetings (0-2-1) with Spain, most recently losing 1-0 at the Arnold Clark Cup in England in February 2022.
The teams played to a scoreless draw in May 2019 in Logroñés, Spain in a warm-up for the 2019 World Cup. Spain won 1-0 in March 2019 at the Algarve Cup in São João da Venda, Portugal.
Spain is a powerhouse in the women’s game these days.
It won the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2022 and was runner-up in 2018. And it ousted Canada 2-1 in the round of 16 of the current U-20 tournament earlier this month in Colombia before falling 1-0 to Japan after extra time in the quarterfinal.
Spain won the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2018 and 2022 and has finished on the podium on three other occasions.
FC Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati (2023) and Alexia Putellas (2021 and ’22) have combined to win the last three Women’s Ballon d’Or awards.
And Barcelona has won three of the last four UEFA Women’s Champions League titles.
“We continue to strive to diversify our opponent pool while maintaining a high level of competition.” Daniel Michelucci, Canada Soccer’s director of national team operations, said in a statement. “We anticipate a thrilling encounter, showcasing two of the world’s top-ranked teams.”
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024
TORONTO – The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced cookie brand Oreo as the team’s helmet sponsor for the upcoming NHL season.
The new helmet will debut Sunday when Toronto opens its 2024-25 pre-season against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Arena.
The Oreo logo replaces Canadian restaurant chain Pizza Pizza, which was the Leafs’ helmet sponsor last season.
Previously, social media platform TikTok sponsored Toronto starting in the 2021-22 regular season when the league began allowing teams to sell advertising space on helmets.
The Oreo cookie consists of two chocolate biscuits around a white icing filling and is often dipped in milk.
Fittingly, the Leafs wear the Dairy Farmers of Ontario’s “Milk” logo on their jerseys.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
