Insider shares insights on NHL LTIR regulations and growing debate surrounding potential revisions to rules

Some NHL teams exploit the collective bargaining agreement rule, going over the cap by an amount equal to players' cap hits on NHL LTIR.

It’s only applicable in playoffs, though, to compensate for injured players; teams don’t have such luxury in the regular season. However, the cap absence in the postseason creates a loophole, which teams use to bench players until the playoffs.

Insider Elliotte Friedman recently explored NHL LTIR regulations and ongoing discussions about potential rule changes in a 32 Thoughts podcast episode. He raised a crucial question:

"How much do people really want change?"

The reason behind Friedman raising such a question is the recent discussion and debates centered around the efficacy and fairness of the current "playoff LTIR" system.

Friedman acknowledges the situation every NHL team and staff faces. The reasoning behind such a situation is that they are bound by the duty to maximize their chances of winning.

"Look, if the opportunity to improve is there, you’re duty-bound to try, or you’re not maximizing chances to win." Friedman said

He traced back the origins of the debate to 2015, when the Chicago Blackhawks navigated the NHL LTIR terrain during Patrick Kane's injury.

Notably, the Vegas Golden Knights faced repercussions in the playoffs two years ago due to their attempts to manipulate LTIR regulations, which led to them missing the postseason.

Friedman discussed the background:

"Remember: this started with Chicago and Patrick Kane in 2015. And Vegas actually missed the playoffs two years ago, because they tried to walk the LTIR line and fell into the abyss. This is a collective-bargaining issue, so you can’t change it until the next negotiations."

"There have been a couple of ideas. One is that a player who doesn’t appear in Game 82 should be forced to miss time in the playoffs, as there’s legit eye-rolling at someone unable to play in the regular-season being healthy three days later."

Another proposal involves aligning the in-game lineup with the salary cap, where only dressed NHL players count towards the cap. Frieman added:

"Another idea is that your actual in-game lineup be under the cap. Whoever isn’t dressed doesn’t count, but those playing do.

"This is important, as when the cap was being negotiated, Ken Holland pointed out Toronto going through about 10 injuries during the 2002 playoffs. If you couldn’t dress a full roster, that would look insane."

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Elliotte Friedman's doubt surrounding NHL LTIR regulation changes

Elliotte Friedman concluded by posing the question:

"Again, the true question is if this is just noise or there’s real appetite for change."

The debate surrounding NHL LTIR regulations did not come out of the blue. So, Friedman only questions the discussion about fairness and competitiveness, among others, to be based on an urgent need for change.

As stakeholders continue to weigh the pros and cons, the future of NHL LTIR regulations remains uncertain, awaiting further deliberation and potential revisions in future negotiations.