from Larry Brooks of the New York Post,

NHL players who were on a team’s “freeze roster” as of March 16 will be paid 8.1 percent of their base 2020-21 salary on Oct. 31. Under terms of the Memorandum of Understanding between the league and the Players’ Association, that is the only payment these players will receive until the season commences.

The rest of the hundreds of pro players who were on minor league rosters at the time of the COVID-19-induced pause … well, they will get nothing. Just as they apparently will get nothing until AHL and ECHL seasons begin. Let’s say, if they begin.

For if the structure of the NHL’s 2020-21 is fraught with uncertainty, the entire minor league operation is in question. The AHL long ago announced that the season would begin on Dec. 4, but that appears to be wildly optimistic. More to the point, it is difficult to conceive how the minor leagues can proceed without gate-related revenue.

The NHL has appointed a committee of club executives, including, but not limited to, Edmonton’s Ken Holland, Winnipeg’s Mark Chipman and Toronto’s Kyle Dubas, to investigate hypotheticals that might apply to the AHL and minor league seasons.

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