from Eben Novy-Williams and Gerrit De Vynck of Bloomberg Business,

The NHL has a loonie problem. The Canadian dollar fell to 68¢ last month against the U.S. dollar, a 13-year low, and analysts think it could drop an additional 13 percent in 2016. The weakened state of the currency may cost the NHL hundreds of millions of dollars in lost revenue.

The NHL does all its business in U.S. dollars, and all players are paid in greenbacks. The league also computes its total annual revenue in U.S. currency. Revenue for the league’s seven Canadian teams comes in the form of Canadian dollars, which is then converted into U.S. dollars. This season it’s going to take many more of the weak loonies to help the league reach its revenue target, estimated to be $4 billion. Chances are growing slim that the league will hit its mark.

That has implications for more than team owners. The teams and players split revenue 50-50. Money is withheld from each NHL player’s paycheck and kept in escrow. If league revenue at the end of the season doesn’t meet its target, money is taken from escrow to ensure an even split with the owners.

For the 2011-12 season, the players’ haircut was 0.5 percent of their annual salaries. At the start of this season, the players’ escrow accounts withheld 16 percent of salaries: That number just rose to 18 percent, as the Canadian dollar declined. Representatives are warning the players not to expect much back. “No one is happy about it,” says NHL players agent Allain Roy.

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