Bettman Says NHL May Need to Revisit No-Trade Clauses

The league commissioner spoke about the issue Thursday as several high-profile players have used their contract protection while also seeking trades to preferred destinations. Bettman believes that goes beyond what no-trade clauses were originally designed to do.

According to Bettman, the idea was simple. A player would sign a long-term contract with a team he wanted to stay with, sometimes taking less money in the process, and the no-trade protection would give him some security that he wouldn’t suddenly be moved somewhere else.

The situation becomes different when a player decides he wants out of that same contract and can then use his no-trade protection to control where he goes.

“That was never the original intention,” Bettman said.

There have been several examples of that dynamic this offseason. Dylan Larkin has reportedly limited the teams he would accept a trade to, while Brady Tkachuk was eventually moved from Ottawa to Florida. Connor Hellebuyck’s situation in Winnipeg has also brought plenty of attention to the issue.

Bettman isn’t saying the league is about to change the rules. In fact, he acknowledged that one offseason isn’t enough to determine whether the situation has become a serious problem.

But if the trend continues, Bettman said the NHL could eventually have to discuss the issue with the Players’ Association.

For now, players still have the contractual protections they negotiated. Whether those protections continue to be used in the same way could become one of the more interesting NHL labour issues to watch in the coming years.