NHL vs MLB champions

The Bruins won the Stanley Cup. What did they win?

Well, we know they won the cup. Their names will be put on the trophy and there seems to be a tradition that each of the players can take the Stanley Cup back home with them, no matter where home is. Isn’t that exciting?

Did they win any money? The Boston Bruins and Vancouver Canucks played 21 or 22 games – a gruelling month and a half – yet the monetary compensation is never talked about. No wonder. It hardly exists.

Let’s look at baseball. The World Series champions, the San Francisco Giants, divided $19,700,000 among 50 players, coaches and whoever else they decided to put into the deal, giving full share players $317,000. The losing Texas Rangers gave full share players $246,000. Bengie Molina, who played for both teams, may have actually received a share of both prizes.

In major league baseball 60% of the gate receipts for the first four games of the World Series, league championships, and the first three games from the four divisional series are split on a formula basis, with the World Series winning team getting 36% of the revenue and the losing team getting 24%. The balance is divided among the other losers. On top of it all, the World Series champions get championship rings probably worth about $25,000.

The NHL players’ representatives seem to have forgotten about this lucrative pool of cash flow and allowed the owners to keep the bulk of the proceeds. If I am right, and there is no serious monetary compensation for hockey players, it looks like Don Fehr has some low-hanging fruit available in the next NHL contract negotiation.