1. If implemented as it is proposed (i.e. all teams can NHL-rerate a player), this rule would not necessarily help weaker teams become competitive. That would depend on whether or not weaker teams have a better NHL-rated players
on their rosters, and it is probably not the case.
What this rule would definitely do is that it
would make a player's NHL status more important.
2. At this point, Gord has adopted a new rule regarding the dispersal draft (or waiver draft).
That draft is structured in such a way that weaker teams would have a chance to get better players.
Also, tying the definition of a weaker team to
its budget (quality) should help distributing the
off-season perks (picks and camps) more fairly towards weaker teams. I would suggest to see how these measures work out before piling up more measures and rule changes. It is quite possible that what we have adopted this season will be sufficient to start evening things out somewhat.
Posted on Aug 3, 1999, 5:04 PM from IP address 199.45.71.2
