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Published: June 17, 2008
NHL will no longer pay transfer fees
The National Hockey League will no longer pay transfer fees for European free agents. The new policy comes after the player transfer agreement between the NHL and the International Ice Hockey Federation expired Sunday, after more than a decade of guiding the movement of players between Europe and the NHL.
Without an agreement with non-North American affiliates of the IIHF, the NHL will no longer pay a $200,000 transfer fee to sign players who were not under contract. The change could save NHL teams a combined total of about $11 million a year for signing between 50 and 60 players from six European leagues affiliated with the IIHF.
The NHL and six major European members of the IIHF each exercised their right to end the deal in December, one year into a new four-year contract. Russia had pulled out of system three years ago. Of the 59 European players who signed with NHL teams before the 2007-08 season, only six were good enough to play in the NHL. Seven returned to European clubs, and 46 were sent to North American minor leagues.
More hockey
■ The Nashville Predators signed defenseman Ryan Suter to a four-year, $14 million contract yesterday, making him the latest to benefit from the team's desire to keep as many of its young, talented players as possible off the free-agent market.
General Manager David Poile said that the pressure now is on Suter, the team's first-round pick in the 2003 draft, to live up to his new contract. Suter set career highs for assists (24), points (31) and penalty minutes (71) last season.
■ Ray Getliffe, the hard-hitting forward credited with giving Canadiens teammate Maurice Richard the nickname "The Rocket," has died.
Getliffe was 94 and the second-oldest living former NHL player.
Getliffe was about four months younger than Clint Smith, who played for the New York Rangers and Chicago Blackhawks.
Getliffe played 10 seasons with the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens from 1935 through 1945. He died Sunday in London, Ontario.
A native of Galt, Ontario, Getliffe retired at 31 with 136 goals and 250 points in 393 games. He won a Stanley Cup with the Bruins in 1939 and again with Montreal in 1944.
Football
■ Coach Dennis Wagner of Western Carolina yesterday announced the addition of nine players to his recruiting class, including two Division I transfers and three players from junior colleges.
Wagner signed defensive lineman Elsmore Gabriel from Clemson and running back Jayson Williams from Central Florida and offensive lineman Victor Aquilina from Palomar (Calif.) College, receiver Adrian Collins from Foothill (Calif.) College and receiver Sterlin James of the College of the Sequoias (Calif.)
Also in the class are four recent high-school graduates: kicker Andrew Bathiany of Fort Thomas, Ky.; receiver Dee Jackson of Norwood; defensive lineman Bevans Robbs of Lake Worth, Fla.; and lineman Trey Selby of Tunnel Hill, Ga.
■ Marcus Vick's first court appearance in Norfolk, Va., to face a charge of driving under the influence was rescheduled from yesterday until Sept. 10.
Vick, a former Virginia Tech quarterback, was arrested early Friday after police said that a bicycle patrol officer saw Vick and a woman involved in a dispute. After the officer tried to intervene, Vick sped away before being stopped minutes later. Vick posted a $1,000 bond Friday.
Basketball
■ Dick Davey, a former Santa Clara coach, was hired yesterday to be one of the assistants on new Stanford coach Johnny Dawkins' staff a year after retiring from the profession.
Rodney Tention, a former Loyola Marymount coach and Mike Schrage, who spent nine seasons with Dawkins at Duke, are the other two assistants on the staff officially announced yesterday.
Stanford finished in second place in the Pac-10 last season, then went on to reach the regional semifinals of the NCAA tournament before losing to Texas. Coach Trent Johnson left to take over at LSU after the season and the Cardinal also lost star big men Brook and Robin Lopez to the NBA draft.
Miscellaneous
■ Carlos Moya of Spain and Juan Ignacio Chela and Juan Monaco of Argentina were among the first players to withdraw from Wimbledon because of injuries, the All England Club announced yesterday.
Moya, who was ranked No. 1 in March 1999 but has slipped to No. 40 with recurring injuries, has an injured shoulder; Chela also has a shoulder problem; and Monaco has an injured back. Argentines Martin Vassallo Arguello and Brian Dabul and Croatia's Roko Karanusic move into the main draw as replacements.
Japan's Akiko Morigami withdrew from the women's singles draw (knee) and was replaced by the Czech Republic's Renato Voracova.
■ The Kentucky Horse Racing Authority fined Churchill Downs Inc., $15,000 yesterday for a rules violation at the starting gate of last month's Kentucky Derby. The allegation involves assistant starter Clinton Beck, who loaded Pyro into the gate. Pyro finished eighth in the race.
Under racing rules, trainers of the Derby horses aren't supposed to have prior knowledge of which assistant starter will load their horse into the gate. Steve Asmussen, Pyro's trainer, had requested that Beck handle Pyro.
The racing authority took no action against Asmussen, but Lisa Underwood, the authority's executive director, said that an investigation is ongoing.
■ NBC Sports and World Championship Sports Network are forming a partnership to create a network that will air Olympics sports.
Universal Sports will include a television network and Web site, the two organizations announced yesterday.
WCSN had broadcast many events between Olympic Games. NBC owns American TV rights to the Olympics. Early-round coverage of the U.S. trials for gymnastics and diving will air on Universal Sports later this week.
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