How Jimmy Vesey escaped through the loophole that is article 8.6(c)

The Nashville Predators are the latest team to get burned by a college senior, this time Jimmy Vesey, choosing to take a chance in free agency.

Per article 8.6(c) of the NHL and NHLPA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement, when an 18 or 19-year-old player is drafted before graduating college and chooses to graduate with his class, that player’s “drafting club shall retain the exclusive right of negotiation for his services through and including the August 15 following the graduation of his college class.”

In the third round of the 2012 NHL entry draft the Nashville Predators selected 19-year-old Jimmy Vesey, a winger from North Reading, Massachusetts. Vesey went on to attend Harvard University and, in the spring of 2015, announced that he would return to Harvard for his senior season. That gave the Nashville Predators exclusive rights to sign Vesey until August 15, 2016. It also allowed Vesey to exercise his right to become a free agent on August 15, 2016.

Jimmy Vesey’s decision to return for a senior season at Harvard put article 8.6(c) of the Collective Bargaining Agreement into effect.

Last week, Harvard’s season ended with a loss to Boston College in the NCAA Men’s Ice Hockey Northeast Regional. On Monday night, the “twittersphere” erupted as news broke that Jimmy Vesey was going to utilize his right, under article 8.6(c), to test free agency, and would not be signing with his drafting club, the Nashville Predators.

Vesey, a dynamic winger who scored 56 goals and tallied 104 points during his final two seasons at Harvard, isn’t the first prized prospect to take the college senior free agent route.

Justin Shultz utilized his right to test free agency after finishing his collegiate career at the University of Wisconsin in 2012. Schultz said thanks but no thanks to the Anaheim Ducks, the team that drafted him in the second round of the 2008 NHL entry draft, and he went on to sign with the Edmonton Oilers.

To this day, Shultz is booed every time he touches the puck when playing in Anaheim.

Kevin Hayes and Mike Reilly are the most recent players to use article 8.6(c) to their advantage. Hayes said no to Chicago and yes to the Rangers, while Reilly said no to Columbus and yes to Minnesota after completing his collegiate career at the University of Minnesota.

However, things have played out differently for Vesey.

It was understood the Predators were eager to sign Vesey after Harvard’s season ended. It was also clear that Predators general manager David Poile’s trade deadline approach revolved around Vesey’s anticipated arrival.

In fact, Nashville assistant general manager Paul Fenton claims that Vesey told him three times before the trade deadline that he would sign with Nashville.

However, a statement from Vesey’s representatives released early Wednesday morning claims that Nashville was notified before the trade deadline that Vesey had no obligation to sign with Nashville.

David Poile told reporters Monday night, “I clearly believe that Jimmy has received bad advice and bad counsel.” The situation is made even more interesting by the fact the Predators were denied a meeting with Vesey after a Harvard game last week. The Predators requested a meeting after learning Vesey was leaning towards exercising his right to test free agency, but were denied by Vesey’s representatives.

Taking into account everything the two parties have said as this situation has unfolded, the timeline looks something like this:

• Vesey told Paul Fenton in February, before the trade deadline, that he intended to sign with Nashville.
• In anticipation of Vesey’s arrival, David Poile chose not to acquire a winger at the trade deadline.
• Vesey’s representatives told Nashville before the trade deadline that Vesey had not yet decided whether he would sign with Nashville.
• Last week, Vesey’s representatives told Nashville that Vesey was thinking about exercising his right to test free agency in August.
• Nashville tried to get a meeting with Vesey over the weekend, but was denied a chance to speak with him.
• On Monday, Vesey officially said he will test free agency in August, exercising his right to do so under article 8.6(c) of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

It appears that either one of these parties is lying, or that Vesey had a change of heart somewhere in the middle of the process.

What did Vesey give up by electing not to sign with Nashville?

As well as an opportunity to get immediate playing time in the Predators top six and a taste of playoff hockey, Vesey has missed out on a potentially very lucrative contract situation.

Predators GM David Poile told reporters Monday night that, by electing to test free agency, “Vesey doesn’t have a money advantage in any way.”

Vesey’s decision not to sign with Nashville is likely going to lose him money.

Vesey turns 22 in May of this year, which means Nashville could only have offered him a two year entry-level contract. If Vesey had chosen to sign with the Predators this season, like David Poile wanted, the first year of his two year entry-level contract would have been burned, making him a restricted free agent at the end of the 2016/17 season.

As a result, Vesey would have had the opportunity to seek a contract extension and a raise as early as next season. In other words, Vesey left a lot of money on the table by choosing not to sign with Predators.

Vesey’s representatives shed some light on the matter in their statement. It claimed that if Jimmy Vesey was concerned about money, he would have left college after his junior season. This makes sense, but if he didn’t turn down the contract for money, why did he turn it down?

Why was the decision made?

Vesey didn’t only pass on a big pay day, he passed on immediate playing time in a playoff-bound team’s top six. The fact Vesey decided to stay in school despite all this suggests he has his heart set on another team.

In 2014, the Toronto Maple Leafs drafted Nolan Vesey, Jimmy’s brother, and hired Jimmy Vesey’s father as a scout. The Boston Bruins, meanwhile, are Vesey’s hometown team. Both are regarded as likely landing spots for the Harvard winger.

There are other issues in play here as well, unrelated to both hockey and money. Jimmy Vesey’s representatives pointed out in their statement that Vesey plans on graduating from Harvard this spring. It’s easy to get caught up in all of this “hockey business” madness, but the fact is Vesey has the opportunity to graduate from on the most prestigious universities in the world. That must have played a role in his decision.

What will come from this Vesey decision?

The primary concern here is not with Vesey, but the CBA article itself. According to the rule, the Predators will get no compensation (in the form of a draft pick or anything else) if Vesey signs with Toronto or Boston come August 15. The only way Nashville would have been compensated was if Vesey had been a first round pick. If more teams continue to lose high-end prospects as a result of article 8.6(c), I expect the issue to be a hot topic at future GM and league meetings.

The problem is that the league is steering away from draft pick compensation, at least in terms of coaching compensation.

As long as article 8.6(c) remains as is, there will be more pressure on teams to sign prospects after their sophomore or junior years of college. If teams don’t do this, they may quickly find themselves in a “Vesey situation.”

The whole situation is weird and confusing, no matter which way you spin it. But while one man’s loss is another man’s gain, the losing man is currently entitled to no compensation. Will that change? I have a feeling this won’t be the last time we discuss article 8.6(c).