Your calendar has a flaw if it says no special Canadian historical event happened on June 9.
That’s wrong. On June 9, 1993 the Montreal Canadiens won the Stanley Cup and lifted it high, as millions of Canadians celebrated from coast to coast to coast!
Sadly, that was the last time a Canadian team will ever win the Cup.
Since then, we have dreamt about it happening again; we have cheered on our favorite team each season; we have united behind any remaining Canadian team after our own falls in defeat … and then, we sigh and mourn when an American team hoists the cup.
Team coaches, managers, sports “reporters’ and pundits have parroted the usual cliches at the end of each season: our teams are young, but rebuilding; a new coach will change everything; we’re making trades that will improve our goal-scoring; and, there will be terrific prospects ahead in the draft.
For 33 years now!
And our broadcasters repeatedly remind us “This is OUR beautiful game!”
But Canadian teams will never again win another Stanley Cup … and here’s why:
Too many of our best players …after years of being trained, experienced and becoming strong goal-scorers, even stars, for Canadian teams … left us for American teams!
Remember Pavel Bure, Roberto Luongo, Wayne Gretsky, Patrick Roy, Joe Sakic, Brendan Shanahan, Mark Messier, Matthew Tkachuk, Mitch Marner, even the venerable Tim Horton? Poof, all of them in their prime, left Canadian teams for the US!
Of course, there are differing reasons why any professional trained and successful individuals in Canada might move south: better career opportunities (for hockey players, to win the Cup!); team trades; climate; lifestyle; to be closer to relatives; and, money.
The NHL does have a salary cap: reportedly $20.8 million per player in the 2026-2027 season, but let’s keep it real … some US franchises are just richer than others, can pay more higher salaries and offer more lucrative off-season promotional/sponsorship/endorsement opportunities.
Now the Montreal Economic Institute has identified another incentive that draws Canadian stars to the stars and stripes: TAXES!
“Professional athletes have short careers and therefore a limited window in which to earn income through their salaries,” observes Vincent Geloso, senior economist at the MEI. “This creates a strong incentive to play where taxes are lowest.”
“Five of the last six Stanley Cups have been won by a team from a state with no personal income tax.”
According to the MEI study:
“On a yearly salary of $750,000, a player on the Montreal Canadiens pays $364,312 in taxes, an effective tax rate of 48.5 per cent. For a player on the Panthers or the Stars, for example, this tax bill drops to $234,520, for a rate of only 31.2 per cent. That’s a difference of more than $129,000 per year on the same salary.”
“The NHL’s salary cap is based on gross salary rather than net salary. In practical terms, this means a team in a state with no income tax can offer exactly the same contract as a Canadian team while allowing the player to keep much more money in his pocket,” the Economic Institute pointed out.
Mitch Marner’s 8-year contract with the Las Vegas Golden Knights totals $96,000,000 US … in a state that has no state income tax.
Of course, he really wants that Stanley Cup ring. But even without one, surely it would be a lot easier to console himself with the loss down south!
No wonder so many Canadian team stars have headed south … making it MUCH for difficult (impossible?) for a Canadian team to ever again with the Cup. (There are 19 Canadian players on the two current Cup finalist teams.)
I’ll still pull for a Canadian team … ANY Canadian team.
Even though the deck is stacked and I know we’ll NEVER again take home the Stanley Cup!
Pass it on …
Harv Oberfeld
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(Follow @harveyoberfeld.ca on “X” for FREE First Alerts to new postings on the Blog.)
Sorry Harvey, but I am having way too much fun with this topic.
First off, my choice of the Hockey News story was purposely picked because it was a year old. And because the Hockey News is a legitimate news source for hockey related stories. This story is not new but you have found a new study so the story may or not be revived. Let’s deal with the MEI report that you told us about.
Based on this study, you have taken the position that a team from a Canadian city will never win the Stanley Cup, that this is some existential crisis, “that should be a cause celebre in Canada and deserves real attention from real media… over and over again, until the problem is dealt with to solve it.”
Maybe it should be, but that wasn’t the conclusion of the person who wrote the MEI report This was his conclusion,
“One should be careful not to ascribe a team’s performance to tax differences alone, but it is necessary to understand that these do matter.”
The author goes further. “This means that we cannot dismiss the role of tax policy in attracting and retaining talent. In fact, the discussion above has similar ramifications for every other kind of top talent: researchers, doctors, painters, professors, actors, inventors, musicians, managers, etc. What applies to athletes applies to them”
https://www.iedm.org/low-tax-paths-to-the-stanley-cup/
It sounds to me that the author isn’t worried so much about the NHL/Stanley Cup as he he is about pitching for government to reduce taxes.
So that made me curious. Who/what is the Montreal Economic Institute? According to Wikipedia, “commentators often characterize the MEI as Quebec’s equivalent to the Fraser Institute and a voice of fiscal conservationism in Quebec.
Nothing necessarily wrong with that but it gives this story an intriguing twist. Should the NHL be solving this problem or should the government be solving it through tax policy?
One last point. Because you were concerned that the story wasn’t being covered by “real” media I decided to narrow my search specifically to the CBC. The only thing that came up was this article from 2014.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nhl-teams-losing-talent-because-of-high-taxes-study-says-1.2838415
“NHL teams losing talent because of high taxes study says.” 12 years ago! Similar story.
Except,,,
“The joint study by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation and Americans for Tax Reform found that of the 30-team roster, 2013-14 players for the Montreal Canadiens paid the highest tax rate of around 54 per cent. Meanwhile, players on the Calgary Flames paid around 38 per cent with Edmonton Oilers coming in at a close second.
Calgary and Edmonton had the most favourable tax rates! Where were all the Cup wins back then?
Yup this is definitely a fun topic.
(Response: It’s a great topic because hockey, as the sports reporters often remind is, is “Canada’s beautiful game”. However, the way the NHL and salary cap/tax/endorsements/costs of living are set up, I look at it more and more like a “carnie (not Carney!) game” at an amusement park: those who buy into it think they have a good chance of winning, but in reality, they do not. In fact, in the case of the Stanley Cup, the evidence is clear: three American teams have won it TWICE each in the past 10 years, but NO Canadian team has won it in 33 years! I am sounding the alarm in the hope of exposing the reality, getting some discussion going to effect change/improvement … and it’s a red herring to point out (as if the matter need not be exposed again!) to say, Well, it has been reported before. Maybe if the working media kept the topic alive, the NHL would feel under pressure to address it. And then, you will thank me! 🙂 Ho)
What a sad state of affairs, Harvey. I’ve been a Habs fan since I was a young kid. I would have never guessed this situation existed in the NHL.
Good stuff Not Sure.
I really wonder if there are many real reporters out there. Maybe on the “political” afternoon programs we see on the two major networks. I think what we mostly see are news readers, just reciting what they see on the teleprompters.They may have the credentials, and this may sound a bit harsh but I think a lot of them were mostly chosen for their looks.
I wonder just how much Gary Bettman is complicit in all of this.
(Response: I was not only a Habs fan, I had my own contract for season tickets at the old Montreal forum (2nd to last row up in the orange, behind a post!) when I was about 19 or 20. As for reporters, there are still some very good journalists out there, but they are constrained tremendously by corporate …not news-type … owners/managers, staff and budget cuts, political correctness and, yes, sometimes hiring more now for looks, ethnicity, cost and people who just want to be on TV, rather than proven journalistic ability, knowledge, experience. Ho)
(Response: Would be fascinating if any “real” reporters raised the issue with team coaches, managers and NHL brass! Ho)
Whatever do you mean by this? This story has been around for years and sports reporters (are they not real reporters) have asked appropriate questions. Where do you think I am getting my information.
Here is one article from the Hockey News from last year. You can google others.
https://thehockeynews.com/news/latest-news/the-nhl-s-no-tax-team-advantage-is-not-a-ridiculous-issue-but-bettman-has-won-the-argument
And if you really want a deep dive into all the complexities of taxation for hockey players try this one. Warning: my brain was on overload!) The six teams with favourable state taxes do have an advantage when it comes to net pay but there are other tax factors that can be used to benefit players on Canadian teams.
https://cardinalpointathleteadvisors.com/how-nhl-players-are-taxed-and-why-florida-beats-toronto-on-take-home-pay/
Canadians are passionate about hockey maybe too passionate and because we have been winners for years (a Canadian based team won 27 of the 38 Stanley Cups before this current drought) our expectations are always high and our disappointments can be crushing. The game is global now and Canada with a team of NHL players including Sidney Crosby and Macklin Celebrini lost to Norway of all teams in the bronze (not gold) medal game at last month’s world championships.
Six teams have an advantage, but it is not just Canadian teams who are disadvantaged. 19 other American teams are also disadvantaged. One solution is changing the hard cap that the NHL uses. The NBA has a soft cap so teams can spend more by paying a luxury tax. But this only benefits the more well off teams like Toronto and Montreal. Winnipeg, unfortunately doesn’t generate the revenue of those teams. But even if Toronto could spend as much as it wanted, some players will still stay away because the media and fan scrutiny isn’t worth it.
I would like to see as level a playing field as possible for all teams but it isn’t as easy as some would think. Singling out one problem ends up triggering complications with other issues.
Fun topic, though.
(Response: You point to two articles .. both of the stories a year old … and suggest that the “issue” has therefore been adequately covered??? And neither of them are from the hundreds of mainstream media outlets that readers, viewers, listeners turn to every day for “news”. This is an issue/problem that ensures NO Canadian team will EVER again wins the Stanley Cup! Surely, that should be a cause celebre in Canada and deserves real attention from real media… over and over again, until the problem is dealt with to solve it. Ho)
Nothing to add .. you have said it all .. sadly.
(Response: Would be fascinating if any “real” reporters raised the issue with team coaches, managers and NHL brass! Ho)
If they raised those issues with the NHL brass, coaches, managers….they’d be banned.
(Response: I don’t think they’d ban them: they might find it harder to get interviews/access but take it from me, the public prefers reporters who poke the bear, instead of just petting it! Ho)
This is a very interesting topic, but one that is very complicated. It is easy to stray so let me first comment on the strays.
To your headline, I would say “never say never”. In fact, there is a far greater chance of a Canadian team winning the Stanley Cup than there is of an artificial Stanley Cup final between a Canadian based team and an American based team. How would this even work? 25 American based teams fight it out to face the winner of a 7 team bracket that you already admit will never be good enough to win. Nobody, owners, players, fans would want this, especially the players because…
The Boston Bruins as an example do not represent the US. They are a team from Boston with players from all over the world. That is true for Canadian teams as well. The Canucks have always been Team Sweden as far as I am concerned. When Pittsburgh plays Ottawa, sorry Ottawans, I am hoping for Sidney Crosby, not Brady Tkachuk. I will save my Canadian patriotism for best on best hockey during the Olympics.
Having said that your original topic of the unfair advantage given to the teams in tax free states is worth a look. But remember this is not a Canada vs US issue. There are 32 teams in the NHL. Seattle, Las Vegas, Nashville, Dallas, Tampa Bay and Florida play in states with no state income tax, giving those six teams an advantage when signing free agents. If, as you claim, no Canadian team will ever win the Stanley Cup, does that same prediction hold for the Sharks, Kings and Ducks who play in heavily taxed California or the Sabres, Rangers and Islanders from heavily taxed New York or the other 13 US based teams. As an aside, if we count the three New York teams, none of the 10 teams from Canada AND New York have won a Stanley Cup since 1994 when the Rangers beat the Canucks.
As another aside, Nashville, Seattle, and Florida didn’t make the playoffs this year and Dallas and Tampa lost in the first round. Vegas sucked most of this year until the last couple of weeks of the season just in time for the playoffs. And they haven’t won this year … yet?
This issue isn’t new. The Athletic (an online sports site well worth the $18 yearly subscription) had several articles about this two years ago when Florida won its first Cup. The Athletic is American based so the articles didn’t focus just on Canadian teams.
Yes, those teams in tax free states have an advantage but what are we going to do. We can’t change the weather in Winnipeg or LA or the media frenzy in Toronto or the anonymity of Utah, factors that might sway a player to go or not go to a particular city. Money of course will be a part of the equation and those six teams do get an advantage but team culture is also a big part. Winning teams will keep their players or have an easier time signing new players according to one Athletic article.
Connor McDavid signed a very team friendly deal with Edmonton. He saved them about $5M a year for the next two years.to be used to lure other players to Edmonton. He is happy in Edmonton. He wants to win a Cup in Edmonton. If after two years he feels that he needs to leave Edmonton it will have little to do with how much money he will make. He just wants to win.
Some solutions to this problem might be to raise the cap for the 26 teams who play in taxed regions or lower it for teams in non taxed regions but then how would you factor in other advantages that various cities have. It just becomes complicated. And even more so…
I am no tax expert but there are other nuances. I believe John Tavares is in the middle of a fight with the CRA because of the way his contract was written to avoid the heavier tax hit in Ontario. I haven’t taken the time to research that so if somebody wants to do it, have at her and let us know.
As well, I didn’t know there is something called a “jock tax”. Players from tax free states still have to pay the appropriate income tax when they play road games in cities with state/provincial taxes. Again haven’t researched it fully but another nuance.
And this is just hockey. Wait until the end of this baseball season and the bargaining for a new collective agreement. Several owners want a salary cap because most teams can’t compete with big spenders like the Dodgers, Mets, Yankees and even the Blue Jays…even though smaller market teams have won the World Series.
Don’t give up hope, Harvey. The Canucks win the Cup in 2038 and there will be another Canadian team before that. I’d bet you, but I may not be around to collect my winnings.
(Response: Impressed and appreciative that you gave this so much thought. You mention the high taxes in California: that’s true, but let’s keep it real, California also has other attractions/amenities/promotional possibilities/year round climate advantages that Winnipeg, Ottawa, Edmonton, Calgary do not. We do, however, have advantages many US cities do not: lifestyle, civility, safety etc. and many NHL players (Blue Jays too) opt for those things for themselves and their families. But do not underestimate the ability/determination/egos of the billionaire owners in even smaller US cities … who I believe have a distinct advantage in “buying” the best players away from Canadian teams, whether we’re talking Canadian citizens or players from other countries. In the NHL … money talks, and players walk! Never say never? Let’s check back in another 33 years (last time a Canadian team won the Cup) and see who is right! LOL! Ho)
Aah a moneyball moment
10x pop usa
CBC sells HNIC tv rights
Jays do well cause there the only team in Canada
(Response: Hockey is Canada’s “game”, but the NHL is a “business”. I don’t blame the players for going where the most money is, but Canadians have to realize that under the current finances/taxes/playoffs setup, a Canadian team will never again win the Cup … despite all the media hype each season. Ho)
Its not only hockey players moving to US. We are losing lot of highly skilled technology, medical, bio engineering etc to the US for more $, much less taxation, cheaper housing (with tax advantages). All these come with paid medical insurance so our “free” waiting list health care is not an issue. No wait lists.
(Response: we cannot stop people from moving to the US to pursue careers, etc. However, I have always believed that if they are publicly trained in our taxpayer subsidized universities, they should have to pay back at least part of the money we spent on educating and training them. However, even that is not the same as the NHL, because they use our airwaves, TV broadcasts, advertising media, arenas etc, pulling in billions of dollars, and pretend we are witnessing real international competition, when in reality, the deck is stacked against Canadian teams participating. With all the huge incentives financially for Canadian hockey stars to move to the US, there is no way a Canadian team will ever again win the NHL Stanley Cup under the current playoffs system. Ho)
I didn’t want to say it, but you just gave some real legitimacy to what I think plays a big role in why Canadian teams get bogged down because of the what I call rigged reffing. Add that in with our trained players going state side then it’s a disaster. I do feel better now you have mentioned this yourself. A bit of a confirmation. I dont think it’s unscientific at all. I have been seeing somewhat of a more consistent pattern of this unscrpulous behaviour in reffing.
(Response: Actually in this season’s playoffs, I did not notice unbalanced refereeing, like I did a few years ago. Yes, there were times I would have called a penalty …and they didn’t … but this season that seemed to go both ways, depending on time left in the game, the score etc. And after all, it’s no longer needed: the US teams just BUY the best Canadian team players away, so are just much stronger. Too bad the sports “reporters” and on-air pundits don’t dare touch that subject, but the statistics are mounting up: over the past 10 years, three US teams have each won the Stanley Cup TWICE (Florida, Tampa Bay, Pittsburgh) and two of them do not have a state income tax. Nor does Nevada, where amazingly the Knights entered the league in 2017, has already won the Cup once and is again in the finals. Sure looks to me like that helps attract the BEST players … making my point: that’s why a Canadian team will NEVER again win the Cup…. unless the playoff system changes, with the best Canadian team competing in the finals against the best US team. Ho)
An eight year contract for…$96,000,000.00 US.
To play a game.
And compared to professional baseball, basketball, soccer, golf, etc etc etc.
Its peanuts.
I cant remember the last professional sports game I went to.
If I did, it was with tickets someone gave me.
I refuse to pay extortional amounts of money to billionaires for millionaires to play a game. While advertisers pay them even more millions to bombard us carny rubes with endless trinkets and baubles.
FIFA?
Give me a break.
I’m already sick of it and the medias endless bleating about the excitement.
(Lets not forget their existence depends on eyeballs glues to the screen.)
The taxpayer hangover on the costs and expense of that ridiculous self promoting intrusion in our lives is really for podium posturing politicians, players , first nations, and of course…the owners.
I’ll be giving it all a hard pass.
FIFA “news” and games will get the same response from me as the latest First Nations colonizer blame session….a change of the channel.
(Response: I really enjoy watching some sports… especially hockey (exciting) and baseball (relaxing) and gymnastics (like circus performers). Admire the athleticism, because I was so terrible at all of it. But although hockey is supposed to be “our”’game, the NHL playoff system now seems to me to favour the US teams. Just wonder how many years (decades) before other “fans” realize how Canadian teams are disadvantaged. Ho)
FIFA in Canada:
A billion dollars of taxpayer money fire hosed all over the place to promote, build, guard, and clean up after this extravaganza.
10’s of thousands of tourists arriving to spend spend spend.
Hurray!
Will that pay for more doctors? More Hospital beds? More Police? More judges Prisons? More Nurses, Teachers?
Definitely not.
The only thing it will increase is….taxes.
To pay for it all.
Liberal and NDP….spending your money…for your vote.
And we lap it up.
I also suspect but can’t prove that it is “rigged” so that American teams go to the finals since there are more of them and the revenues need to continue and the game needs to be promoted there. Never watch anymore not since I want a bet with my brother years ago over a bet with my brother about Bobby Hull’s 50th goal playing for the Winnipeg Jets.
(Response: Years ago, I wrote a blog that it just seemed to me (totally unscientifically) that NHL referees were tougher on Canadian teams in the playoffs … and wondered whether it was because they knew deep down NHL owners, the networks and the advertisers didn’t want a Finals of two Canadian teams. I suggested the rules be changed to have the finals with the top Canadian team playing the top US team. Now, the $$$ attraction is an easier way to ensure a US teams will hoist the Cup! Ho)