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" hat geschrieben:[size=16px]Nun doch? WHA plant Auftaktturnier[/size]

Duisburg, 4. März


Es schien, als sei es nur ein Strohfeuer. Das Aufflackern einer Liga, die vor 25, beinahe 26 Jahren gestorben war. Doch nachdem die World Hockey Association (WHA) an neue Besitzer verkauft worden war, hat sich die Liga im Stillen neu sortiert und plant ihre Auferstehung. Fast ein Jahr später als geplant, aber immerhin. Bevor es mit der Saison 2005/2006 so richtig los gegen soll, will sich die WHA mit einem Auftakturnier vorstellen. Vom 19. Mai bis zum 3. Juni sollen sechs Mannschaften gebildet werden. Diese Teams werden zunächst im Copps Coliseum in Hamilton sowie im Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto aufeinandertreffen. Später soll es in einem Stadion an der kanadischen Westküste weitergehen. Jeremy Roenick, Chris Chelios, Sean Burke, Mark Recchi, Robert Esche und Jim Cummin sollen ihre Teilnahme bereits zugesagt haben, erklärte der CEO (Chief Executive Officer) der WHA, Ricky Smith. Nach einer Runde „Jeder gegen Jeden“ qualifizieren sich die ersten Vier für eine Meisterrunde. Wie in Europa - aber anders als in der NHL - soll es keinen Zwei-Linien-Pass geben. Die erste Saison nach dem Ende der alten WHA im Jahr 1979, als die Edmonton Oilers, Hartford Whalers, Quebec Nordiques und Winnipeg Jets in die NHL übernommen und die übrigen Teams aufgelöst wurden, soll am 27. Oktober 2005 starten. Acht bis zehn Mannschaften sollen zunächst um Punkte kämpfen. Hauptsächlich sind Standorte im Osten Nordamerikas vorgesehen, aber auch Vancouver, Las Vegas, Phoenix und Omaha gelten als potenzielle Heimstätten neuer WHA-Teams. Wie schon von der ursprünglichen Leitung der neuen WHA geplant, soll die Liga ab der zweiten Saison ihrem Namen alle Ehre machen. Teams in Europa und sogar in Japan sollen dazu kommen. Was der NHL-Spielergewerkschaft, der NHLPA, ein Grinsen ins Gesicht treiben wird, ist ein Statement von CEO Ricky Smith. „Wir spielen mit der Idee, ohne Salary Cap zu arbeiten.“ Jene Gehaltsobergrenze, um die die NHL-Besitzer mit der Gewerkschaft derzeit ringen, war bislang Bestandteil der WHA-Planungen. Angeblich haben sich schon 50 Prozent aller relevaten Spieleragenten mit der WHA in Verbindung gesetzt. Das sagt zumindest die Liga.

" hat geschrieben:[size=16px]WHA ramping things up[/size]
Jason Kay, Hockeynews.com

When NHL commissioner Gary Bettman announced the cancelation of the 2004-05 season, Ricky Smith didn’t do cartwheels. And that’s not just because he was in an airplane at the time the death knell sounded.

Despite the fact the CEO of the World Hockey Association has much to gain through the NHL’s pain, Smith says the Feb. 16 proclamation didn’t put him in a celebratory mood.

“That wasn’t a joyous occasion for the WHA,” Smith says. “We’re pleased we have some clarity about where we can play, but it’s still sad the fact this happened.”

Clearly, the demise of the NHL season provides an opportunity for entrepreneurs. The chasm between the game’s top professional league and its players has never been deeper or wider and some of the employees, such as Jeremy Roenick, have suggested they’d be fine if they have to resort to Plan B next season.

Now all the WHA has to do is prove it’s not from Planet X. When asked at his cancelation news conference about the NHL’s concern over a rival league starting up, Bettman warned anyone entering the business better have deep pockets.

“That’s a certainty, an absolute certainty,” acknowledges Smith, who says he has brought in a consortium of partners connected to his family lumber industry to help provide backing. “We’ve been spending our time ensuring we have the right capital. There are so many things that impact NHL teams financially that wouldn’t affect us, but we still have to be cognizant of the fact we need to have the right capital.”

The question of the WHA’s legitimacy and concerns about their financial wherewithal have merit. After a false start under different leadership last September and Smith’s subsequent purchase of the league, the 47-year-old said in November the WHA would be up-and-running by the end of January. That never transpired, Smith says, because his plans were over-ambitious for the time allotted.

“It became more and more apparent, in order to do it right, that we had to delay,” he says.

Now, to help prove the WHA is for real and create awareness, Smith says the league will host an invitational tournament that runs from May 19 to June 3. Some details remain to be finalized, but here is their big-picture vision:

• A six-team, winner-take-all tournament, with a total purse of $2 million (U.S.); each participant will receive a $20,000 appearance fee.

• Early games will be held at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton and Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto, with later games to be staged at a venue on Canada’s West Coast.

• Team captains will be appointed and they will draft rosters of roughly 14 players and a Team Strategist (coach-GM). Smith says 28 players are already confirmed, including Roenick, Chris Chelios, Sean Burke, Mark Recchi, Robert Esche and Jim Cummins.

• Round-robin format, with top four teams proceeding to a championship round.

• New ‘WHA rules’ will be in place, including no center red line and ‘change-on-the-fly-only’ policy.

• Phil Esposito is on board as tournament chairman.

Smith, who reports Oct. 27 will be the start date for the WHA’s inaugural 2005-06 season, says he has been encouraged by the feedback he’s getting from players and their representatives.
“ We handed out a two-page letter to 100 agents explaining what we are doing, where we’re going to do it and how we plan to pay people,” Smith says. “We heard back from about 50 per cent of the agents and that was prior to the official cancelation of the NHL season. And we got phone calls. It was all favorable.

“It has been impressive. There is still some great spirit left in hockey. I heard from Neil Abbott talking about J.R. all the way to Scott Gomez’s father calling me from Alaska. The players are taking (the WHA) seriously now.”

The plans for Year 1 remain consistent with what Smith told The Hockey News in November, with a few new wrinkles. The league, which has Hall-of-Famer Bobby Hull as its commissioner, plans to start with eight-to-10 teams in North America and says it is negotiating lease agreement deals with arenas, including some inhabited by NHL franchises. They will then sub-lease those agreements to their partners who assume control of the franchises. Cities on Smith’s radar screen are primarily in the east, such as Toronto, but also include Vancouver, Las Vegas, Phoenix and Omaha, Neb.

In Year 2, the league plans to branch out to Europe and place as many as three teams in Japan.

And that’s not even the kicker.

“We’re starting to toss around the idea – and it probably will go that way – of no salary cap,” Smith says. “If one team wants to pay Jeremy Roenick $6 million, we’d allow it.”

We’re guessing Roenick, who with a 24 per cent pay cut would have grossed $5.3 million over a full 82 games with the Philadelphia Flyers if there had been a 2004-05, would be OK with it, too.