VRHL Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA)
Change Log
The following table shows a list of changes related to new versions of this CBA.
Version Change Date
1.1 Initial release of doc Initial
1.2 Update Coaching section to include link to Google Form 12/26/2021
1.3 Updated Max contract (5 years) 12/26/2021
Added ToC
Table of Contents
1 What is the VRHL? 3
2 What is asked of a GM? 4
3 Useful SIM information 4
4 Player Ratings 7
4.1 In season player rerate 7
5 Financial information 7
5.1 VRHL Financial basics 7
5.2 Salary cap (updated for 2023) 8
5.2.1 Internal salary cap 8
5.3 Player salaries 8
5.3.1 Player Salary term 8
5.3.2 Maximum and minimum player salaries 8
5.4 Prospects 8
5.5 Signing bonuses 9
5.6 Player Buyouts 9
5.6.1 35+ rule 10
6 Trading 10
6.1 Trade committee 10
6.2 Rookie GM trading 10
7 Free agency 10
7.1 Dates 10
7.2 Restricted free agents 11
7.2.1 Qualifying offer 11
7.2.2 Offer Sheets 11
7.3 Loyalty Signing 11
7.4 Unrestricted free agent period rules 11
7.4.1 How to bid 11
7.4.2 Bids 12
7.4.3 Inclusion of signing bonus 12
7.4.4 NTCs 12
7.4.5 One and Two way contracts 12
7.4.6 Exceeding the cap ceiling during Free Agency 12
7.4.7 Contract restrictions on offers 12
7.5 Trading UFA’s 13
7.6 In-season Free Agent signings (Player currently in the SBHL) 13
7.7 In-season Free Agent signings (Player not currently in the SBHL) 13
7.8 Undrafted players 13
7.9 In-season Free Agent signings 14
7.10 Entry Draft Process 14
7.11 Prospect eligibility 14
7.12 Arbitration 15
8 VHRL Entry Draft 15
8.1 Entry Draft Process 15
8.2 Prospect eligibility 15
9 Prospect creation 16
9.1 Beginning of season prospect creation 16
9.2 When a prospect meets requirements but doesn’t get created 16
9.3 In-season prospect creation 16
9.4 Created prospect salary 17
10 Coaches 17
10.1 Offseason coach hiring 17
10.1.1 I have a coach who was fired by their NHL team and hasn’t been rehired by another NHL team 17
10.1.2 Going after the same coach 17
10.2 Hiring a coach outside the regular coach signing period 17
10.2.1 Buyout of previous coach 17
10.2.2 New Coach Template 17
10.3 Coach Salary 18
10.4 Hiring away another teams AHL coach 18
11 Position changes 19
12 Farm teams 19
13 Player injury, retirement and desertion 19
13.1 Player season long injury 19
13.2 Retirement 20
13.3 Player desertion 20
14 Goaltending 20
15 Captaincies 20
16 Rosters 21
17 Waivers 21
The League
The VHRL is a Retro League starting 2010 a 12 team league
1 What is the VHRL?
The VHRL is a League based Sim Rated league that has been in existence for some time now. It has gone through many changes during that time including ownership. The VHRL now operates in a multi commissioner type of environment which eases the burden on each. The current commissioners are: - (Calgary GM)
( Flames GM, RedWingsGM)
The commissioner’s responsibilities include simming games, processing trades, negotiating UFA’s, running drafts, resolving disputes, overseeing rule changes, etc...
The VHRL does many things by committee, and many other GM’s have specific tasks that help the league.
This league is only as good as the GM’s that are in it and we’re extremely lucky to have a very good core bunch. Not many leagues last a decade, and the SBHL plans to be around for many years to come.
2 What is asked of a GM?
You will obviously run a team. You may run it any way you see fit, but the league reserves the right to step in if at any time if we feel a GM is running their team into the ground with no clear direction or purpose.
You will be expected to participate and respond to all communications from your fellow GM's. I realize that things can get busy at certain times, and completely sympathize, however, it takes but a few minutes to respond to a mail or message. Do your best, that's all I ask.
If league staff, feel that you are neglecting duties as a GM of this league, Said GM can be dismissed, in order to make the league as enjoyable as possible for everyone else. The simulator keeps track of how often lines are completed, and there will also be polls and communications in the Announcements Forum everyone will be required to respond to.
The major method of tracking activity will be via the message board. If I see you haven't checked the board in 3 months chances are your team goes to the available teams list. Don't expect to be informed of this, it will just happen.
3 Useful SIM information
Make Captain: Give the title of captain to the select player.
Make Assistant: Give the title of assistant #1 or #2 to the select player.
Trade Available: Tells other general managers that this player is available for trade. This has no effect on the player’s performance.
Protected: Only available during the off-season. Allows you to protect a player for the expansion draft (will only apply in the event the SBHL expands).
Do Not Apply Rerate: The player will not be rerated if this option is activated (does not apply as we will use NHL based rerates).
No Trade: The player cannot be traded.
In order for STHS to distinguish players' characteristics from one another, it offers 16 different rating categories (14 categories for goalies). The commissioner is able to simplify the rating, thus merging some of the similar ratings however in the SBHL we choose to show all ratings. The overall, which expresses the average ratings of a player based on a definable formula, can be removed during the creation of the roster page since it is useless in the STHS. In the SBHL we leave it in as a bench mark but it is not something one need get too hung up on. Here are the ratings as well as their meaning:
Players Roster Full Rating
CK = Checking
FG = Fighting
DI = Discipline
SK = Skating
ST = Strength
DU = Durability
PH = Puck Handling
FO = Face Offs
PA = Passing
SC = Scoring
DF = Defense
EX = Experience
LD = Leadership
MO = Morale
PO = Potential
OV = Overall
Goalies Rosters Full Rating
SK = Skating
DU = Durability
ST = Strength
SZ = Size
AG = Agility
RB = Rebound Control
SC = Style Control
HS = Hand Speed
RT = Reaction Time
EX = Experience
LD = Leadership
MO = Morale
PO = Potential
OV = Overall
Coach Rating PH = Physical DF = Defense
OF = Offense
PD = Player Discipline
EX = Experience
LD = Leadership
PO = Potential
Important Notice: The Potential rating for players and coaches is only used in the rerate function of the simulator and therefore does not apply to the SBHL as we will use NHL based rerates. It does NOT affect player's performance at all.
Players Stat
GP = Games Played
G = Goals
A = Assists
P = Points
+/- = Plus/Minus
PIM = Penalty Minutes
HIT = Hits
HTT = Hit Received
SHT = Shots
SHT% = Shooting Percentage
SB = Shots Blocked
PP = Powerplay Goals
SH = Shorthanded Goals
GW = Game Winning Goals
GT = Game Tying Goals
EG = Empty Net Goals
HT = Hat Tricks
MP = Minutes Played
P/20 = Points per 20 Minutes FO% = Face off Percentage
FOT = Face offs Taken
PSG = Penalty Shot Goals
PSS = Penalty Shots Taken
GS = Current Goal Scoring Streak
PS = Current Point Scoring Steak
WG = Current Goal Scoring Slump
WP = Current Point Scoring Slump
Goalies Stat
GP = Games Played
W = Wins
L = Losses
OTL = Overtime Losses PCT = Save Percentage
AVE = Goals Against Average
MP = Minutes Played
PIM = Penalty Minutes
SO = Shootout
GA = Goals Against
SA = Shots Against
A = Assists
EG = Empty net Goals
PS% = Penalty Shots Save % PSA = Penalty Shots Against
4 Player Ratings
The VHRL is a League-Performance based rerate league. This means that a player will be rated based on his performance from the previous VHRL season.
The VHRL uses the SIMHL rerate pack for SimonT simulator version 2 (Client version 3.0). (Check for Changes of New Version, if an announcement, may be present)
4.1 In season player rerate
A team is allowed to rerate a single player from their farm or roster each year. This can be done at the 41 NHL game mark for forwards or defensemen, or at the 20 NHL game mark for goaltenders. (THIS IS NOT IN PLAY FOR THE UPCOMING SEASON)
The cost for this rerate is as follows:
A gain of 10 OV or more will cost 2 Million.
A gain of 7-9 OV will cost 1.5 Million. A gain of 4-6 OV will cost 1 Million.
A gain of 1-3 OV will cost 0.5 Million.
This rerate will be done by plugging the players current season information into the SIMHL player calculator, similar to prospect creation. The players statistics will be prorated to 82 games for forwards/dmen and 50 games for goalies.
5 Financial information
There are many aspects to maintaining a SBHL organizations financial health. A GM is responsible for this just as much as they are for icing a competitive roster. If an owner loses money constantly the GM will have a very short shelf life.
5.1 VHRL Financial basics
All teams will be responsible for ensuring they maintain their finances for their team. If you end up in the negative, an internal penalty (internal cap structure) will be applied. If you are $3,000,000 in the hole, and the cap is $13,000,000, you will only be able to spend $13,000,000 in pro salaries in an effort to get your finances back in the green.
This will be enforced through the sim by adding a special cap value to your team.
5.2 Salary cap (updated for 1990)
Starting in 1990 the VHRL will follow the NHL salary expectations for both players and individual teams exactly. When it is announced for the NHL you can consider it announced in the VHRL as well, although a formal announcement in the SB will usually occur as well.
The VHRL maximum salary cap for 1990 will be $13,000,000.
The VHRL minimum salary cap for 2021 will be $7,500,000.
The VHRL maximum players salary will be $5,000,000.
The VHRL minimum players salary will be $750,000.
The VHRL maximum farm salary is $3,000,000. Players who make more are not able to be assigned to an AHL affiliate.
5.2.1 Internal salary cap
Certain teams will be subject to an internal salary cap structure as outlined in section 5.2.
5.3 Player salaries
The VHRL will loosely follow the salary structure that has been implemented in the NHL. There are a few differences, however.
5.3.1 Player Salary term
Max term for contracts is 5 years for your own RFAs, or 5 years for any signings made on the open market (including your loyalty signing).
Maximum ELC term for any prospect or player making the jump to the NHL will remain unchanged at 3 years.
Players 35 or over may only sign for a max 2 years.
5.3.2 Maximum and minimum player salaries
A players maximum salary cannot exceed 20% of a teams allotted cap. Meaning if the salary cap is set at 13 million the maximum player salary will be 13 million.
Minimum salary in the VHRL is stagnate at $750,000, though may rise during the offseason in any given year.
For the current salary cap and max/min contract amounts see section Salary cap (updated for 1990).
5.4 Prospects
All Prospects entering the league will do so with a predefined salary.
TERM:
Ages up to 22 years old: 3 years
Age 23: 1 year
Age 24 and up: 1 year
Monetary value
1st round - TOP 10: $950,000
1st round - #11 to 30 overall: $900,000
2nd round: $850,000 3rd round: $800,000
4th round: $750,000
5th round: $700,000
6th round: $650,000
7th round: $600,000
5.5 Signing bonuses
When offering on free agents (RFA and UFA) bonuses are an option that may assist when trying to coerce a player into a cap friendly contract. It is very important to note however that the bonus offered will be tallied against the first year’s upper limit. The bonus is counted against the signing teams cap only, meaning the player can be traded to another team and the acquiring team will only acquire the annual cap hit. The signing bonus cap hit will stay with the team who signed the player to the contract and remain their responsibility for the year.
Example:
Darnell Nurse is offered 5 million dollars per year for 4 years with a 2 million dollar signing bonus.
Break Down:
Year Player Cap hit Cap hit against signing team
1 $5,000,000 $7,000,000 ($5,000,000 + $2,000,000)
2 $5,000,000 $5,000,000
3 $5,000,000 $5,000,000
4 $5,000,000 $5,000,000
Note: If Nurse is traded in year 1 the team acquiring him will only be responsible for his $5,000,000 annual cap hit. The team who originally signed him to the contract remains responsible for the $2,000,000 signing bonus against their cap for that year.
You must have enough cap room to cover the first years cap hit (salary + signing bonus).
5.6 Player Buyouts
Teams that wish to rid themselves of players for any reason may buyout a player providing they have the money to do so. There are four classes of buyouts.
1. Players 26 and over will be bought out at 2/3 the remaining value of the contract spread over twice as long.
2. Players under 26 will be bought out at 1/3 the remaining value of the contract spread over twice as long.
3. Players under 62 OV who are on the farm will be bought out at the full value remaining on their contract but will not be deducted from the cap.
Buyouts will be represented on the pro roster by a ghost player called "Team Buyout" with the lowest possible rating. This player will not be able to go on waivers nor sent to the minors. Roster limits are increased to 51 players to accommodate, but GM’s are only permitted to have 50 players capable of playing. That extra slot will not be filled by anything other than a buyout.
Buyouts will be posted in a Buyouts thread on the forum by team and the totals will be edited by an admin by year. Because the new sim allows us to set different contract amounts for each year there will only ever be one “Team Buyout” player on a person’s roster at any given time, at times containing cap hits for multiple buyouts..
Bought out players will be released to the unassigned list and will become UFA's.
Note: Once the season starts, players have to clear waivers before being bought out.
5.6.1 35+ rule
Any player signed to a contract in his 35th year or later will be ineligible for a buyout.
6 Trading
6.1 Trade committee
Many leagues have trade committees; the SBHL is one of them. The league has trust in its GM’s to identify the direction they wish to take their team in and follow through with it, HOWEVER, in the likeliness that a trade may get “Veto’ed” a GM, must be aware that if a member of the trade committee may comment on it, is solely for the fact of a detrimental’ perspective. We want all GM’s to have the opportunity to feel free to build a Franchise, how they see fit. The Trade Committee, is simply to assist with transactions that are as stated, DETRIMENTAL, deemed as affecting the overall health of the league. In the SBHL, we are very dedicated to keeping a happy, heathy league, without “Eye Sores” inflicted on its franchise Clubs.
If you have any questions on this matter, please see to Staff. We want this to be a professional view to help with the leagues well-being. No one wants to be micro-managed, and though not every trade will be symmetrically “even” we simply want to utilize the ability, to keep the league at its best. A GM could be in the league 1 day, and not the other. The majority of other GM’s will not want to have all of their deals with said person, reverted. Please keep this in mind.
6.2 Rookie GM trading
Please see to it that you keep an open mind to the previous section (6.1) We all want to have fun, Compete, and build a strong’ all-around franchise.
All new GM’s must wait three days before making a deal. This is to allow a new GM to get comfortable with their roster, get a feel for the league, and not make a quick deal to get on the board so to speak.
7 Free agency
Free agency has many different working parts and is one of the bigger aspects of sim hockey. See the sections below for an in depth look at the many working parts of Free Agency.
Unrestricted Free Agency Age: 27 Years or older
7.1 Dates
The specific dates will vary each season; however, signings will be closed from the beginning of the SBHL playoffs until the end. In the offseason directly after the playoffs there will be a closed market in which teams can negotiate with their own players before the open market phase begins, which doesn’t occur until sometime after the Entry Draft.
7.2 Restricted free agents
Restricted free agents are players whose contracts have expired but are still an organizations property because they are younger than the Unrestricted Free Agency Age. Once qualified, these players will remain the teams property even if they don’t get resigned right away, however are subject to offer sheets. If the player is not qualified by the time the open market phase begins, they will become unrestricted free agents and will be able to sign anywhere regardless of age.
7.2.1 Qualifying offer
A qualifying offer is a contract offer that is given to a player by their team during negotiations that equates to their current salary + 10%.
Example:
John Doe makes $2,000,000 per year and is 25 years old. A qualifying offer to retain John Doe’s rights in Unrestricted Free Agency would be $2,200,000 ($2,000,000 + ($2,000,000 x 10%) = $2,200,000).
7.2.2 Offer Sheets
A team may still attempt to sign the RFA through an offer sheet. If successful, the original team has 1 full 7 day week to either match the offer and retain the player or allow the player to sign with the new team while taking compensation in the form of picks.
7.3 Loyalty Signing
All teams will be given 1 loyalty signing per year. This is any player on your roster who would otherwise be deemed a UFA. If the player does not sign with the team before the unrestricted free agent period that player becomes a UFA and can sign with any team in the league.
7.4 Unrestricted free agent period rules
Unrestricted Free Agency will be done via the sim. You can access it by highlighting your team in the main window, going to the sim and performing the following steps (make sure you have an updated league file):
- click team name
- click team menu->free agents
- Highlight player you want to make an offer to
- type salary, duration, bonus, comments if applicable
- save to file
- upload the teamname.shf file
7.4.1 How to bid
UFA will be done in 2 day stints, during which you will be allowed to bid on 3 different players only. After all, in the real NHL GM's would be hard pressed to talk to every player all at once. Research well, as players on the FA lists may be dupes (on someone’s prospects list), or be overseas. If you bid on them you will lose your bid. It’s far easier for you to fully research your 3 choices then it is for the Admins to ensure all player listings in the SIM are accurate, we’ll do our best but the onus falls on the GM offering to ensure they pick a free player. At the end of those two days, the round will be completed and all offers looked at by a committee of at least three. The committee will be chosen at random. So, as an example.... if Round 1 begins on Monday morning, all first round offers are processed on Wednesday morning. Round 2 would then start when the results of round 1 were posted and the OK was given for round 2.The number of rounds will be determined by how many Free Agents are available.
7.4.2 Bids
All bids are considered no matter how silly, however if an offer is completely ludicrous the player may choose not to negotiate with that GM any longer. A player does not have to sign just because he gets a bid. He has the option to hold out if the committee thinks the offer isn’t fair.
7.4.3 Inclusion of signing bonus
In order to increase the attractiveness of your bid, you may include a signing bonus. You must have the finances available to pay this signing bonus outright. Signing bonuses affect the cap, this is important to remember. For more information on this, refer to Signing bonuses.
7.4.4 NTCs
At this time there will be no NTC's included in offers. Trading is simply too large a part of SIM hockey to limit it in any way, shape, or form.
7.4.5 One and Two way contracts
When signing a player you will need to specify whether you want to sign them to a one or two way contract.
A one way contract means that regardless of whether they are playing in the NHL or AHL they make the exact same amount of money.
A two way contract means the player will only make 10% of their current contract when assigned to the AHL.
Please note that one and two way contracts do not affect the waiver rule at all, it is separate and whether you sign a player to a one way contract or a two way contract they may still be subject to waivers.
7.4.6 Exceeding the cap ceiling during Free Agency
Teams may exceed the cap ceiling by 10% during Free Agency. They must however get back down to the cap ceiling before the first VHRL regular season game their team plays. If they don't, cap penalties will be handed out. (TBA)
7.4.7 Contract restrictions on offers
Max term for your loyalty or any player you are signing who is not currently on your team is 4 years. Max term for any RFA’s on your team is 5 years.
Any player 32 years or older (Under 35 Years of Age) at the time of their signing are limited to 3 years contracts.
7.5 Trading UFA’s
During the season a GM can trade any UFA’s they want, however once the trade deadline has passed UFA’s can longer be traded. This helps to ensure a healthy crop of free agents during free agency.
7.6 In-season Free Agent signings (Player currently in the SBHL)
During the season free agent offers must first be uploaded to the site using the SHL file from the client. These will be processed on Mondays.
NOTE: Keep in mind, you may very well end up bidding against other GM’s so comments on why the player should sign with your team could end up being pivotal.
You must have the cap space available to sign a player you win a bid on the night he is to sign. You cannot win the bid on a player with the intention to clear cap space after he has signed. You must clear it before the 7 day listing period is up, else your offer will be null and void. This means if you need to waive or trade someone to make the player fit, you can’t wait to see if you win the bid. You need to clear the room before hand.
Along with uploading a file you must make a thread in the Free Agency area with the subject *Free Agent Creation
* containing only the team name and player name so that others are aware of the player and can choose to submit text file offers of their own. Anyone else submitting an offer on the same player must create a post in the same thread stating their intent (ie. Bruins also offer on .
Free agent offers will only be considered after the thread has been on the site for at least one week (7 days).
Each team will be allowed ONLY TWO in-season free agent signings each season. The Commish withholds the right to make multiple in-season FA signings for a “recovered” team if the need presents itself (eg. The team is horrible and needs whatever help it can get to become attractive to prospective GMs).
7.7 In-season Free Agent signings (Player not currently in the VHRL)
If you want to offer on a player who does not have a rating, you must use the for (Uncreated Players) on the site under the Free Agency section. Player name, salary, term, bonus, 1 or 2 way options, and any comments can be uploaded. (TBA)
7.8 Undrafted players
Each year there are players teams acquire during the season whom don’t end up making it into the ratings packs for whatever reason. You will have the option to sign these players during the year, but must follow a certain set of guidelines that will allow everyone else a fair chance to sign that player as well.
Undrafted NHL players, NHL draftees not selected in the VHRL drafts, college players, contracted teams prospects, and players moving from Europe to the NHL are not available to be free agents until they have played 20+ NHL or AHL games.
At this point you may follow the process in section Trading UFA’sTrading UFA’s.
7.9 In-season Free Agent signings.
If the player has enough pro experience to be created, they will be created with ratings based on the rules set forth in the VHRL Entry Draft
The SBHL entry draft will take place each summer shortly after the actual NHL entry draft. This usually places it early to mid-July(Unless other Circumstances may Apply). Plenty of notice will be sent out to GM’s and the ticker will be active for at least a week prior counting down to the first round. It is a GM’s responsibility to periodically check into the site in the offseason to ensure they are aware of the offseason schedules.
7.10 Entry Draft Process
The Draft will be held over 3 – 4 nights, completing one or two rounds each night. We will make any accommodations possible time zone wise to ensure all GM’s have an opportunity to attend.
A schedule will be created prior to the draft detailing which rounds happen on which night. We usually run rounds 1 and 2 one night, 3 and 4 the next, and 5,6, 7 the final night.
The draft will be held on the site in whichever chat applet is standard that season for the site (currently Chat n Go). It is Database driven and real time, so you will be able to see which player is picked, and by whom as well as an available list of updated NHL draftees.
You may choose to attend in person, or submit a list to one of the admins or fellow GM’s to pick for you. If a GM is not present, and has not submitted a list, BPA availability based on the actual NHL draft picks will be chosen for them.
7.11 Prospect eligibility
At times people will elect to choose prospects that were not chosen in the NHL draft. These players must meet certain criteria.
STARTING in the 1991 draft, draft eligible players who were previously chosen in the NHL but not in the SBHL will be available to be drafted in the SB draft as long as they meet all other eligibility criteria.
Eligibility in the SB is defined as “Any player who was picked in that years NHL draft, or any player (NA or EU) who turns 18 by September 15 of the draft year and does not turn 20 by December 31 of the draft year.
Prospect creation section.
7.12 Arbitration
A GM has the option to go to salary arbitration if an RFA or their 1 UFA will not accept their highest offer.
At this time the committee will review the arbitration case, and determine a fair salary. The player is held to this salary and commitment, although the GM will have the option of allowing the player to remain a free agent if they feel the award is too high. All normal FA rules will apply to the player (qualifying offer still means compensation).
Restricted free agents will also have the option of taking their teams to arbitration. This will help to prevent teams suffering the effects of a slacking GM.
8 VHRL Entry Draft
The SBHL entry draft will take place each summer shortly after the actual NHL entry draft. This usually places it early to mid-July. Plenty of notice will be sent out to GM’s and the ticker will be active for at least a week prior counting down to the first round. It is a GM’s responsibility to periodically check into the site in the offseason to ensure they are aware of the offseason schedules.
8.1 Entry Draft Process
The Draft will be held over 3 – 4 nights, completing one or two rounds each night. We will make any accommodations possible time zone wise to ensure all GM’s have an opportunity to attend.
A schedule will be created prior to the draft detailing which rounds happen on which night. We usually run rounds 1 and 2 one night, 3 and 4 the next, and 5,6, 7 the final night.
The draft will be held on the site in whichever chat applet is standard that season for the site (currently Chat n Go). It is Database driven and real time, so you will be able to see which player is picked, and by whom as well as an available list of updated NHL draftees.
You may choose to attend in person, or submit a list to one of the admins or fellow GM’s to pick for you. If a GM is not present, and has not submitted a list, BPA availability based on the actual NHL draft picks will be chosen for them.
8.2 Prospect eligibility
At times people will elect to choose prospects that were not chosen in the NHL draft. These players must meet certain criteria.
STARTING in the 1991 draft, draft eligible players who were previously chosen in the NHL but not in the SBHL will be available to be drafted in the SB draft as long as they meet all other eligibility criteria.
Eligibility in the SB is defined as “Any player who was picked in that years NHL draft, or any player (NA or EU) who turns 18 by September 15 of the draft year and does not turn 20 by December 31 of the draft year.
9 Prospect creation
Prospect creation is split into two parts. One being beginning of the season creation (this is automatic with new roster packs) and In Season (this is your manual creation of prospects throughout the year).
9.1 Beginning of season prospect creation
At rerate time each season, certain "prospects" are given ratings because they have seen pro time. In certain situations, some of those ratings aren't exactly fair due to the extremely small sample size, so, the SBHL gives you two options to deal with this:
1. Any Prospect that gets created but has played less than 20 pro (AHL or NHL) games can be deleted from your roster and dropped back onto your prospects list. These players are then subjected to the normal "In Season" prospect creation rules.
2. Any newly created prospect can be released to the UFA list prior to the UFA period.
9.2 When a prospect meets requirements but doesn’t get created
Any player that has more than 20 games pro experience from the previous season will most likely be created and will not be sent back to the prospects list. In the event that they aren’t created you will have the following options:
- Create that player at the start of the year based on their previous season’s stats. This must be requested in the Prospect Creation forum previous to the first regular season game of the actual NHL season.
- Leave them on your prospect list.
Note: if you choose to leave them on your prospect list normal In-season prospect creation rules will apply. You will not have the option after game 1 of the NHL season to go back and create that prospect based on his previous year’s performance.
9.3 In-season prospect creation
Prospects can be created after they have played in a minimum of 20 NHL or AHL games for forwards or
10 NHL or AHL games for Goalies. If the limit isn't reached in NHL games and is instead a mix of AHL and NHL games the AHL rating calculator will be used if you want them created. This means if the player has 19 NHL games and 1 AHL game and you insist he is created, the AHL ratings calculator will be used and will result in lower ratings overall.
We will pro-rate a forwards 20 game sample to a full 82 game period and a goalies 10 game sample to a 50 game period. What does this mean?
Jim Prospect has 5 goals, 7 assists, and is a +5 in 20 games. Each stat that continuously accrues throughout a season is multiplied to get their projected stats over a full season (+/-, average TOI, avg PK time, etc... will be stationary). Things like GAA and Sv Pctg will be used as is.
5 goals in 20 games = 20 goals in 82 games ... that is 5/20 = 0.25 GPG *82 = 20 goals
7 assists in 20 games = 28 assists in 82 games
+5 = +5 (does not change as it isn’t a stat that consistently accrues (it can fluctuate up or down)
We then plug these prorated stats into the ratings formulas used to create the original roster pack (ratings calculator available on SIMHL.net) to get your rookies ratings.
9.4 Created prospect salary
Please refer to section PLAYER SALARIES for newly created prospect salary information
10 Coaches
Coaches matter. They affect how your team performs in the SBHL. Every team will have a coach before each season starts whether you choose to sign one of the commissioner automatically does so for you. This includes both an NHL and AHL coach.
10.1 Offseason coach hiring
During the offseason the commissioner(s) will set a certain time period for coach hiring. There will be a post on the forum indicating when this time frame is. During this period, only teams without coaches currently signed to a contract will be given an opportunity to hire an available coach. This will be handled in much the same way In-Season UFA signings are handled, by creating a post in the Coach forum with a subject of *New Coach Offer* from . You do not need to post your offer to your new coach in this thread. You need to fill out the following Google Form with that information. (TBA) (Please ask Staff about your request, at this time)
10.1.1 I have a coach who was fired by their NHL team and hasn’t been rehired by another NHL team
If this applies to you, you will have the option to buyout your coach before the regular coach hiring period. This will give you the opportunity to hire a new coach during the regular coach hiring period. For more information on how to buy out your coach see section BUYOUT OF PREVIOUS COACH. (TBA) (Please ask Staff about your request, at this time)
10.1.2 Going after the same coach
In the event two teams are going after the same coach, they will be asked to make their case to a panel of the commissioners choosing made up only of GM’s who already have coaches signed. The panel will decide which team the coach would like to sign with based on the arguments made by the hiring teams.
10.2 Hiring a coach outside the regular coach signing period
All teams will have the option to change their coach once the regular coach signing period has ended, however this will mean that the previous coach will need to be bought out first.
10.2.1 Buyout of previous coach
In order to buyout your previous coach you will need to cover 50% of their remaining contract. If a coach had 3 years remaining at 1million per year for instance, you’d be on the hook for 1.5 million which would come directly out of your finances.
10.2.2 New Coach Template
In order to hire a new coach, you must create a request in the coaches forum using the following template:
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Team Name:
Current Coach:
Current Contract:
Current Term:
Buyout price: (50% or coaches remaining contract) New Coach:
New Contract: Term:
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10.3 Coach Salary
All NHL level coaches will have a base salary of 1M per year.
All AHL level coaches will have a base salary of 600k per year.
Furthermore a coach will earn bonuses due to their experience or having been recognized with high area(s) of their rating.
After the baseline of 75 in any rating the coach will receive an additional 100K per year for every 5 points rated higher than the baseline.
The coach will receive half of the available bonus for an AHL Contract
Example Ratings
Physical Defense Offense Discpline Exp Lead
87 92 74 77 85 84
Bonus's would be as follows
Physical - 2 x 100k = 200k
Defence - 3 x 100K = 300k
Experience - 2 x 100K = 200k
Leadership - 1 x 100K = 100k
The Coach would then only be hired for no less then 1.8M in the NHL or 1M in the AHL.
10.4 Hiring away another teams AHL coach
In the SBHL as in the NHL all coaches want to coach in the NHL, including those currently coaching in the AHL.
As compensation, the team doing the hiring will give the team they are stealing the coach from $250,000 from their finances and their next available 3rd round pick.
If the team who currently owns the coach doesn't want to lose them organizationally they will have the option to match within three days of the contract offer and keep them as their pro team head coach.
They would then be required to buyout their old coach or move him to their AHL affiliate at his current salary and term.
11 Position changes
You can move any player to any position... AS LONG AS you can prove via linkage (link must be reliable - TSN.ca, NHL.com, ESPN.com, etc...) the player has played that position in the NHL. Reliability of linkage will be at the Commissioners’ discretion.
With the new SIM, multiple positions can be played by a player. Once you submit the request once that player will be able to play those positions from then on out.
12 Farm teams
With the new simulator, a new option is now available to us. Full farm teams. This means you will be responsible for dressing not only a full pro roster, but also a full farm roster.
If you don't, the games cannot be simmed. If they cannot be simmed, people will be mad at you, and one of the commissioners will likely sign the most craptastic player(s) available to fill out your roster.
Some things to remember:
1. As stated in the salary cap rule, you cannot assign a player making more than 2 million to the farm. Owners hate to lose money and rarely do you see a player making 1.5+ million on the farm team. The SB is a bit more lenient and we allow players making up to 2 million down there. If you try putting a player making a more, it is blocked via the sim.
2. Roster limit as stated in the "Rosters" rule, is 50 contracts. This means you can have 50 players (not including prospects) between your pro and farm roster.
3. Both your Pro and Farm roster should have minimum 3 players at each of the forward positions, 6 defensemen, and 2 goalies. Each team rolls 4 lines and 3 defensive pairings on both rosters, and injuries do happen so plan accordingly.
13 Player injury, retirement and desertion
13.1 Player season long injury
When a player is injured for an entire season they aren’t usually in the ratings pack. This means that they end up back on a team’s prospect list. The SBHL will allow you to recreate these players based on their previous year’s ratings, however:
- 15 will be deducted from the DU.
- 10 will be deducted from the EN
- 3 will be deducted from all other ratings.
These deductions will last until the next rating pack in the off-season, when it can happen again if the player hasn’t officially retired.
13.2 Retirement
Any player that retires in the NHL will also retire in the VHRL that same year. If the player retires mid season he will not be removed from the league until the following offseason.
eg. If Patrick Marleau retires before the 21-22 season, he will not play the 21-22 season in the SBHL either. In the event a loyalty clause has been used on said player, the team who used the loyalty to sign him will be refunded their clause. BE CAUTIOUS OF THIS IN TRADES! You get burned, it's your own fault.
13.3 Player desertion
If a player bolts overseas in the offseason while under contract or as a prospect, that team will retain the players rights, however they will not be able to play them in a game situation. The player will be moved to the prospects list.
If a player whose contract rights you own comes back midway through an NHL season the SBHL GM will have the option of creating them or leaving them on their prospect lists. In-season prospect creation rules will apply. If a player comes back for the start of a season, the VHRL GM will have to allow room for the player on their roster, or allow them to walk as an Unrestricted Free Agent regardless of age thus negating the remainder of their contract. No buyout will be necessary however.
The players remaining salary will only count against the cap when the player comes back to the NHL and the VHRL GM wishes to reactivate them on their roster or if the player comes back at the start of the NHL season and the SBHL GM does not allow them to go to Free Agency.
14 Goaltending
There is no set number of games enforceable by the sim for #1 goaltenders, however as we are a league that prides itself on a modicum of realism we choose to enforce a set number of “rest” games for starting tenders.
A goalie playing more than 60 games in a regular season will be penalized with -5 to the EN stat, and -10 to the DU stat.
15 Captaincies
You will choose your own captains. There are no stat increases for this but the sim is set up so that it does affect how your team plays depending on who you choose.
You may select one captain and two alternate captains in the client program on the roster page.
16 Rosters
GM's are completely responsible for both their Pro and Farm roster.
A GM is required to have at least:
4 goalies on their combined roster (at least 2 pro goalies and at least 1 farm goalie).
12 defensemen on their combined roster (at least 6 pro defensemen and at least 3 farm defensemen). 7 centers on their combined roster
7 leftwings on their combined roster
7 rightwings on their combined roster
Max player limit is 51 players under contract to a certain team (Pro and Farm - Excludes prospects but includes potential buyouts which will be managed under one “fake” player). Max allowed on the pro team is 25 players not including suspended or injured players.
17 Waivers
Throughout the season GM's have the option of waiving a player on their roster. At this time any GM may make a waiver claim on said player by posting the claim in the waivers forum.
Any player 23 years or younger is exempt from passing through waivers. All players are exempt from waivers until they’ve played at least 10 pro games at the pro level.
If there is only one player being claimed by multiple teams the team lower in the standings has priority.
When claiming multiple players off the waivers list the GM must prioritize the players in the order they want to claim.
If no other team puts in a claim on the players then all of the players will be transferred to the claiming team.
If there are multiple claims on the same players the the first player in priority of the team lower in the standings will have that player transferred.
The next teams lower in the standings will then get to claim a player from their priority before the first team is allowed to make a second and subsequent claims.
