Note to Players Who Challenge a Rejected SPC: Good Luck With That.

The games: Islanders vs. Penguins. Atlanta vs. Anaheim. Portland Winterhawks vs. Kamloops Blazers (WHL).

Why I chose them: It's my boy Nino hitting the ice against the two-headed monster, Anaheim's cutie pie swiss goalie in fine form and the Hawks rock on the road.

The quirk: Except for the Anaheim vs. Atlanta, all the NHL matchups tonight feature teams that either invited to training camp, drafted or signed a Portland Winterhawk in the off-season.

The rule: NHLPA Collective Bargaining Agreement, Article 11, Rules and Procedures Governing Standard Player's Contract. 11.6, Rejection of SPCs and/or Offer Sheets; Subsequent Challenge and/or De-Registration of SPCs and/or Offer Sheets.

Now mind this uses a very cryptic alien language masquerading as English, but I'm pretty sure this is how it works: If said documents are rejected because they exceed the Club's upper salary limit, they do not comply with maximum player salary or it involves circumvention of the upper salary limit, and the NHLPA does not dispute it in a timely manner, the SPC or Offer Sheet will be rejected and the player reverts to his agreement before the thing was rejected. And if they do go to a timely dispute, then the player is entitled to the terms outlined in the SPC but not the Offer Sheet. From there if the League rejects the SPC/Offer Sheet it's null and void and the player reverts to his previous SPC/Offer Sheet.

Morals of the story:

The game: Timing is key. But either way, you're not going to get what you want. Sure, you can ask for more, but don't count on it.

Life: Makes you wish we could go back to the days when we did deals on a handshake and business was based on a gentleman's agreement. If we did the things that are outlined in rules and laws and regulations like the bloody things tell us too, we wouldn't need laws. We'd mind our p's and q's and do what we're supposed to without laws. Thanks to a few choice individuals who don't, we have rules like this. I don't like complication, so my rules would be way simpler. For example: Employees who think they are worth more than the minimum amount of work they do each day in between two hour lunches and delegating their tasks to others will immediately have their grossly bloated salary request rejected, and they will not be permitted to refile or appeal until their workload equals their salary request.

Next up: Article 11, Rules and Procedures Governing Standard Player's Contract. 11.6 (b) Subsequent Challenge and/or De-Registration of SPCs.