The NHL has been throwing fits recently about how Alex Radulov, promising young forward for the Nashville Predators, was snatched up by the KHL (which is the acronym for the Russian "Kontinentalnaya Hokkeynaya Liga," which is quite a...well, quite an eyeful). For those who haven't followed this, Radulov, who would make $984,000 with the Predators next season (the last year of his entry-level contract), signed a whopping $13 million (tax free) deal with Yulaev Ufa of the KHL just days after a new transfer agreement had been reached between the NHL and the Russian Super League to prevent this sort of thing from happening.
Well, Radulov left, and signed his new contract, which the NHL wants the IIHF to void. Then, a few days ago, Jason Krog, a veteran of seven NHL seasons (and two others in Europe), who was apparently set to play in the KHL next season, signed a contract with the Vancouver Canucks. They paid the KHL the $200,000 player transfer agreement fee, and that was thought to be the end of it.
Now the KHL is stating that it will happily pay this same $200,000 transfer fee to Nashville for Radulov, which is still not sufficient for the NHL. So of course, this brings light to the double standard posed by this agreement.
While I'm not familiar with the agreement, and had little luck finding a copy quickly, it stands to reason that the KHL's logic is correct. Now, if Evgeni Malkin had accepted the contract offered by said league, I might be more up in arm, however, Alex Radulov is a somewhat unknown name to me, and Nashville seems like a far away place. However, if consistency is to be maintained, this does seem to provide a double standard and an unfair deal for the KHL and other European teams and leagues.
I believe the KHL is probably in the right here, though Radulov probably could have had a great career in the NHL had he stayed. And of course, this is an ongoing situation. Radulov's KHL contract may be voided. He may return to the NHL so he can participate in the world championships. There are many ways this story can go, and it may be worth keeping an eye on, as it may have some heavy repercussions as pertains to the future of the NHL.