For example – last Monday morning at about 9am I received a phone call from an unfamiliar number. It turns out it was one of the fathers from the Canadian team I had scouted over the weekend. He had gotten my card from someone with the team and wanted to talk to me about how the whole player/agent relationship works at this point in a youngster’s career if they have aspirations of playing college hockey. I spoke with him for about 15 minutes, explaining that we couldn’t sign his son, provide him with any sort of benefits, or even have much actual contact with him, but we could work with the family in advising him about college choices and help to promote his abilities to college coaches (see NCAA Constitution and Operating Bylaws, August 1, 2009 at 12.3.3.1 which permits a prospective student-athlete to allow an agent to distribute records, statistics, etc. without jeopardizing eligibility). Naturally, I wasn’t expecting to start my day like this, but I was pretty pleased with myself by how I handled the conversation without any preparation. I guess in this competitive industry, you’ve always have to be ready. I told the father that I would be planning a trip up to Ontario in the near future to scout the team further and that I’d be more than happy to sit down with him and really discuss their options and timetable.

With these kids being so young, there isn’t much I can do for them now, but as I explained above, I still have a little wiggle room to work with. My plan – start getting these kids some attention throughout the hockey community. If they start popping up on scouting lists after talking with me, at least the parents will know that I’m the real deal. Immediately, I sent a couple emails out to some scouts who contribute to hockey publications. Most scouting reports don’t include the full crop of 95 birth years yet, but I want to get these kids noticed. Hopefully soon we’ll find out if any of my work is paying off.

Last week I didn’t give you an update on Matt’s situation and you might be wondering what’s going on with him. Right now, he’s still skating with the same club we got him signed with two weeks ago. He’s been seeing increased ice time and he’s taking advantage of it – yesterday he had an assist and a +2 rating. It’s been a few weeks since the CHL and SPHL seasons started and teams should be figuring out where they still need to upgrade. Thus, getting Matt back on their radars is my next move.

Also last week I called a couple of the teams I had spoken with in the past who were struggling defensively. Basically, I identified the teams giving up the most goals per game and then checked their rosters to see where the defensemen were on the +/- rating. Some teams had a few defensemen with a figure deep in the negatives, but many times the player would also have more goals and assists than the rest of the blueliners. As I’ve explained before, Matt’s more of a stay-at-home defensemen – one that will take care of the puck and keep traffic away from his goaltender but not a guy that’s going to be lighting up the lamp every night. Every team has different roles that need to be filled in order to find a certain level of success. Since Matt’s not going to compete with a defenseman who puts up big offensive numbers, I pretty much decided to focus on teams with defensemen without high point totals who were struggling to keep their +/- in the black. Fortunately I was able to reach a handful of coaches that sounded like they might be interested in bringing Matt in on a three-game tryout contract. Today, I’ll be sending the teams Matt’s updated resume as there’s already been a few coaching changes and not everyone currently has his information. Throughout the next couple of days I’ll continue to make some calls and we’ll see where it takes us.

Over the next few weeks I’ve got another challenge ahead of me – setting up my immigration law practice. Last Tuesday, I was officially sworn in and I should be receiving my certificate to practice law any day now. In the mean time I’ve got a lot of matters that need to be addressed.

Step one – find an office. Up until now, I’ve been working out of my home to save money, but with a steady stream (hopefully) of clients that I’ll have to meet with on a daily basis, I’m going to need something a little more professional. Last week, I checked out a few suites located about 15 miles west of where I live and I need to make a decision within the next couple days. After that I’ll be getting my business cards printed up, filing some documents with the State, and taking out my first malpractice insurance policy. With the seemingly never-ending list of fees being thrown at me, it can be extremely stressful at times. Luckily, my family has always been very supportive of me and they’re helping me out with some of the down payments.

Well there’s no surprise that I’ve got another busy week ahead of me. I haven’t gotten much sleep lately but I suppose that in today’s job market, I’d rather be swamped than the alternative. Before I go, I’d like to point out that last week SportsAgentBlog.com had over 20 new articles posted. There are a lot of solid pieces out there for anyone looking to break into the sports industry and I strongly encourage you to check them out. Also please feel free to continue providing the great feedback I’ve gotten so far in the “Comments” section of each entry.

Larry Johnson is not the only athlete who needs a lesson on social media best practices.  There are many others who have the potential of being in his shoes, or worse, in the future.  It is very easy to write a 140 character (or less) message and click send, immediately blasting those words to the world.  That is why it is so important for athletes and their agents to be very careful in implementing a solid social media policy.  Speaking of agents…

Agents also have to be careful about what they tweet.  Their words do not only reflect on their own image, but affect their clients as well.  If an agent is posting controversial tweets, it could affect the way that others perceive him and his clients.  Agents are known to frequently tweet about their clients (as a side note, we are putting together a master list of sports agents on Twitter.  Follow that list by clicking here.), but rarely do you see an agent talking bad about another person’s clients.  Especially when the player is a direct competitor of your client.  It just seems like a bad practice.

A few days ago, though, Allan Walsh (@walsha) did just that.  The hockey agent for Octagon who represents Montreal Canadians goalie, Jaroslav Halak, tweeted:

“Interesting stat of the night….Price is 10W, 32L in last 42 starts. Hmm.”

Walsh was referring to starting goaltender, Carey Price.  The tweet has been deleted from Walsh’s account since the it was covered by various media outlets.  It is not that Walsh is right or wrong about his statement, and he is definitely entitled to his opinion, but perhaps it is better that he keep that opinion to his close friends and not share it with the world on Twitter.  It got Walsh a lot of publicity, but that is not our goal as agents; it is doing the best for our clients.  Does the tweet help out Halak at all?

Walsh responded to the criticism he received from the tweet with the following statement:

“It was a tongue in cheek comment not meant to be taken seriously, forgot it was Montreal and everyone loses a sense of humor.”

I tweet about athletes who are not my clients, and sometimes I may even make jokes about them.  But I have never written a bad tweet about a direct competitor of one of my clients.  For instance, I would not tweet about how poorly another reliever was doing on the AAA Memphis Redbirds squad while Pete Parise was the closer.  That type of discussion is better reserved for talks behind closed doors with management.  The point will still be heard by the other side of the table, without the additional public embarrassment for all parties.

While the Bauer Invite officially kicked off last Thursday night at Seven Bridges Ice Arena in Woodridge, IL, I was out of town Wednesday and Thursday and didn’t get back to Chicago until around 8:40pm Friday night – and that’s where it all began. I knew the Soviet Wings 95s were going to be playing just miles from my home at 9:25 that night so I had to hustle. Fortunately, as with most tournaments, the rinks were running a little behind and so I was able to make it with time to spare. As the Zamboni was working its magic on the ice, I began to browse through the stats that I had printed off on both the Wings and their nemesis for the night, the Barrie (Ontario) Colts. I noticed that in the Wings’ first game of the tournament, a 2-1 victory, both their goals were scored by the same player – Artem Prokhorov. I decided to pay special attention to him and see if maybe the last game was a fluke – especially since when Artem stepped on the ice I noticed that he was also one of the smallest players on either team. After three periods and three goals for Prokhorov, I was convinced that this kid definitely had talent. Artem seemed to be a very fluid skater with good vision and excellent hands. There was one issue, however – his size. What makes things difficult, though, is that at the Bantam Minor level you’re dealing with 14-year-olds. At ages that young, you never know when a growth spurt could occur.

Besides age, though, a change in scenery could also make a huge difference in his muscle development. Over the past few years I’ve noticed a major flaw in the Russian amateur hockey system – lack of proper nutrition. In many cases it’s merely a monetary issue – most families in Russia can’t afford to buy the large amount of calories required by athletes competing at such a high level. And as for nutritional supplements such as protein powders and weight gainers that have become commonplace in North America  – I can assure you that for the most part such items are definitely not in the Russian family budget. I haven’t heard much of Russian amateur clubs providing nutritional assistance to their athletes, but it’s certainly something that, if properly implemented, could make a huge difference. It’s definitely one thing I plan on focusing on with all my Russian clients.

Anyway, I apologize for that digression. To get to my point, while I was impressed with some of what I saw from the young Russian squad, I needed to see more to be convinced. In addition, while the Wings handled the Colts by a final score of 6-3, there were a few players from Barrie that were very strong players and I made sure to make note of them.

So after a nice relaxing first night of play, Saturday morning started off with games at 7:00am at the Darien Sportsplex in Darien, IL. Knowing I needed to take advantage of having this much talent so close to my home, I managed to pull myself out of bed around 5:50am and head over to “the Plex” as we used to call it back when I was playing in these tournaments. I should note that one nice thing about the organization of the Bauer Invite was the selection of the facilities. Each age level had their games limited to basically two or three rinks which were close to each other in proximity. Thus, if you wanted to follow one age group, getting from game-to-game wasn’t too difficult. The 95s were playing in the three rinks closest to my home and the Wings were also a part of that bracket so I decided to follow them. Another factor in my choice to stick with the 95s was that I figured most of the scouts and agents would be lurking around the U16 games. For the most part, I heard that my theory was correct.

After watching my first game of the day, I wasn’t very impressed. Luckily, I decided to stick it out and see the next two teams. During that game I was able to notice three players on another team from Ontario that seemed to stand out among the rest of the kids on the ice. All three were forwards, but each had a slightly different style of play. While the flashiest of the bunch was also the smallest, I was extremely impressed by how “big” he actually played. At the same time, the other two were very solid physically and finished every check, but also had excellent vision on the ice. One final thing that really put it over the top with me was that all three players were gritty – each skated every stride like it was their last of the game. In my opinion, character can never be overlooked. If a kid’s constantly busting his butt, I’ll take him any day of the week over a slightly more skilled player that lacks a good work ethic. I glanced through my tournament program and noticed that the team’s next game wouldn’t be until just after 6:00pm back at Darien. I noted the three players in my notebook and highlighted their game on my schedule.

Next up – Soviet Wings vs. L.A. Selects at the International Ice Center in Romeoville, IL. The Selects are one of the top hockey programs in the States, so I didn’t’ want to miss this matchup. Physically, the Russians couldn’t hang with the bigger, stronger, and faster L.A. club. I was disappointed with the 6-0 score but really liked what I saw from a few of the Selects players. Before this tournament started, I decided that I wasn’t going to approach any players directly – I really felt that with kids this young, it just isn’t appropriate. Instead, I decided to find the head coach and chat it up with him for a bit. After a short talk, he let me know that he basically had an agent who he worked with and so he really couldn’t help me out. To be honest, I was just happy he decided to be upfront and not yank my chain around.

After the Wings/Selects, I headed back to Darien and met up with fellow SportsAgentBlog.com contributor and “Rookie Duties” follower Ryan Ballard. We grabbed a quick lunch and talked a little puck, but then it was right back to work scouting in the rinks.  We were able to catch some good games and noticed a few talented players but nothing that really jumped out at me.

From there it was over to my third rink of the day, the Rocket Ice Arena in Bolingbrook, IL, for the Wings second game of the day. This time they faced the Cleveland Barons, and while the score was much closer, the Wings once again looked flat and fell 3-2. Since registering six points in the Wings first two games, Prokhorov had been held to just one assist in the last two. In addition, with the Selects’ fourth straight win in Round Robin play, the Wings had been officially eliminated from competition.

By the time I got back to Darien for Ontario club’s second match of the day, I was completely exhausted but excited to catch the game I’d been waiting for all afternoon. Once again, the three boys I had noticed before played extremely well and their team was able to pull off a victory, which put them through to the quarterfinals. I had done a little small talking with some of the family members during the contest but I didn’t want to really flaunt the fact that I was an agent scouting their kids (although I’m sure it was fairly obvious) – parents can get protective when it comes to agents and rightfully so.

I knew I needed to talk with this coach at some point, and I decided to stake out the team’s locker room. As I caught him walking out, I first congratulated him on a solid win. Although he immediately seemed like a very approachable, friendly guy, he wasn’t extremely pleased with his team’s performance that night. Apparently the team had played games Wednesday and Thursday as well, bringing their total number of games played in the previous 72-hour period to six. When you include a nine-hour drive to Chicago in the same block of time, a little fatigue is certainly understandable. After talking hockey for a few minutes the coach asked which players I had been looking at. He agreed that the three I was most interested in were his three strongest players and told me I should see them skate when they aren’t as tired. I offered the coach my business card and he immediately asked for a few extras to give to some of his kids. Obviously I agreed and gave him all that I had left from the day. That’s when he did what I didn’t expect – he asked if I wanted to meet the three players I had been scouting. At first I was reluctant (or at least I wanted to appear that way) because I didn’t want to stress them out with anxiety the night before a big game. I was never a talented enough player to have agents coming after me at age 14, but I can imagine that while it may be exciting, the pressure that comes with the attention can be overwhelming. After the coach assured me that these kids would only be thrilled knowing that an agent had singled them out, I decided to talk with them for a bit. The coach pulled all three kids out of the locker room and I spoke with them as a group. I kept the conversation light and told them to just have fun and keep playing well. Their coach had suggested a few dates on their schedule that would be good for me to visit their town and watch them play at their home rink and so I also explained to the three boys that I’d probably be making a trip up to Ontario to see them play later in the season. While this is certainly true, I really just wanted them to know that their next game wouldn’t be a make or break performance. Like I said, the last thing I wanted to do was stress these kids out.

After talking a bit longer with the Canadian coach, I headed back to Romeoville to catch the rest of the games for the night. Nothing really blew me away, but I was still feeling pretty good about my encounter with the Ontario club just a few hours earlier. Their next game was scheduled for 7:00am Sunday, so it was going to be another early day. I spent Saturday night doing a little research on the Ontario boys and unfortunately didn’t get to sleep until about 1:30am.

On my way over to the Romeoville rink Sunday morning, I debated whether or not I should bring a “Box-o-Joe” from Dunkin’ Donuts to the rink. I’d been to enough tournaments to know the parents probably didn’t get to bed early Saturday night and it might be a nice way to get to know them. On the other hand, I was worried that buying coffee for everybody would be a little too much. In the end, I bought the coffee and shared it with a handful of the parents while others were a little hesitant. The coach also grabbed a cup while we talked briefly before the game. Although my contribution might not have gotten the reviews that I had hoped for, bringing it certainly didn’t seem to hurt and may have only made me stand out in the parents’ minds a little more.  In most cases that’s a good thing – a few of the parents did in fact thank me for my hospitality.

Unfortunately, while my three potential advisees had another strong outing, their team fell in the quarterfinals. After the game, I was able to talk a little more with the coach and parents and I even got the chance to watch some of the remaining games with two of the three boys before they headed home. While I didn’t want to ask for their contact information, I made sure they had my card and told them to call if they needed any help with anything. I also let them know that when I get my Ontario trip figured out, I’d get a hold of their coach and make sure the word gets passed along to them. It’s funny how I only had met the kids twice for a total of about 30 minutes but it was sad to see them go.

To top off the weekend, I caught a semifinal match of the 95 AAA Bracket (to that point I had been following only the 95 AAA Elites), and finally the 95 Elites Championship between the L.A. Selects and the Westchester (NY) Express. While the final game wasn’t exactly a nail-biter (L.A. won 7-1), I was able to meet with two other coaches and get some positive responses back from them. While most of these leads might not pan out to anything, getting our hockey division (and myself for that matter) exposure could never hurt.  You never know what breaks you might catch.

IMG does not have a specific division for hockey, but it is experienced in marketing hockey players; it handled the marketing of Wayne Gretzky and Jaromir Jagr when they were in the NHL. IMG will look to expand on Ovechkin’s current endorsement portfolio which includes CCM, Energizer, Hair Cuttery, and Hockey Ink.

Ovechkin’s style of play on the ice and personality off the ice provide the foundation for incredible potential in product endorsements. On the ice, Ovechkin has scored some of the most impressive highlight-reel goals in the history of the game and still has energy to make the huge hits that hockey fans love to see. Off the ice, his personality is on display in interviews showcasing his contagious smile (interview starts at 2:00), love for the fun of the game, and pre-game antics which include racing a utility cart around the arena. The city of Washington D.C. fell in love with Ovechkin over the past couple years and it shows in ticket sales- the Capitals sold out all 12,000 season tickets this year.

What role did Ovechkin’s agent play in acquiring this marketing deal with IMG? Ovechkin’s representation is a roundtable that consists of his father, mother, financial adviser George Landa, and attorney Stephen Screnci. All decisions involving Ovechkin’s career are made collectively by that group. It would definitely be interesting to sit in on a negotiation involving all those parties, and they are obviously doing something right.

For a little insight on the negotiation of his $124 million contract which Alex and his mother conducted without an agent, watch this video at the 2:40 mark. You’ll notice the language barrier makes it hard for Alex to express in English exactly what he means, but IMG said it isn’t worried about that.

Matt gave his coach my office fax number and I let my partner know that the contract would be coming in at any time. I was going to need my co-worker to scan the fax and email me a PDF version of it – unfortunately for me, all this news came while I was working at the ice rink and the fax machine in our building wasn’t working. I waited an hour or so and we still had nothing. I called Matt up but he didn’t have much information for me either – apparently the coach hadn’t even talked numbers with him. I pulled the coach’s number up on my phone and hit “send.” Just then it struck me – if I get the coach on the line, I’m going to be handling my first contract negotiation. As the anxiety started to build, a part of me hoped to get his voicemail. I quickly calmed myself down by realizing that in a year or two, coaches at this level will be hoping I’m answering their phone calls – I’ve used this tactic before and it does actually help.

Right when I thought I was about to get his outgoing message, he answered. After a few moments of small talk, it’s time to talk numbers. When I was told how much they were willing to offer Matt, I was caught off guard big time – and not in a good way. I knew that Matt wouldn’t be making much in the AAHL, but the figure I was given was almost half as much as some players I know on other teams in the league earn. Quickly following the meager offer was the coach’s attempted justification – “You know this league is more about the opportunities that will come, not the money that’s earned.” I explained that I understood how the league works but that I was hoping he would be a little flexible with the figure. Matt plans to live at home during his time with the club so the team wouldn’t have to worry about housing costs. On top of that, Matt and I grew up only an hour away from the team’s home rink so each game he will have a handful of family members and friends paying the $8 admission. I tried to use both these factors to get Matt a little more, but I wasn’t getting much movement. Instead, I could sense some agitation on the other end of the phone.

After a few more minutes of pushing, I realized that this number wasn’t going anywhere. “I realize that you’re just doing your job as an agent and I respect that, but you need to tell Matt that we’re willing to offer him this amount of money per week…he can take it or leave it.” At that point I started to worry that I might have been a little too aggressive. I explained to the coach that I would pass the offer onto Matt and see how he feels. As I thought about the situation more and more, I began to realize that we needed this contract a lot more than the coach needed Matt. While having Matt on the team would surely help elevate the team’s level of play, if the deal wasn’t done, it’s not as if the coach was going to lose his job. On the other hand, if we didn’t get Matt signed, it could make it that much harder landing him on another team mid-season.

I called Matt up and we talked it over for a bit. I tried to explain all our options and suggested that maybe we just have him push the signing back one more day. The frustration of being released twice over the last few weeks had taken an emotional toll on the both of us and I could tell that Matt just wanted this suspense to be over, regardless of how much he’d be making. At the end of the day it really was his decision and so I told him that if he wanted to sign that night, just make sure he’s not stuck if a team in a higher league wants him later in the season. After we finally received the contract, I looked it over and it was pretty straightforward. Once I gave him the green light, Matt went in to meet with the coach. Just under an hour later, Matt was officially a pro hockey player. It might not have been as flashy as either of us expected, but it’s still another step in the right direction.

I figured that after I got Matt signed to his first deal, I’d be free from much of the stress that hung over me day after day. Twenty-four hours later, however, I was tossing and turning in bed  – my Bar Exam results were being released the next morning. Four months of studying, two-and-a-half days of testing, and three months of waiting had finally come down to this. By the time 5:50am central rolled around, I’d gotten about three hours of sleep. While I was completely exhausted, rest was the last thing on my mind – it was time to get up, load the Ohio Office of Bar Admissions website, and start hitting the refresh button until the names of those passing the July exam got posted. At exactly 6:00am, just as the bar examiners promised, there they were. But now I couldn’t decide if looking was such a good idea. I mean what if my name wasn’t up there? What would I do for money? Would I have to lie to my girlfriend? Shut up Scott, just look. I could feel my heart pounding through my chest as I scrolled down the list of names. My name wasn’t there!!! Then I realize that “Deady” comes after “Davis.” What an idiot. Keep going, keep going. Holy crap…I passed! Never had I felt such a weight being lifted off my shoulders. Within seconds, I got a call from my girlfriend, Bridget. I talked to her briefly and then texted some buddies who also passed the exam and anyone else I could think of.

But the excitement of my day didn’t end there – later that night, Matt had his first professional game not far from where I live. After a nice celebration dinner with my family, I drove up to the rink and it was pretty much what I expected – about 75 people in the stands and an acoustic guitar rendition of “The Star Spangled Banner.” Regardless, this was a special day for both Matt and myself. In the end, Matt’s team lost the game 4-3. Matt ended up with a minus one +/- rating, but he did have a couple of solid plays and nice hits. While the outcome may have been less than what we had hoped for, this was only the first of many games in what will hopefully be a long, successful career.

After the game, I went out with Matt and his family to grab some food and a few drinks. While there may have been a few jokes about the presentation of the game itself, I could tell that deep down everyone at the table was truly proud of Matt…myself included. And to be honest, that feeling is a big reason why I love doing this, despite all the frustration that comes along with it.

This Thursday, the annual Nike/Bauer International Invite will begin in rinks throughout the Chicagoland area. Much of the top young talent in the world will be in attendance – some of the age brackets there are as many as 80 teams competing. Years ago, when I was playing in a similar tournament, you could find future NHL talent including Zach Parise, Alexander Radulov, and Enver Lisin. Trust me when I tell you that the level of play hasn’t diminished since then. Needless to say, there’s going to be hordes of scouts and other agents floating around and the atmosphere should be incredible. I’m still working on getting in touch with the two Russian teams flying in and I’m hoping a client of mine playing professionally in Moscow can help me out. I’ll actually be giving him a call in just about an hour so hopefully that gets me somewhere.

By this time next week, I’d like to be explaining how I successfully pitched my firm to my next potential client. Until then, I’ll be sure to keep weekend updates posted on my Twitter account so follow along if interested. You can also find tournament details on their website at www.invitebauer.com.

My theory, on the other hand, is that the coaching staff didn’t think Matt would fit into their desired, “style of play.” In other words, I think it may have been because Matt’s not a fighter. While he was practicing with the team, Matt began to hear comments which led us to believe that this league would be more geared towards dropping the gloves than adopting the more open, finesse game. I understand that in the South, maybe that’s the only way to get people in the stands. But nevertheless, as a hockey purist, it’s hard for me to condone such practices if my suspicions are correct.

Either way, we’ve got to press on. After hearing the news, I immediately began calling other teams in the SPHL to find out if any of them were still looking to upgrade their final rosters after final cuts had been made. I wasn’t finding much luck there, but I had to keep trying. In the meantime, Matt was staying in Biloxi, Mississippi with his grandparents for a few days. There’s an SPHL team located in Biloxi, so I decided to set my cross-hairs on them and refuse to give up until I came up with something.

Tuesday morning, I placed a call to the head coach of Mississippi (I should note that the team’s website provided neither a phone number or email address – I had to get his office number through the team’s ticket sales line). Little did I know how hard getting a hold of him would be – three voice messages and two emails later, I still had nothing. I could sense Matt was becoming impatient too, and I’m quickly learning that as an agent, a lot of client frustration will be aimed in your direction, regardless of whether or not you’re deserving of it. As a last ditch effort, I decided to send Matt over to the rink Thursday to try and get a hold of the coach in person. Naturally, no front office officials were in when Matt got there so he was forced to leave a message with the coach’s secretary. I’ll let you guess whether Matt ever heard back either.

However, on Wednesday, Matt did get a call from a buddy of his who is close with a coach in the All-American Hockey League (the “AAHL”), a Single-A minor pro league in the Great Lakes area. Apparently the coach liked what he saw from Matt’s resume that I had sent him and was interested in bringing Matt in. Matt certainly would be a top player in the league and we’d rather he play somewhere that would push him to develop his game further, but I told Matt that at this point we just need to get him on the ice and hope opportunities at higher levels present themselves – he agreed.

I spoke with the coach on the phone Friday, and just this morning Matt began practicing with the team. They should let us know by tomorrow whether or not they’re going to sign him so hopefully we’ll soon be able to finally close the books on goal number one – getting Matt signed with a team. After that, it’ll just be keeping my eyes and ears open for any opportunity that Matt might be able to take advantage of.

In addition, in just under two weeks, a huge International amateur tournament will be held in my hometown of Chicago, IL. Some of the top young talent will be present, so I’ll have a great opportunity to scout some of the new up-and-comings. Two teams from Moscow are scheduled to be in attendance, so I’ve already began contacting some friends who have ties with many of the Russian clubs. And no, they’re not tied through the Russian mob, if that’s what you’re thinking.

In next week’s entry, I’ll give you more details on the tournament and any developments with Matt’s contract status. Until then, and as always, feel free to follow me on Twitter for up-to-the-minute news.

Recently, this proposal has been picked up by various major media outlets.  Tom Farrey’s piece on ESPN.com, sparked a lot of interest across the World Wide Web.  His story talks about a distinction within the same proposal I talked about in August, that would allow athletes who do not earn a professional salary, but play alongside other athletes that do, to retain their amateur eligibility (which apparently they forgo under the current NCAA Amateurism rules).  It definitely does not make sense that one athlete on a team could jeopardize the amateur eligibility of all of his teammates.

Here is a telling fact from the ESPN.com article,

Of the 490 incoming athletes penalized for amateurism violations last year, 434 were foreign students, according to the NCAA.

The NCAA Amateurism Cabinet held a meeting regarding this proposal on September 24.  For the full report from that meeting, click here.  The result regarding NCAA Proposal No. 2009-22: Men’s Ice Hockey will be excluded.  Here is the relevant justification section of that report:

The ice hockey community strongly believes that many more prospective student-athletes seeking to participate in NCAA Division I men’s ice hockey would elect to participate in Major Junior A hockey prior to initial collegiate enrollment. As a result, although the proposal would permit such activity, their eligibility status would likely be jeopardized once they became involved in the Major Junior A leagues (e.g., by being influenced to accept more than actual and necessary expenses, signing with an agent, or by signing a professional contract). The ice hockey community expressed concern that the Canadian Hockey League, the governing body for Major Junior A ice hockey, would intentionally attempt to jeopardize prospective student-athletes’ NCAA eligibility in order to retain their services and continued participation in their league. Further, the ice hockey community asserted that participation in Major Junior A hockey would be detrimental to prospective student-athletes’ academic success given the demands of participation in that league. Lastly, USA Hockey commented that the proposal would adversely impact future U.S. performance in international competition, including the Olympic Winter Games.

So ice hockey is out, but the rest of the NCAA sports are still attached to the proposed NCAA legislation.

Last, I want to touch on an interesting question that was brought to my attention by Minor Leaguer and prolific blogger, Garrett Broshuis.  Broshuis received an email from another MiLB player who noted,

The salaries that some guys make in short season or extended spring training aren’t even considered large enough for the NCAA to qualify it as a professional salary.

And Broshuis ends his piece by asking,

If a player receives a tiny signing bonus and never makes it out of short-season professional baseball, could he then maintain amateur status? This thought is as absurd as the current salary structure.

This is definitely out of the question if said player hires an agent.  Once an agency contract is signed by the player, he automatically loses his amateur eligibility, and once it is lost, it can never be returned.  But what if the player never hires an agent?  What are your thoughts?

As I’m sure you can gather, I’ve still yet to receive a contract offer from Louisiana for Matt. The good news is that Matt was able to get on the ice for the last few days and his shoulder has held up pretty well. I’ve talked to him pretty much every day he’s been down there and it sounds as though he’s been skating well, too. While his health and solid on-ice performances help to ease a lot of the tension surrounding the situation, I still just want to get him on this team and move on already.

Yesterday in Louisiana, the team had the day off. Most of the guys went out to the local shopping mall while others were at the hotel packing – a second wave of cuts had just been made. Matt hasn’t really been getting much information from the coaching staff down there, but I suppose at this point no news is good news. With the team having its first game this coming Thursday, though, I would imagine we’re going to hear something very soon. In fact, I’m going to be calling the GM in just about an hour, so maybe we’ll get something good then.

In other news, recently I met up with and had lunch with another player who might be looking for an agent. His name is actually Matt also, and he heard about me from my Russian “brother,” Oleg. At first, when Matt asked if he could have lunch or dinner with me some night to discuss his options, naturally I was a little skeptical – I mean I had never heard of the kid before or seen him play. But realizing that I was going to eventually have to pitch myself and my company to “can’t miss” prospects, I figured I’d go and get some good experience. Worst case scenario, I waste an hour of my day…and I need to eat lunch somewhere right?

The one major difference between the two Matts and their situations is that the Matt that I recently had lunch with hasn’t played in college yet. Seeing as how the NCAA is a group you don’t want to find yourself in trouble with, I decided to play this one very carefully. First off, I bought a digital voice recorder to bring along with me at our meeting. I figure that by recording the entire conversation, if the NCAA ever comes at me or Matt for violating regulations I can always produce the tape. Next, I wanted to be very upfront with Matt in explaining that I couldn’t buy his lunch or agree to represent him until he was absolutely sure that he didn’t want to play hockey at the NCAA level. His eligibility is important and is something can easily be lost. Instead, I let Matt know that I’d be there to answer any questions for him and try to advise him the best that I could. Matt explained that he wanted to play NCAA DI eventually but needed to get his grades up first. Naturally, I told him that I thought that would be a good idea.

Before I go any further, I should probably point out one thing (or I guess another thing) about hockey that makes it a lot different from other sports like football, basketball, or baseball. With hockey, if a player has the talent and makeup of a potential NHL star, he probably won’t be suiting up for a North American university any time soon. Instead, most of the players who make it to the show get drafted straight from Canadian Junior Hockey leagues like the Ontario Hockey League (the “O”), the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (the “Q”), and the Western Hockey League. Sidney Crosby, Patrick Kane, Rick Nash, and hundreds of other current and former NHL players are all products of Canadian Major Junior Hockey. And while there are always a few NHL Draft picks playing in the annual NCAA Frozen Four, most of these players were selected before they began their collegiate career. Just as it is with baseball, entering the draft doesn’t compromise a hockey player’s NCAA eligibility.

Anyway, as I was saying, my meeting with Matt wasn’t really an attempt to get a new client – it was more of an opportunity to further develop my ability to sell. With this year’s hockey season officially underway, hundreds of potential stars out there, and all the competition I can handle, I’m going to need all the practice I can get.

As always if and when I get some up-to-date information regarding Matt’s contract status I’ll be sure to post it to my Twitter page at www.twitter.com/scott_deady.

Finding a professional athlete work during a lockout might amount to getting him on teams in other countries or minor leagues in North America. This strategy was widely used during the last NHL lockout in the 2003-2004 season. Players like Chris Chelios played with fringe minor league teams close to home and family while others like Joe Thornton, who went to the Swiss Nationalliga, gave a boost to European leagues across the pond.

Agents and advisors learned from the 2004 lockout and came up with strategies to maintain cashflow to their client in the event of a future lockout. With the current NHL-NHLPA Collective Bargaining Agreement expiring after the 2011-2012 season (unless the players use their option to extend it), agents are negotiating a very practical provision into newly signed contracts. The Lockout Provision calls for a player to receive his signing bonus in the year in which a lockout could occur.

Milan Lucic is the beneficiary of this new provision. Lucic recently signed a three-year, $12.25 million contract extension. Most of the buzz about this extension centered around the fact that Lucic will be paid over $4 million in each year of his contract, yet he only tallied 69 points in his two NHL seasons. Obviously, Lucic got a great deal and should be very happy with his agent’s work here. But Lucic can also play the next couple seasons without the insecurity of possibly not getting paid after the 2011-2012 season; that’s because the Boston Bruins agreed to pay Lucic a $1 million signing bonus in 2012.

Not only does the Lockout Provision provide players with financial security in a time of job insecurity, it may also enhance the NHLPA’s bargaining position during CBA negotiations. If the Lockout Provision becomes more common in contracts, the NHLPA can use the fact that some players will be paid regardless of whether they play as leverage.

Also, within the past couple of days it seems as though our hockey division might have found its second official client. While Matt was attending the free agent camp at Texas a few weeks ago, he was placed in a shared apartment with a Canadian player named Nick, who was also in town for the tryout. After Texas didn’t work out, Nick moved onto a club in the IHL. Unfortunately, he was just released this past weekend and is naturally looking for a new team for the upcoming season. Matt had kept in touch with Nick after he left Texas and offered him a place to crash while he was still in the States. He also told him about the work I’ve been doing and let him know that he’d talk to me.

Saturday night I met up with Matt and Nick for a couple of beers to discuss both of their options. I’m going to make a few calls for Nick, including one to Louisiana, and we’ll see where it goes. I’ve only met Nick once and I’ve never personally seen him skate, but I trust Matt’s judgment regarding both his talent and, possibly more importantly, his character.

As opening night for leagues draws closer and closer, there are a lot of talented players who have found themselves on the cut lists of some teams, now scratching and clawing for the few rosters spots still available. Nick’s another big defense-man coming in at around 6’4”, 210lbs. In hockey, as with most other sports, size obviously helps, but it certainly doesn’t guarantee anything. In addition, I’m already faced with a possible conflict of interest. As a defense-man with good size, Nick could be in direct competition with Matt for a single roster spot. Even though I’m not taking a commission on any contract procured for Matt, he’s still my client and my loyalty has to fall with him first. When I talk to the Louisiana GM in a bit, I’m going to have to feel out the situation and see if maybe there’s room for both of them. If I can successfully pitch the idea to the club, everybody wins. If it doesn’t sound like that’s an option, I’ll just have to find an opportunity for Nick elsewhere.

Another option I’ve considered is sending the boys over to Europe. My goalie from OU played a season in Estonia and, with his connections, has since placed a few other former Bobcats with teams out there. Both Matt and Nick seemed interested in the idea so I’m going to try and find out what kind of offers the two of them could get. If Europe is ultimately the best option, I’ll want to see if I can get them signed as part of a package deal – it would certainly make the transition easier for them. For now though, I’m going to keep my focus on North America.

On a side note, it looks as though maybe my trip to Russia could be coming together soon. On Thursday, I received an email from a Russian friend explaining that my immigration documents are processing and that I should be getting an email from some Russian officials sometime this week. I was told to simply agree to whatever the documents require, but I have a feeling I’m going to give them a little more attention.

Until then, however, it’s just back to the phones, hoping to catch a break. As usual, I’ll be sure to post any contract signings updates via my twitter page.