The ECHL made what it says is its final offer to the PHPA ECHL membership as a potential Dec. 26 strike deadline looms.
As of Friday afternoon, the ECHL membership of the Professional Hockey Players Association (PHPA) has gone on strike, forcing postponement of games across the league following the holiday break.
On Christmas Day, the ECHL made what it termed its “last, best, and final offer” to the Professional Hockey Players’ Association (PHPA).
According to an update on the league’s website Friday morning, the latest offer included an immediate 19.8% increase to the salary cap for this season – to be paid retroactively from the start of the season (which would be paid upon ratification.
The proposal also called for additional salary cap increases in future years, which would increase total player salaries nearly 27% from the current cap. The ECHL will continue to cover 100 percent of player costs for: fully furnished housing, utility and internet costs and medical and dental benefits.
Additionally, the offer aimed to improve health and safety, including: requirements for mandatory days off, addressing travel between back-to-back games and modifications to holiday and mid-season breaks.
According to a statement on the ECHL website, the league has made clear to union leadership that this was their last and best offer and that any future offers likely will need to account for losses in revenue attributable to missed games from a player strike.
“While we did not receive a formal response, we have heard from certain players that they will not be reporting for their scheduled games,” the ECHL statement said. “We strongly encouraged union leadership to submit our offer to a vote of its membership, but we do not believe that happened.”
In a Dec. 22 open letter from ECHL players to fans, the union accused the ECHL of “unlawful conduct” by making unilateral changes related to mandatory subjects of bargaining and began engaging in what the union called “regressive bargaining.”
“We have been bargaining since January 2025, and find ourselves unable to secure a new collective agreement due to the league’s ongoing unfair labor practices, which have undermined the bargaining process,” the letter stated.
The ECHL has disputed these claims. Following a Dec. 18 strike authorization notice, the PHPA ECHL membership served an official strike notice that took effect early Friday afternoon.
Teams across the league have postponed games scheduled for Friday, and fans are being offered refunds for tickets purchased.
According to the ECHL, it intends to play as many scheduled games as possible during this players’ strike. If two scheduled teams can roster enough players, the games will be played as scheduled. If not, the contest will be postponed with an attempt to reschedule at a later date. The ECHL will be making these decisions with as much advance notice as possible.
A work stoppage of any length would be a lose-lose proposition for everyone concerned, particularly the fans, who are caught in the middle of a labor dispute they have no control over.
This is an evolving story, so keep checking back with The Hockey News for further developments as they occur.