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 Well-known hockey writer Ken Campbell of The Hockey News is reporting that Donald Fehr, former executive director of the MLBPA (1986-2009), will continue running the NHL Players Association through the next round of collective bargaining agreement talks in 2012.
According to Campbell, “highly placed” sources from both the NHL and NHLPA told The Hockey News Fehr has decided to stay on under the position of interim executive director. The retired former MLBPA head will groom a successor while guiding the union through CBA talks.
But who will be that successor? After all, Fehr is in his 60s. Campbell says it could be one of former NHL players Chris Chelios or Mathieu Schneider.
Fehr’s first few months, Campbell says, have been a major success. He impressed agents in March, then “blew away” the executive committee, which consists of 30 player representatives. It is believed that Fehr could be officially in place as interim executive director by the time the players hold their North American meetings July 13-14.
Here is Campbell’s analysis of Fehr’s reported new position:
“Let’s deal first of all with what it means to the NHLPA. This corner finds it interesting the PA seems ready to coronate Fehr – and that is in no way a comment on Fehr’s integrity, which is apparently beyond reproach. But you’d think an organization that has been as rife with dysfunction and as burned by its hiring process as the NHLPA would not be eager to simply hand the job to anyone, Fehr included.
"And let’s not forget Fehr is currently working on the constitution and if that isn’t a conflict of interest, it certainly creates the perception of one. From the people I’ve spoken to about this, Fehr has attained almost god-like status in the NHLPA and is seen as the savior who will deliver the union from the abyss. That, in and of itself, presents more than a few potential pitfalls.”
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Matthew Coller is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network, and is a freelance writer. He can be followed on Twitter
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