Walsh defends negotiated no-trade rights after Bettman comments
The NHLPA executive director says one off-season does not warrant immediate changes to trade protection.
NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh defended players' ability to negotiate trade protection on Wednesday, telling Sportsnet's The FAN Hockey Show that one summer of contentious cases did not call for an immediate response.
Walsh said he had not discussed the issue with commissioner Gary Bettman. In the interview, he described no-trade clauses as a contractual right and noted that general managers agree to include them in player contracts.
Bettman raised the issue on Oct. 1, questioning whether players using trade protection to help choose a destination matched its intended purpose. He said the league could discuss it with the union if the issue persisted, Sportsnet reported.
NHLPA assistant executive director Ron Hainsey had already defended the clauses earlier this month. TSN reported that Hainsey told The Athletic that teams must respect the protection they negotiated and obtain a player's consent for a trade to a blocked destination.
The sides ratified their current four-year collective bargaining agreement in July 2025. The NHLPA's announcement says it runs through the 2029-30 season.
