Seniority Wages in the National Hockey League

James Brander and Edward J. Egan ()
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Edward J. Egan: Rice University

Eastern Economic Journal, 2018, vol. 44, issue 1, No 6, 84-96

Abstract: Abstract We show that NHL player salaries exhibit a strong seniority wage structure, as performance-adjusted salaries rise significantly with age for most of the relevant range, peaking about age 32 for forwards. To explain this finding, we estimate a wage equation for NHL forwards, focusing on the league-imposed contractual structure. We show that contract type (determined largely by age) is a significant explanatory variable, as older “unrestricted free agents” earn relatively high performance-adjusted salaries. However, tenure with a given team and age have additional explanatory power even after correcting for contract type, as is consistent with conventional reasons for seniority wages.

Keywords: seniority wages; sports contracts; NHL; hockey; L83; J41 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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DOI: 10.1057/s41302-016-0070-1

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