A Stanley Cup is great for the resume of any NHL player, but the better and more popular choice among professional hockey’s best is ducking taxes and pocketing the difference.
A new and unusual report on the National Hockey League finds that 57 percent of 2014 NHL free agents chose teams in lower tax regions and states. Overall, by moving from teams in high tax areas, the 78 players saved a combined $7.9 million in salary this season alone.
One example: Frequent team jumper Benoit Pouliot’s shift from New York Rangers to the Edmonton Oilers saved him $575,752 in taxes. The reason: the taxes Edmonton players face are among the lowest in the league.
The study was jointly-released by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation and Americans for Tax Reform and used the stars of the NHL to show how taxes in different regions of North America impact workers.
In “Home Ice Tax Disadvantage,” the report aimed to show how income taxes impact labor mobility.
“Injuries can damage your favorite sports team. So can high taxes in your state or province,” said Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform.
“NHL players are just one example of highly skilled workers who have a choice of where to work” added CTF Federal Director Aaron Wudrick. “The same principles apply far beyond professional athletes, but also for doctors, engineers and CEOs of major companies. If high tax rates make it more difficult to attract free agents in the NHL, it’s not a stretch to believe it’s also be hard to attract other highly skilled workers. Governments need to keep that in mind when they’re considering the impact of tax rates on attracting top talent.”
Key findings:
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected].
